X-Men : Apocalypse (2016) Movie Review

X-Men Apocalypse stands out from the rest of the X-Men saga (Major Spoilers Ahead!)

Directed by: Bryan Singer
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Oscar Isaac, Nicholas Hoult, Rose Byrne, Tye Sheridan, Sophie Turner, Olivia Munn, Lucas Till with special participation of Hugh Jackman
Studios: 20th Century Fox, Bad Hat Harry Productions, Kinberg Genre, The Donners' Company, Marvel Entertainment, Hutch Parker Productions
Plot: After an ancient mutant, named 'Apocalypse' is awaken, he decided that the world needs to be cleansed and destroy in order to build a better world and restore order. 
So far, 'Days of Future Past' is my favorite X-Men film in the series. It's intelligent. It's bombastic. It's nostalgic. Until this one came. Yes, right now, 'X-Men Apocalypse' sits on the top of my list as my most favorite X-Men film to date. It's also one of my most favorite films this year alongside Batman V Superman and Captain America : Civil War. It has everything that I loved in 'Days of Future Past' and so much more. Nothing could I ever ask for.   *Spoiler Alert*


First, the story itself. Yeah, I know. It's premise is the classic superhero movie set-up where the protagonists must come together to defeat a powerful villain. Nothing really special about it. This storyline has been recycled in almost every superhero movie that we've seen, from 'The Avengers' to 'Guardians of The Galaxy'. But despite that, we still enjoy it. And that's where the movie plays it's cards well. It's brings characters that we would definitely enjoy in a single storyline to make it work. The same exact aspect that made me love 'The Avengers' and 'Captain America : Civil War'.

Speaking of characters, one thing that we all could agree on about this film is that it has one of the biggest numbers of superheroes joining a single storyline. The whole film seems like a parade of all the mutant characters that we've loved. We get to see Mystique, Charles Xavier, Magneto, Beast, Quicksilver, Jean Grey, Cyclops, Storm, Havok, Nightcrawler, and yes, Wolverine, a single storyline plus a whole lot more. I mean, who in the world wouldn't want to watch that?

Each one of these characters are amazingly portrayed with a powerhouse cast. Jennifer Lawrence is obviously the star of the show, as previously seen in 'Days of Future Past'. Maybe it's more on the box-office side, since she is the only one who can attract millions of moviegoers to see the film as compared to the rest of the cast. But come one. Watching Jennifer Lawrence kicking asses here and there is always gonna be a pleasure in our eyes. Anyone missing 'Hunger Games'?

James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender are still enjoyable to watch as former allies turned enemies Charles Xavier and Magneto. But in this film, Michael Fassbender will definitely get more attention as he is able to show off a bit of his acting prowess while his character goes a tragic series of events that will lead to his change of alliance from good to evil. The rest of the new actors in this film are also commendable for bringing new lives to the characters that we've loved.

 I loved Tye Sheridan's portrayal of Scott Summers. He is just perfect for his role. He has this classic American boy looks and attitude. Sophie Turner is also great as Jean grey. She and Sheridan shares a really nice chemistry and I really love seeing them together. The script tried so hard to make Nightcrawler (Kodi Smith McPhee) a source of comic relief but it ended up a bit stale. He was fine in terms of his portrayal of the character, but his jokes kust don't work (like Spiderman's jokes in their fights scenes from 'Civil War'). Rose Byrne's comeback as CIA operative Moira  Mactaggert is also a plus of the movie. I'm a big fan of her and I embraced her glorious, yet sad return (since she doesn't remember the love she shared with Charles X after he erased her memories in "X-Men: First Class").

Ofcourse, Oscar Isaac's portrayal of the first ever mutant Apocalypse/ En Sabah Nur, is another highlight of the film. He is so freaking scary as compared to other superhero villains we've seen like Loki, Ultron, Dr. Doom, the Red Skull, Captain Zod, and so on. He is really menacing and brooding. Plus, the way his powers are presented in the film are really disturbing. We see people getting their necks sliced with moving sand particles, people getting swallowed by the ground, infrastructures being disintigrated and all sorts. Oh, and have I mentioned Wolverine (Hugh Jackaman) and his cameo/ introduction to the XMen storyline. Yeah, it was the most brutal, most violent, and the bloodiest portrayal of Wolverine on film, ever.

But the one thing that will be forever remembered in this film: their ever adorable version of  Marvel's Quicksilver played by Evan Peters. You definitely have to watch out for his Running Man sequence which mirrors the predecessor's kitchen scene. This time, to the soundtrack of Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams". Oh, God! That was epic. Totally badass.

The film's technical aspects are also commendable. From ancient Egypt to 1980's America, your eyes will feast over a lucsious visual effects imagery. Depictions of chaos and destruction are also going to fill the screen. Gorgeously designed and created costumes, one can't help but admire Apocalypse' wardrobe to Nightcrawler's amazing make up and prosthetics. It's just a visual treat to the eyes.

Plus, another thing that I loved about the film is it's simple yet mysterious post-credits scene. The scene, which showed the abandoned Weapon X facility as it is infiltrated by a paramilitary team that begins retrieving data on Stryker's mutant research, including an x-ray and a blood sample marked "Weapon X", on behalf of Essex Corporation. This sets up the upcoming Wolverine sequel, as well as Gambit and the next X-Men film following those.

This third film in the new X-Men trilogy is so badass than the first two. Only thing that I hate is that they killed off Havok (Luacs Till). Still I just hope that we get to see the planned "Gambit" and "Wolverine" movies. Therefore, I don't really agree with Jean Grey's comment on movie trilogies. "At Least We Can All Agree The Third One Is Always The Worst." Sorry, Jean but I beg to disagree.