X-Men: First Class (June 3, 2011) (MC: 65, RT: 86%)

[Elites]

He's played by the same guy who did stelios in 300, badass is written all over magneto in this one. Rest assured fellas, the past xmen movies is gonna look like a fairy tale compared to this one judging by how awesome the trailer is alone.

[Salodin]

Idk, they keep showing the same action scenes over and over again. I know they wouldn't reveal everything in a trailer, but with how many new characters there are and how little time they have to give any of them substance, I'm holding my excitement as long as I can...

[Delirium]

supposedly it's a little over 2 hours and a lot of split screen stuff going on.

[Tyrath]

He's played by the same guy who did stelios in 300, badass is written all over magneto in this one. Rest assured fellas, the past xmen movies is gonna look like a fairy tale compared to this one judging by how awesome the trailer is alone.

Oh dear god you had to tell me that.

CANT UNSEE.

[Jefe]

Meh, I don't get hype. The only thing that catches my eye is the SR71. Also, needs more push ups bras, diggin' the woman in white with them knockers.

[Qalbert]

He's got the look down but i'll hold on saying he nailed it till I see the flick.

I mean, Dolph Lundgren looked the part in the Punisher then....yeah.

i was just making magneto=a boss joke

[6souls]

X-Men will have a running time of 131 minutes.

Reviews:

HitFix

Spoiler: show

I am happier overall with "X-Men: First Class" than with any other film released so far in the "X-Men" franchise at Fox. And I suspect that when I see it again before my full review, I may find even more to like about it. Right now, I'm still sort of in shock at how much of it works, and how ambitious the entire thing is.

I'll have a full review of the film closer to release, and in that, I might get a little spoilery. But my first impressions of the film are so strong that I want to share the big points without spoiling anything for you. First, there's the style of the world, the way the mutants are built into reality, and I think one of the things that makes this such a success is the confidence that's part of every choice made by Matthew Vaughn and his creative team. The film is set in the '40s and the '60s, and while I wouldn't call it realistic, I think the impressionistic take it offers on period is even more fun than if they did it as complete realism. The powers are so matter of fact, so much a part of the world, that it never feels like the film stops to show off. "Hey, look, this guy teleports!" Well, no duh. That's the sort of movie this is. People teleport. The film just takes that as a given, and so action scenes erupt without too much labored exposition or set-up. We learn how things work as the film needs us to, and not before. Characters are still discovering their own abilities, still learning how the world around them works.

Michael Fassbender emerges from this one a movie star, no doubt about it. He's a great Erik, a great nascent Magneto. He spends the first third of the movie auditioning for James Bond, and as far as I'm concerned, he can have the job whenever Daniel Craig's done with it. He is a hunter, his powers turned to one effort for his whole life. There's someone he wants to find, someone he wants to kill. When he finally crosses paths with Charles Xavier (James McAvoy), he's a raw nerve, totally unable to imagine trusting anyone, never even imagining that there might be more people like him in the world. Xavier is already hard at work trying to find a way to incorporate mutant society into the mainstream, and he's starting to make real headway. He's working with Moira McTaggert of the CIA (Rose Byrne), which is what puts him in the right place at the right time to meet Erik. It's not some cute little wink and a nod, either. Like the rest of the film, the stakes are high in that first meeting. There is an urgency to everything these people do that makes this feel like a more significant story than the average comic book movie.

In fact, there's nothing that I would really call "average" about this. It uses your expectations about the genre to set you up one way, then time and again, reaches for something a little bit more perverse or a little bit more eccentric or a little bit more heartfelt. "X-Men: First Class" is almost desperately sincere, and I mean that in a good way. Everyone in the film plays it like they're holding nothing back. Jennifer Lawrence, for example, is just as dedicated here as Raven, the blue shape-shifting mutant who has lived as a sort of pseudo-sister to Charles since childhood, as she has been in any of the indie films she's done so far. The way relationships evolve in this film is particularly heartbreaking, because it makes later configurations of people resonate in different ways. You look at who's hanging out with who in Singer's "X-Men" films now, and it hurts. Nicolas Hoult has been carving out a very strong career for himself since "About A Boy," and he turns the difficult-and-potentially-ridiculous role of Hank McCoy into something touching and smart.

I like the way history folds into the movie and it is clever without being annoying. It all makes nice thematic sense, and I think it's well utilized. I was afraid it was going to be very "Forrest Gump," but it's actually pretty simple and direct. I think Sebastien Shaw (Kevin Bacon) is a pretty tremendous bad guy, and the way he pushes Charles and Erik to further define their own moral codes makes him more than just This Movie's Magic Power. He's not "just" a bad guy. He is, in essence, the thing that forces Charles and Erik to figure out who they really are. January Jones doesn't have much to do as Emma Frost, but she wears the heck out of some costumes.

Between Sheldon Turner, Bryan Singer, Matthew Vaughn, Jane Goldman, and Ashley Edward Miller & Zack Stentz, this has not been an easy birth, but I am happy to report that it is a successful one. And this isn't a case of managed expectations, either. "X-Men: First Class" is a genuinely good movie, not just a good superhero movie. Big and bold and aggressively told, it feels to me like this is the first film in a brand-new franchise, and even the few very wicked and enjoyable references to Singer's films that are hidden in this one don't tie it down. This is ground zero, and I think Fox just got it right, really right, in a way I can't say it feels like they have on any of their Marvel films so far. With the right support, and with this film's key creative team onboard, a sequel to this could well be the "X-Men" epic we've been waiting for since day one.

For now, this is one hell of a start.

http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/motion-c...erhero-thrills

SlashFilm

Spoiler: show

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to see Matthew Vaughn‘s X-Men: First Class. Over the last year, we’ve heard about how the film had morphed from the original concept of X-Men Origins: Magneto into a prequel/reboot in the same style of what JJ Abrams did for the Star Trek franchise. I can confirm that the completed film is exactly both of these things. It fits right in with Bryan Singer’s first two X-Men films and is probably the second best film in the series next to X-Men United. And I say that with a certain but of nostalgia for the sequel, as it came out at a time when comic book adaptations didn’t strive to be anything more than popcorn fun. But the more and more I think about it, the more and more I think Vaughn’s film might have surpassed it.

Going into the film, I had so many expectations (most of which were set-up by the trailers). I had assumed that the advertising was being packed with all the moments in an effort to sell a action-less origin story, but I was surprised at how much action was actually the film. I don’t think anyone will see this movie and come out disappointed. It strikes a great balance of being accessible to non-comic book fans and packing some pretty cool easter eggs that comic geeks will love (I will keep this vague as I don’t want to spoil any of the fun).

While I have read a lot of X-Men comics in the 1990′s, I’m not really clear on the origins on some of these characters and what events in the comic universe led to certain situations. So while I’m unable to assess how faithful it is to comic book canon, I will say that everything is handled quite nicely. Picky fans might notice some continuity nitpicks and possible timeline issues (especially if you look at this as a prequel to the film series), but nothing major

And Vaughn adds his trademark style to the series in all the right moments, without making the cinematography feel out of place in the period setting. For example, one such moment (and I wouldn’t consider a spoiler in any way) is Hank McCoy’s transformation into Beast. Vaughn handles the sequence like a werewolf transformation, but shot in a way I’ve never seen it before, from Hank’s POV. It is very cool. There is a bit of cheesy dialogue, especially in the scenes that focus on the younger mutants. But at the core, this is a story about Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr (played brilliantly in this film by James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender), two best friends who will become enemies at the center of the mutant revolution.

http://www.slashfilm.com/early-react...ns-xmen-class/

Bleeding Cool

Spoiler: show

So, here are Five Things about X-Men: First Class, ahead of a full review. If you have any absolutely burning questions, please put them in the forum and if I can, I’ll address them soon.

1. It’s The Spiritual Prequel To X2

Not only does this film fit very snugly into the continuity of Bryan Singer’s two X-movies (more snugly that we can even talk about, for now), it also seems to really belong in the same set. Which is to say, after I’d been bowled over by X2 and its blend of big fun and big ideas, I wanted more. And now, eight years later, I’ve got more.

And now, I want even more. X-Men: Sophomore Year, please.

2. It’s Full But It Doesn’t Burst

First Class contains some of the briskest and most efficient storytelling I’ve seen in any recent blockbuster. An awful lot happens, and awfully quickly at times, but it’s all clear and while some nice moments might be over in the blink of an eye, this can only reward repeat viewers.

There’s a sequence later in the film, from which much of the material for the “character trailers” was gathered, that actually uses split screen to crack the pace up one more notch. This film does not hang around – and at over two hours of running time, that’s a virtue, because when nothing drags, and the audience don’t get bored, the minutes just whistle by.

There are some characters who get short shrift and aren’t allowed the space, or focus, that would have allowed them to really come to life – Riptide and Azazel, definitely, and Darwin, perhaps; and Moira McTaggart sort of fades away for a while, but while she’s around, some of her scenes are great.

An amazing amount of the characters are sketched out most deftly. It’s that efficiency again.

3. James McAvoy Nails it

I don’t think you can really call the star of a film a scene-stealer, but McAvoy is the best thing in more or less every sequence he’s in, which translates to more or less all of the film. He even gets the opportunity to pull off some great little comedy bits and, when necessary, packs just enough emotional punch.

I don’t know how much McAvoy studied Patrick Stewart to prepare for the role, but I know this: I didn’t once think of Patrick Stewart while watching the film. I just thought of a young Charles Xavier, what he believed in, what he stood for, what would drive him, and how he could sometimes trip himself up.

Similarly, the two actors to play Erik Lensherr – Bill Milner and Michael Fassbender – both bring the appropriate gravitas and rage, and the character, ultimately, attains the necessary hint of serenity.

More on the cast in my full review. Lots of them do interesting things.

4. How True Is It To The Comics?

I don’t really know how true the film is to the comics, if I’m being honest. There’s an awful lot of comics, and they seem to contradict themselves an awful lot. There’s some interesting work done in making sense of bits of disparate comics continuity within this one new framework, and a lot of “grounding” of things that might go unexplained on the page. The jumpsuits everybody wears are completely sensible, for example, and there’s even a range of reasons that explain why Emma Frost is always dressed the way she is. Fun details that will make for some nice, chewy debates.

5. So… Is It Any Good?

Oh, hell yes. I really would recommend you go see it.

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2011/05/...-you-about-it/

Hey U Guys

Spoiler: show

Fox’s X-Men franchise has become a little tarnished of late. After two very good movies, that used superpowers as a background to themes of isolation, discrimination and acceptance, we had two less good films, let down by poor storytelling, and bad CGI. It’s rather pleasing then, that X-Men: First Class takes the series back to its roots, both figuratively, in terms of the character-focused drama, and literally, as we open with an almost shot-for-shot recreation of the beginning of Bryan Singer’s first X-Men film. In doing so, the film makes itself instantly familiar, and also, instantly engaging.

That sense of engagement carries throughout, as the story covers much less familiar territory. After an expansion on young Erik’s experience in the death camp, and a brief introduction to a young Charles Xavier, we move forward to the 1960s, and the film enters the world of Connery-era bond. With a mix of scantily-clad girls, nuclear threat, and a submarine-bound evil villain, the movie could well have veered into Austin Powers-style parody, but Vaughn manages to stay on just the right side of camp, keeping his tongue firmly out of his cheek, but also reserving the real sincerity for the relationships between the characters.

Indeed, it is in the treatment of the characters, and their relationships that the film really triumphs. Wisely Fassbender, McAvoy and Lawrence don’t even attempt to mimic the performances given by Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart and Rebecca Romijn in the earlier films in the franchise. Instead, Fassbender’s Erik feels almost Bond-like, both in his intelligence, and in his drive to get the job done, while McAvoy plays Xavier as a charming but conceited version of TV illusionist, Derren Brown. This creates a beautiful interplay between them, and their relationship, both the close friendship, and the underlying tension, is believable and immensely enjoyable to watch.

Alongside this pair, Lawrence holds her own as Raven. The close, fraternal relationship she shares with McAvoy’s Xavier in the film may well upset the dribbling fanboys, angry at any change to canon, but also serves as a strong counterpoint to the interplay between McAvoy and Fassbender, and she is very much the emotional heart of the film. Around this core trio, the rest of the ensemble cast work perfectly, and the decision to keep the number of characters down means that each of the supporting cast feel fully rounded, and not simply there as fodder.

The other key relationship for the film is that between Singer and Vaughn, and frankly it’s seamless. Vaughn’s ability to direct action, and sense of humour run through the film, while the film still feels very much like a part of the world Singer created in his movies.

http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2011/05/21...ompleted-film/

Blogomattic 3000

Spoiler: show

This Friday I was fortunate indeed, I was among the first to see X-Men: First Class. While we’re not able yet to publish my full review of the film (that will come on 25 May), we can at least give a taster of what you can expect when the film opens at the start of June. Without doubt, I can assure you that it is well worth the wait.

After an original, two sequels and an offshoot, you’d be forgiven for assuming that you know what to expect when walking into a theatre to see the latest in the X-Men franchise. You’d be wrong. X-Men: First Class does not forget what came before, in fact there are nods to it throughout, both fun and terribly sad, but fresh faces have breathed new life into familiar characters and their battle for acceptance has an added touch of humanity. For the first time, and I realise I may be more immune to superheroes than most, I warmed to the X-Men. James McAvoy (Charles Xavier), Jennifer Lawrence (Raven/Mystique) and director Matthew Vaughn (Kick Ass, Stardust) deserve much credit for bringing X-Men up to date, refreshed, while, ironically, taking it back in time.

X-Men: First Class takes us back to Oxford in the early 1960s and the efforts of Professor Xavier to bring together an academy of mutated humans, starting with his adopted sister Raven (Jennifer Lawrence), known to us as Mystique, and friend Erik (Michael Fassbender) or Magneto. The misfits are a likeable, if high maintenance bunch, including Nicholas Hoult’s Beast, Zoë Kravitz’s Angel, Edi Gathegi’s Darwin and, a particular favourite of mine, Caleb Landry Jones’s Banshee. Watching these superheroes, or superhumans, embrace their mutations with stumbles along the way, quite literally, makes for a fun first half of the film. And then we have the next act and everything reaches a whole new level. Responsible for this is Kevin Bacon’s Sebastian Shaw, whom Magneto met during Europe’s darkest days. This twisted relationship between Erik and the man who is, in effect, his creator, is enormously powerful and, setting everything else aside, rings true.

There is all the excitement, pace and spectacle that you would expect and want from an X-Men film, but what makes X-Men: First Class a film that I can’t wait to see again is the people in it. Jennifer Lawrence (Winter’s Bone) is one of the true marvels. Vulnerable and fierce, Lawrence’s Mystique has extraordinary depth and much of it is portrayed with no need for words. Whether blue and proud or white and ashamed, this Mystique reflects better than most here the blur between good and evil. But alongside Lawrence we also have fantastic performances from James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Kevin Bacon to name just three. For creating this new X-Men world, from which one sequel at least should be demanded, we should be grateful to director Matthew Vaughn.

http://www.blogomatic3000.com/2011/0...ler-free-view/

[6souls]

Clips with spoilers

Character Trailer: Mystique

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNeVFMLsAVk

Magic Trick

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3qfPYZKbpc

You Can Show Off

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZePMEMT0ivU

Character Trailer: Beast

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ty-iLRR2Pt4

Character Trailer: Havok

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3SkCiO9pEg

Character Trailer: Banshee

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6YwctbDIfY

[6souls]

Spanish star of TV and film, Alex Gonzalez marks his Hollywood feature debut in a major role with X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. Giving his first interview in English on the film’s set, Gonzalez shares the tale of his experience as the latest star of the X-MEN franchise.

How exciting is it to be a part of this big X-MEN world?

It’s very exciting. For every actor who is starting his career, it’s very different to get a film like this one, but for Spanish actors, it’s a bit more difficult, especially for Spanish actors with my level of English!

But I’m very excited, because I’m an X-MEN fanatic and I’m very happy to be here. Today, I was watching the rehearsal, and sometimes I feel that I’m outside of it. It’s wonderful. I have to say, “Come on, I’m here, I’m working. I’m not the audience. I’m inside, not outside.” It’s really nice.

How did you know the X-MEN?

I have to be honest, I haven’t read a lot of the comics, but of course I watched all the movies a few times. I’m a very big X-MEN fan.

Tell us about your character.

My character is Riptide. Riptide is not very popular as a villain, but in the beginning he started working with Mr. Sinister. In the movie he doesn’t have any relationship with Mr. Sinister, so it’s not like in the comic book.

He’s working with Sebastian Shaw, played by Kevin Bacon. Basically, he can control the wind – he can throw gusts with his hand. But when he’s very angry, he can create a tornado around him.

It’s fun, but it’s a little bit difficult to create in real life. I have to put myself on a spinning trailer, which spins very fast. So the first fifteen minutes it’s funny, but after that it’s a bit dangerous for other people. They need to carry umbrellas, because I feel like I’m about to throw up at any second! It’s very easy to get sick.

Where is the character from?

He’s Mexican. His name is Janos Quested. Fortunately, at whatever moment when he was creating the character, that X-MEN writer decided he was Mexican. Fortunate for me, because I’m here!

Is your character angry often?

Yes, he’s very dangerous. But, you know, he comes across very respectably and he’s very polite. For me, he’s just like a tornado. When you see a tornado from afar, it’s calm. The only thing that you can see is a kind of tube. But inside, up close, it’s very dangerous.

Inside of Riptide everything is very fast and very angry. He looks like he’s under control, but in the moment that Mr. Shaw gives me the sign, I just blow it, because I’m looking forward to doing that and to showing everybody. He’s a bit egocentric and in the moment when he’s a tornado, he’s enjoying it all the time.

We all feel a little bit of pain for our gift. These guys, right now they feel a little bit embarrassed to be mutants. But I really think everyone can recognise something in this movie, because at some point in all of our lives we’ve felt a little bit estranged. Then you discover yourself, and it’s nice.

Is it nice being a villain?

Yes, because in Spain all the characters I’ve had a chance to play have been good – maybe for my face, because people tell me my face looks like a good boy’s. I’m not so sure, but directors seem to think that! It’s really nice to play a bad guy and it’s a challenge to me. It’s a great chance to be something different.

It’s a big cast, have you been enjoying working with them?

Absolutely, not only for the fact I’m doing the X-MEN, which is very rich as an experience for me, but because I’m living in London and improving my English. Even though in Spain I did several films, I have the feeling like I’m doing my first film again. And my first interview right now.

I have the feeling that everything is starting again as an actor for me, because everything is different. There are 500 people in the crew. Everything is very different, everything’s very big. Everything’s in English, which is a big detail for me! I feel very fortunate to be here.

Everyone in Spain told me, “Wow, you’re doing X-MEN, your career is going to change,” but I don’t think like that. I hope so, but I don’t want to think about the result. I just want to think about the process, because the process is very fun. And maybe the story of me doing this movie is the story I’m going to tell my grandsons, and I’m going say, “Your grandfather, 50 years ago he was in X-MEN in Hollywood,” or maybe not. But I don’t want to think about it. All I want to do is live the moment – here, now. It’s really nice.

How did you get the part?

I was in England, learning English. I had been there the first two weeks in August. My manager called and told me that I had to go to London to audition for X-MEN. It was my first audition in English and I didn’t quite believe it. But I said, “OK,” so I was here, I did the audition, and ten days later I’d forgotten completely about it, and actually I was doing a picture for a magazine in Spain and I found out I had to go straight to the airport to meet with Matthew, the director.

I said, “Who’s Matthew?” She told me, “The X-MEN director.” Two hours later I was at Pinewood, talking with Matthew. And a few months ago, my English was even more terrible than it is now. It was impossible for me to say anything. He was patient with me, and we talked for about fifteen minutes.

The casting director said, “Go home, and maybe we’ll see you next Friday.” I said, “Yes, that’d be great!” And she said, “No, you don’t understand me – you have to get your luggage and come here next Friday because you’re going to be here for four months and you’re going to play Riptide.” I couldn’t believe it!

In a couple of days I had to round up my luggage and come here. Actually, today, I was thinking about my motorcycle, my car and my home back in Spain, because I thought, “Oh, I left my motorcycle outside!” Probably I’ll go back and someone will have stolen it!

Are you going off to Georgia to do the last scene?

Yes, we go next Friday. It’s going to be funny, because every one of us is going to have our own little bit on the beach. It’s 15 pages of the script, so it’s a big scene, but it’s going to be fun.

http://geeksyndicate.wordpress.com/2...z-aka-riptide/

[6souls]

Charles Meets Raven

Spoiler: show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbXKaNZmzDU

Behind the Scenes

[6souls]

Sneak Peak Trailer (Darwin's powers shown)

[Kaylia]

How did you know the X-MEN?

I have to be honest, I haven’t read a lot of the comics, but of course I watched all the movies a few times. I’m a very big X-MEN fan.

Lol

[Qalbert]

loooooooooooooooooooooooool

[Milkster]

How many fans just died on the inside reading that?

[Delirium]

Prolly a lot. That being said, comic book fans are insane for the most part. I don't think a person has to be a huge fan of the series or character to portray it well. Plus, the guy is playing Riptide. Does anyone really care about a secondary character that much? Even comic writers jut kill him off/clone him over and over anyway.

[Sunrider]

How many fans just died on the inside reading that?

I'll admit, I get temporarily skeptical the moment I hear an actor or otherwise filmmaker admit unfamiliarity with the source material. Is it wrong to say that it feels like a bit of an insult? Maybe I'm not conveying this properly.

At any rate, Kevin Spacey was never big on Superman, and he was perhaps the best part of Superman Returns. Hugh Jackman was never much into comics either (let alone Wolverine himself), and he's done excellently. I don't really judge a performer (not permanently) on their familiarity with the source material. If the writing and direction is up to snuff, the actor will nail it anyway.

Now the writer and the director are people I'd like to be familiar with the source material.

[6souls]

Every one of the stars has said that in their interview. None have read the comics until they got the part, but all have seen the movies.

[6souls]

Every one of the stars has said that in their interview. None have read the comics until they got the part, but all have seen the movies.

[arus2001]

As someone who grew up in a town without a comic book store, nor can I even think of one within a 30 mile radius, I'm not at all surprised you'll get actors popping up who've never read this stuff, especially girls. I'd figure comic fans face similar discriminations as those who like anime and whatnot, in that a lot just think it's stuff for kids.

[Fhloston]

Movie is getting nothing but great reviews so far. Most likely gonna check it out. Few hardcore comic nerds I know are still raging when they see trailers/commercials for this lol.

At 100% on RT. It'll go down of course, just how much though?: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/x_men_first_class/