X-Men: Days of Future Past (An X-Fan's Review)

9.5/10

In 1995, a local comic book publisher (whose name I can’t recall) began printing X-Men Comics and selling them at your local CNA for R4.95. In the year or 2 that it existed, that publishing company played its part in hooking in a generation of South African comic fans, including yours truly.  As I got deeper into the mythology of the X-Men, I began discovering more grand story-lines: Age of Apocalypse, The Phoenix Saga, Onslaught, Inferno and Days of the Future Past (see image below). Back then, we could not imagine that stories of this epicness could ever be effectively represented on the big screen.

the cover of Uncanny X-Men #141 

Today, we live in a time where the difference between the printed page and the big screen is indistinct; where we can now watch the greatest story-lines in the 50 year history of X-Men brought to life on the big screen infused not only with the power of its source material but also the skill, coherence and grandeur of modern cinematic storytelling. X-Men: Days of Future Past is what happens when film makers get it right and craft a piece of X-Fan heaven.

A thrill ride of mutant powers, time travel, alternate universes, social commentary and giant killer robots, Days of the Future Past represents everything that is good about the superhero genre and everything good about what it will become. The strong performances by the ensemble cast, the incredible special effects, well-paced screenplay and reverence to the source material makes Days of the Future Past the most ambitious, but arguably the greatest, comic book film made to date.

While there are definitely issues to criticize and questions to ask, there is just so much to be excited about in the scale and ambition of this film, and what it means for the X-Men film franchise going forward. There isn't one true X-Fan who wouldn't appreciate what Bryan Singer has just achieved here. This is our childhood being brought to life on the big screen in a way that no one has done before.

Bring on X-Men: Apocalypse.