X-Men: Apocalypse: The Reviews Are In
There’s an ancient, pernicious evilentering the X-Men universe – a vast, ageless foe greater than their combinedstrength and determined to lay waste to all they stand for; its name? Bloat.
Good old fashioned franchise bloat and it’s resulted in some of the most
scathing reviews since X-Men: The Last Stand.
The reviews are in and they’re…meh...X-Meh...
Variety, citing the franchise impeccable pedigree,
were understandably disappointed:
“If you’ve seen one cinematic apocalypse,
you’ve seen them all. At least that’s the feeling conjured by “X-Men:
Apocalypse,” the latest entry in one of the more reliable comic-book franchises
around, this time disappointingly succumbing to an exhausting case of
been-there- done-that-itis.”
But what are the specific symptoms of thisaffliction? Well The Hollywood Reporter can help you with this diagnosis:
“Narratively jumbled and jammed with somany characters that you give up keeping them all straight while simultaneously
lamenting not seeing more of those you might actually want around, Bryan
Singer’s fourth entry in the enormously profitable series he inaugurated 16
years ago undeniably builds to a cataclysmic dramatic reckoning. But mostly it
just feels like a bloated, if ambitious attempt to shuffle as many mutants and
specially gifted characters as possible into a story of a resurrected god ready
to take over the world.”
That ambition seems to ultimately be what bringsthe movie down, Indiewire have drawn comparisons with the recent MCU/DCU fare
and found much to make the X-Men stand out in a crowded superhero market.
“Apocalypse,” for all its faults, has the
audacity to make the MCU look small, and the conviction to make the DCU — if
there even is such a thing — look foolish for confusing self-seriousness with
gravity. If only these characters were allowed to be as complex as the ideas
they fight for, “Apocalypse” could have represented a new beginning for
superhero cinema.”
But that ambition is also what divides critics– the reviews are very much ‘you’ll have to decide yourself’ some find the
scope impressive enough to overlook the shortcomings while others can’t let the
shortcomings lie.
Hitflix hits the nail on the head with its
largely positive review:
“I can imagine Bryan Singer making an X-Men movie every few years for the rest of his life. Sometimes he’ll get it right.Sometimes it won’t quite work. But it’s clear that he is all-in at this point,
and there’s always something to like about one of these films. If familiarity
is a problem for you, then you’ll definitely have your issues with the film,
but as franchise management goes, this is largely effective spectacle.”
X-Men: Apocalypse opens everywhere on May 19th.
