'Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue'
After eagerly anticipating the release of the latest addition to Marvel's X-men franchise, X-Men: Days of Future Past, I was left surprisingly disappointed and bored. Once started, the storyline became quickly predictable and though there was the odd twist along the way, it remained slow and simply failed to deliver.
One of the redeeming elements was the visual effects, which at times were fantastic, as were the inclusion of characters from previous films. Combining this with the introduction of some new faces - which always peaks an interest - the producers should have been on to a winner.
But alas they weren't, with the overall execution of the storyline failing to achieve an exciting precipice and the key moment which defined the film proving contradictory. In truth, the film wasn't as I had expected. I was expecting a battle. A battle of good versus evil, of mutants versus the latest threat to the world. I was expecting the ever-reliable Wolverine to do what he does best - destruction. Yet this didn't happen and any appeal Wolverine may have previously had, evaporated.
While the film did manage to keep my attention throughout, it was always on the belief that action was on its way. The occasional scene may have involved a degree of violence, but it was generally short lived and rarely an example of any mutant ability.
I had paid to see a comic based action film, but was presented with message driven drama broken up by the odd heated disagreement or misunderstanding. The much needed climax took too long to reach and no sooner had it started, it was over. I expected more.
(Written by Graham Priestly)