In less than a month, audiences around the world are going to see what is perhaps Hugh Jackman’s last movie as the character of the Wolverine. “Logan” premieres next month, and all signs are pointing to the fact that this movie might not just be the best Wolverine film, but perhaps one of the best “X-Men” films to date. In recent interviews, it’s clear that everyone involved in the creation of the film are giving it everything they have.
“There is not a frame of this film where I can’t say I didn’t put everything into it,” Jackman said in a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, going on to explain how his decision to end playing Wolverine in this film led him to dig deeper than ever before. “I couldn’t have made this film if I didn’t make the decision within myself that this was the last one. I just didn’t compromise on anything. I was a pain to a lot of people, because I don’t get another shot at this. This is a character I love. I owe my career to this character.”
It’s not just Jackman who thinks he’s giving his best Wolverine performance yet. Co-star Patrick Stewart joins Jackman in “Logan” and has nothing but rave reviews. “…I believe what he does in ‘Logan’ is quite extraordinary. The aging, the sadness, the weariness, the borderline despair he exhibits coupled with that edge that has always been there is quite remarkable,” said said.
“Logan” is directed by James Mangold, returning after directing the last film in the series, “The Wolverine.” The two previous films in the series haven’t quite landed well with fans and critics. The first film, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” is universally disliked, with “The Wolverine” being better, but not great. Part of what makes this new film feel so special is the apparent creative control that Mangold had during its production.
One indication of this control is the film’s lack of cameos. Obviously, Fox would be delighted to have special cameos from different X-Men characters, but Mangold and co. really wanted to make this film unique, which meant almost no ties to previous films.
“There were times early on in the story where I played with the idea of Hugh coming along, and I don’t want to give away anything, but I played with there being an underground railroad where there were a couple of other mutants that he met on the journey. It always seemed to detract from the loneliness of the story though and became a kind of cameo,” he told We Got This Covered. “Still, there was always a curiosity. I’m so cautious of it though, despite how much fans want it to happen. You find these moments where you’re trying to please people and write these scenes where they’ll bump into somebody but it always just seems like an awkward cameo unless you can make it fit organically and the character is integral to the story.”
If nothing else, “Logan” has one thing that separates itself from the previous “X-Men” films – restraint. Looking at the entire series of movies, maybe some of the other directors could have used a little of that themselves. As for the future, Mangold is already teasing another movie with X-23, played by Dafne Keen.
”I think Dafne is incredible in the film and I would love to see another film about that character and that’s certainly something I’d be involved in. For me that was one of the big additions I brought to the table, this decision to try to make the film about family and to try to insert Laura and the pressures that would put and the idea about Charles ailing,” he told WGTC.
But let’s not put the cart in front of the horse. “Logan” arrives on March 3rd.