The Uncanny X-Factor

A while back I got the chance to go and see the new X-Men film Days of Future Past directed by Bryan Singer and I really loved it, so much so that I mark as one of my top three films of the year and went back to see the film a 2nd time in cinemas.

But this also had me thinking about another thing and that has been that this series for the most part is arguably my overall favorite Super Hero film series now don't get me wrong I really love the first two Superman films as envisioned by Richard Donner and I also thought Joss Whedon's the Avengers was great as was The Dark Knight and 2012's Dredd reboot but I just keep thinking that there's something that little bit more about this series and allow me now to explain.

- The first reason for me is that this series unlike a lot of comic book movies feels much more rooted in Science Fiction, a genre which I am a near lifelong fan of and like the best Science Fiction works be it literature or movies this series is willing to deal with themes and ideas that also feel rooted in our own history be it Alienation, Genocide, Fear of the Unknown or Racism and Homophobia.

All of these themes and ideas were very much rooted in the X-Men comics and these movies for the most part have been willing to bring them to the forefront and as a result I really feel that these movies actually seem to be about something at their core rather than just be another Visual Effects show piece with a few Comic geek fanboy references that some of these films can feel like at times.

- The second is that there is a terrific roster of villains for the X-Men characters to face off against and on both the mutant and human sides to be they Magneto/Eric Lensherr who is a long running foe or Dr Bolivar Trask who in turn creates the monstrous Sentinels to exterminate the mutant race not to mention Colonel William Stryker who has a history with Wolverine and Senator Robert Kelly clearly inspired by Joseph McCarthy but then there's Apocalypse, he who is eternal.

And when it comes to the Marvel Studios Cinematic Universe to make the more direct comparison this has been the one constant area where that group of films has fallen very short of the mark and like a good action picture be it an Arnold Schwarzenegger film or a James Bond installment a good villain is essential to the long term health and success of that film and with the MCU I've found they've fallen very short of the mark in the long term, hopefully James Spader as Ultron in the Avengers sequel Age of Ultron next year and Josh Brolin as Thanos can see Marvel Studios can finally break that curse.

- And the last reason I have to say is Bryan Singer himself, Singer started the series in 2000 with the first film and built on that with his 2nd in 2003 before leaving the franchise to make Superman Returns in 2004 and it has to be said that without him the franchise not only lost its way quality wise but also the fans of the series started dropping off from seeing them in the long term despite X-Men 3 and the 2 solo Wolverine films both doing solid numbers.

And my last reason has to do with Bryan Singer himself, Singer started this series with his first installment in the year 2000 and then topped that work with his second film in 2003 before leaving the series in 2004 to go and make Superman Returns for Warner Brothers and it has to be said that without him the franchise not only lost its way in terms of the quality of the films that were being made but also the fans started walking away in the long term despite X-Men 3 and the 2 solo Wolverine spin offs doing fairly solid numbers.

Along with that Singer's own career as a director lost its way with Superman not flying high with filmgoers nor did his 2008 thriller Valkyrie or last year's Jack the Giant Slayer which I found to be a complete borefest but despite that his return to his pet franchise was in the works starting with 2011's First Class before his commitment to JTGS saw him step away from the director's chair but with Days of Future Past he was now available to take back the big chair and with it the fans have come rushing back as well for despite solid reviews for First Class in 2011 the film did not perform well financially.

But where does this leave the franchise at the moment, well I'd say in good stead with X-Men Apocalypse due for release in May of 2016 and fans are already very excited for that film and the potential it promises, hopefully the dark cloud of the abuse allegations surrounding Singer will quickly be resolved and he can honor his deal to direct that film as is currently planned.

And so that's that for my column on the X-Men movies, hopefully it was worthwhile for you as a read.