Haiku Revieu | Logan

Logan
★★★★

Wolverine is old
Taking care of Charles X.
They both curse a lot

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In the near future, a weary Logan cares for an ailing Professor X somewhere on the Mexican border. However, Logan's attempts to hide from the world and his legacy are upended when a young mutant arrives, pursued by dark forces.

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Going into Logan, I only knew two things: The movie would be a hard one to watch—I tear up every time I see the trailer with "Hurt" played with it—and it wasn't an X-Men storyline I was familiar with. (I've never read the Old Man Logan comics, which I heard the film was loosely based on?) Still, I wanted to see it, particularly because it featured an R-rating, and I was curious to see how the Wolverine and Professor X we "know" would translate to a more adult film.

And Logan is definitely a more adult film. I'm not typically squeamish when it comes to action gore, but there were a few scenes in which Logan stabbed someone with his claws and I cringed and hid my eyes. Little Laura (newcomer Dafne Keen, who is awesome) is brutal, too. And hearing Professor X spout the F word is jarring. (Hearing Logan call someone a motherf**ker, however, is actually really fitting for his character.) All of the more adult themes fit with the movie's plot and feel, though—the film is bleak and heartbreaking, and watching someone get stabbed through the chest in a ridiculously over the top manner adds a bit of levity¹ to a movie that otherwise might break you.

That's not saying it didn't break me. I cried—hard—and for way more of the film than I'd been expecting. (Yes, even with my feelings toward the "Hurt" trailer in mind.) Watching Logan and Professor X as old, broken men, rather than superheroes, did a number on my emotional state. Add to that the fact that Old Charles reminded me of my own father, and the fact that the day Patrick Stewart leaves us² will be a day I call out of work sick because I will be that distraught, and I felt like I'd taken a beating alongside Logan. And that's not even taking into account when [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] happened. (Happy to chat about the REDACTED moments in the comments.)

All that said, I think the movie was great, and I love that although part of it was an ending, it left the door open for further adventures with Laura and the rest of project X-23.

Check it out:

¹I know that's a strange word to use in this situation, but I think you know what I mean.
²Knocking on all wood that this NEVER HAPPENS.