Fantastic. About as good as summer blockbusters get -- flawed, but fast, consistent, fun, and relevant. Thematically engaging, occasionally epic. A grand old time at the movies.

Seeing this in theatre felt every bit as satisfying as seeing X-Men in 2000.

Taking the kids to see it in 3D on Monday.

I just watched it and it was shit. Boring as hell. 3D couldn't make up for it either... hardly seemed to make a difference wearing the glasses.

Kids found it boring too.

Spiderman is much better.

A bit nonsensical, but well worth the watch. It literally wipes the slate clean and erases X-Men 3 (thank god). I still think First Class is the best X-Men movie ever, but this is a close second. Unfortunately Lawrence looks bored and Dinklage doesn't get a chance to shine (his character could have been portrayed by anyone). Furthermore, there are a lot of head scratchers in this one. I was often asking myself why they were doing X when they could have been doing Y. Why doesn't Professor X just control Task? Why does Task's death (this isn't a spoiler but rather the set up) convince the American public that sentinels are needed when JFK was allegedly killed by Magneto? So many loop holes and Bryan Singer already went on record saying, "fuck it." So that's a little frustrating. To make matters worse, you have the worst parts of the X-Men universe in this movie since they're such an integral part of the story. It makes the move feel a bit...dated. I literally LOL'd when I saw Kelsey Grammer on the big screen. Go away dude.

But the good outweighs the bad in this one. The movie shines when the mutants play on each others' abilities (as always). Fassbender is a bad ass as usual and continues to be my favorite actor working today. Also, that one scene with Quicksilver is as good as everyone is describing. Oddly enough, I wish there was more of him. I don't know why he didn't play a larger role in film. And just like that, I'm asking another question.

I'll take X-Men DOFP over The Amazing Spider-man 2 ANY day. And it pains me to say that because I'm a huge spidey fan. Go away Andrew Garfield...and say hi to Kelsey Grammer while you're there.

A- for me.

Not to undermine ol' Dustin, but I also found this way superior to the new Spiderman.  Better story, better characters, better action.  Particularly with that new "portal" character, who must have given the editors fits, but it sure looked great.

I also give props for the Quicksilver scene -- a literal show-stopper, perfectly executed -- and plenty of Wolverine, who is always my favorite.  Jennifer Lawrence was good and cute, as expected, and while I have nearly had my fill of her lately, I am not quite there yet.  Soon, though.

Boo and blah for the criminal underuse of Peter Dinklage, Halle Barry,  Anna Paquin (why did they even bother?) and also Ellen Page, who could have been played by a mannequin for 80% of her role.

I was surprised how dark they went in the third act, and even though anyone can tell from a mile away (so not really a spoiler) that the ending will be of the "poof – everything is all better" variety, they sure put their mutant crew through the wringer before they arrived there.  Some brutal stuff that I suspect is stepping right up to the PG-13 line.

I’ve got a 15-year-old, so I see all the superhero stuff, and this is the best I can remember in a while.  I thought Winter Soldier was going to set the bar this year, but to me, this one is even better.

This also gives me confidence for Guardians of the Galaxy, which looks like a good time, though perhaps a bit low-brow by comparison.

I completely agree about the dark tone. I was a bit shocked in the opening sequence. Downright brutal yet equally awesome. I like how they factored each mutant's ability into their death.

Yeah Winter Soldier was great, but had a lot of flaws. Just like Spiderman, I fucking love Cpt. America. But there were too many cheap plot devices and shitty CGI in that film. It's 2014 kids, we don't do mask disguises a la Mission Impossible 3 anymore.

The action was sparing, 3D a waste of time and the story full of holes with too many and poorly utilised characters. I don't agree with the dark tone, my kids (youngest 6, oldest 10) sat through without any qualms, aside from yawning through boredom.

The best scene in the film belonged to Quicksilver and then they got rid of him... what happened to him after that scene? Pretty pointless him being there in the first place. They used a whole character just for a prison break. Amateur.

The whole story is amateur. After that, we get action and special effects and both of those are left wanting in this film too.

It's going to be really easy for me to forget all about this film.

Quoted from DustinBowcot Spiderman is much better.

No. No no. Noooooooooooo. Did I say no? Amazing Spider-man was f** abysmal writing wise. DOPF was magnificant.

Quoted from TheReccher abysmal writing... DOPF was magnificant.

Quite.

Quoted from DustinBowcot Quite.

That doesn't work if you leave "was magnificant" in the quote bro.

Anways. DOFP is easily the best X-Men film. Darky, gritty, emotional, pitch perfect pacing, a strong sense of stakes and consequences, and the performance, especially Macavoy, were top-tier for comics book cinema. Its universal praise from critics and box office is well deserved.

Amazing Spider-man. enjoyed the second one an an action/flash level, but cinematically they're pretty much crap save for Garfield and Stone.

I guess I'm the only one completely and utterly bored to death with superhero movies?

Quoted from TheReccher That doesn't work if you leave "was magnificant" in the quote bro.

It does when you misspell 'magnificent'... bro.

Quoted from Penoyer79 I guess I'm the only one completely and utterly bored to death with superhero movies?

Nope.  You're not alone.  But Marvel's slate extends to 2021, so strap in for a long ride.  :-/

Quoted from Penoyer79 I guess I'm the only one completely and utterly bored to death with superhero movies?

You are not alone, my friend.  I wouldn't watch any of these shitters if they were free and giving out free popcorn and soda.

Now...maybe if they had scantily clad women handing out the freebies, I could attempt to sit through the movie, but otherwise, I don't even watch them when they are free on cable or streaming through Netflix.

I honestly don't understand how anyone other than children would want to subject themselves to such crap.

Quoted from Dreamscale I honestly don't understand how anyone other than children would want to subject themselves to such crap.

Because we like them, Mr. "Hostel is one of the best movies ever made"

Taste, as you must surely acknowledge, is totally subjective.

And last I checked, it was a review thread, not a dump-on-the-genre thread.

So far I have checked into this thread 3 times looking for a review only to have wasted my time...

Quoted from bert Because we like them, Mr. "Hostel is one of the best movies ever made" Taste, as you must surely acknowledge, is totally subjective.

Yes, Hostel is one of the very best films of all time and completely started a sub genre.

And, yes, my friend, I realize taste is very subjective, but it doesn't mean I cna't wonder what anyone possibly sees in these comicbook movies.

Quoted from Dreamscale Yes, Hostel is one of the very best films of all time and completely started a sub genre. And, yes, my friend, I realize taste is very subjective, but it doesn't mean I cna't wonder what anyone possibly sees in these comicbook movies.

This kind of behaviour strikes me as nothing short of odd and baffling. I have to wonder if this is really a person being serious or if there's some kind of faux-dramatic irony going on whenever I see the minority on the Internet yell in such a strange way. Is a genre blatently appreciated by the vast majority of adult movie goers filled with plenty of critically acclaimed films (assuming all critics are adults) somehow inherently inferior because of bigotry from the peculiar minority. I despise all torture films for subjective personal reasons, but I wouldn't insinuite that they're a trash sub-genre by default.

The comic book genre has its place with any other genre.

Quoted from TheReccher This kind of behaviour strikes me as nothing short of odd and baffling. I have to wonder if this is really a person being serious or if there's some kind of faux-dramatic irony going on

There is no irony with Jeff.

chris Nolan doesn't get a lot of love on here, but I loved Dark Knight Rises.... one of my top 10 movies of the last 20 years....

Quoted from TheReccher This kind of behaviour strikes me as nothing short of odd and baffling. I have to wonder if this is really a person being serious or if there's some kind of faux-dramatic irony going on whenever I see the minority on the Internet yell in such a strange way. Is a genre blatently appreciated by the vast majority of adult movie goers filled with plenty of critically acclaimed films (assuming all critics are adults) somehow inherently inferior because of bigotry from the peculiar minority. I despise all torture films for subjective personal reasons, but I wouldn't insinuite that they're a trash sub-genre by default.

Not sure what you'e trying to say, Mr. Reccher.  Can you spell it out a little better for us dim bulbs?

You may not appreciate Hostel or any of it's kin, but what does that mean?

Hostel has a 61% Tomato Rating - pretty fucking amazing for a torture porn horror movie, wouldn't you say?

Made for under $5 Million, Hostel pulled in a quite mighty $81 Million WW.  It pulled in another $30 Milion+ in DVD rentals and we're not even talking DVD sales.

Like it, hate it, or don't have a clue what it is, it's a classic, and IMO, easily 1 of the very best movies I've ever seen.

Quoted from TheReccher The comic book genre has its place with any other genre.

Of course it does and bajillions of dolleros are spent and earned each year on it.  Doesn't mean any of those dollers are going to be coming from me, though.

Again, I can't understand why any adult would give 2 or 3 shits about a fucking comic book movie with peeps dressed in spandex suits wearing capes and tights.  Not my cup of Jager, by any means.

Quoted from Dreamscale You may not appreciate Hostel or any of it's kin, but what does that mean? Hostel has a 61% Tomato Rating - pretty fucking amazing for a torture porn horror movie, wouldn't you say? Made for under $5 Million, Hostel pulled in a quite mighty $81 Million WW.  It pulled in another $30 Milion+ in DVD rentals and we're not even talking DVD sales. Like it, hate it, or don't have a clue what it is, it's a classic, and IMO, easily 1 of the very best movies I've ever seen.

Hostel didn't really start a sub genre. It was always there. "Men behind the sun", "Salo", "In a glass cage" and so on. It did however produce the term "torture porn". To be honest I can't think of other highly successful "torture porn" movies after it. The Devils Rejects got some buzz. A Serbian film and a The Human Centipede also got a lot of hype, but they weren't widely distributed or made a lot of money. They got interest because of shock value. All weren't spectacular movies or anything special in my eyes.

Funny story. Couple of months back I was having dinner in a very very fancy restaurant and behind me was a table of five people in their 30s. One was enthusiastically explaining The Human Centipede to the rest of the people at the table in detail, who listened in shock. I found that pretty funny because of the setting it was happening in.

Anyway, you may not like Hostel, but you know Hostel, a lot of people know the movie. There was a lot of buzz when it came out. I personally didn't like the film, thought it was pretty boring but you can't deny that it did make some kind of impact. It's responsible for a popular phrase and is a popular movie. In my eyes that has value, regardless of anyone's subjective opinion on its quality.

PS: I don't like comic book, superhero movies :) I WILL watch this one. I thought the first X-Men movie sucked, second one was good, third was below average, the last one was okay. I'll check this one out when it comes out on DVD.

I'm with you on the majority of superhero movies, Jeff -- they're pretty much uniformly mediocre and mind-numbingly formulaic, not that that isn't true for lots of other sub-genres -- but if the idea is that there's something childish about superheroes, I'd definitely disagree. My personal take would be that Hostel and its ilk, which are basically purely visceral experiences, are far less "mature" than a good superhero movie (I do mean GOOD, though; Raimi's Spidey, Nolan's Knight, the first two X-Men flicks and Future Past, Super, that's about all).

Hostel's exactly what it's supposed to be, but you basically watch it, feel however you feel during a good torture porn flick, then shut it off and go on with your life. Like a good chick flick, it's not there for anything but how you feel when you're watching it, which is totally okay, but there's certainly nothing mature or adult about that.

X-Men raised and explored big questions. Some were X-Men classics (How does society deal with outsiders? How does the human species deal with its own "evolutionary obsolescence?" How can humans legislate aberration?) and some were unique to the film (What are the consequences of real forgiveness? What are the consequences of automated war? What is the political effect of killing an individual that represents an idea?) Those aren't questions for kids, they're questions for adults.

Hostel's a blast in the right setting, but it's fluff. Future Past is a movie for kids, but it gives adults as much to think and talk about as they could ever want.

That said, I think the comic book "genre" is probably the worst thing to happen to Hollywood in my lifetime, except I guess for "YA novels." But it does have its gems and there's nothing inherently immature about it, unlike (in my opinion) torture porn.

I think you miss out on a lot of great films when you dismiss the superhero genre as a whole. Spiderman 2 is probably the best super hero film ever made. Great arcs, amazing villain, and a solid story. Heck, it might even be in my top 20 films ever made.

And what about graphic novels? Watchmen, Sin City, Scott Pilgrim, etc. are all graphic novels (and great, yet flawed, films).

It might not be your cup of tea, but you can't discredit a great film simply because you're not a fan of the genre.

Wait till people see my superhero film... they will not be thinking it's for kids.

Just a point.. but Batman, Superman and Spiderman are all graphic novels too. The difference with Watchmen et al, is that they were made for adults.

I have no problem with graphic novels, it's super heros I have a problem with.

Absolutely love Sin City.

Absolutely love Blade and Blade 2.

Absolutely love 300 and 300: Rise of an Empire.

Oh yeah, did I mention I absolutely love Hostel and Hostel 2?   ;D ;D ;D

But what about Hostel Part 3? haha

And fair enough. I watched Sin City the other day and about 90% of the film still holds up. I'm cautiously optimistic for the sequel.

In the past year, super hero movies have "grown up." Cpt America 2 dealt with some really heavy political controversies and X-Men DOFP feels like the most mature X-Men story line yet. I think that's why I hated The Amazing Spider-Man 2 so much. It feels like a movie that should have come out in the early 2000's. Now that super hero movies are delving into more serious topics, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 just seems...immature.

Quoted from albinopenguin But what about Hostel Part 3? haha

Not good by any means!   ;D ;D ;D ;D

Quoted from albinopenguin Cpt America 2 dealt with some really heavy political controversies...

This is true, taking the idea of pre-emptive strike to a whole new level.

In short, the "bad guys" had a behavioral algorithm to identify people who were prone to violence and terrorism, and the means to wipe them out instantly.

So, by killing 20 million people, you ensure world peace for everyone else.

It felt very odd (and very Republican haha) to sit there in the theater thinking, "You know, these bad guys kind of have a point."

CA2 is a very subversive film in its way.  To dismiss it as entertainment for children is really missing the point.

I haven't seen the second Cpt Amerian, and while I thought the first one was average, I quite liked the part where he was used in the propaganda machine. I would like to see a indie super hero movie like that. Where a hero is used as a political tool. I think that would be an interesting story and something we haven't seen.

Quoted Text Absolutely love Blade and Blade 2.

I LOVE Blade and I thought Blade 2 was decent but lacking, Blade 3 was horrible.

Quoted from bert This is true, taking the idea of pre-emptive strike to a whole new level. In short, the "bad guys" had a behavioral algorithm to identify people who were prone to violence and terrorism, and the means to wipe them out instantly. So, by killing 20 million people, you ensure world peace for everyone else. It felt very odd (and very Republican haha) to sit there in the theater thinking, "You know, these bad guys kind of have a point." CA2 is a very subversive film in its way.  To dismiss it as entertainment for children is really missing the point.

I completely agree. It was awesome to see Captain America fight the principles of America. It was like the ideal Republican fighting Republicans. It was thought provoking, self reflective, and topical (drones anyone?). It was by far the best thing about CA2.

Who doesn't like Sin City and 300?

I have a Mangasm every time I watch those films.

Quoted from Penoyer79 Who doesn't like Sin City and 300?

I like Sin City. I don't care for 300 :)