“X-Men: Apocalypse” is a major disappointment.
On paper, the latest installment in the X-Men franchise should be a good movie. The franchise’s young, star-studded cast, which features Jennifer Lawrence, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Nicholas Hoult, returns. The movie is even directed by Bryan Singer, the same director as the well-received “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” and perhaps the series’ best director.
If all the mainstays didn’t bode well enough, “Apocalypse” also boasts a few new talents. Notably, these additions include Sophie Turner, who plays Sansa Stark on HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” and Oscar Isaac, who is one of Hollywood’s biggest up-and-coming stars.
Yet Singer’s end result is a lackluster waste of talent, with mediocre performances across the board.
Opening in ancient Egypt, Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) is introduced as the world’s first mutant. While in the process of passing himself into a new body, which allows him to absorb new powers, a sudden mutiny leaves Apocalypse buried under the ruins of a pyramid.
Fast forward a few thousand years to 1983. The team of X-Men are living quiet lives in the aftermath of “Days of Future Past.” Professor Xavier (James McAvoy) has started expanding his school for gifted youngsters with the help of Beast (Nicholas Hoult). Halfway across the world, Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) works alone, helping mutants in her own way. Meanwhile, Magneto (Michael Fassbender) has started a family, leaving his villainous persona behind.
Of course, this is all just the calm before the storm.
Apocalypse is suddenly awoken from his sleep, prompting seismic tremors across the world. In line with his previous practices, he begins enlisting followers who are referred to as the Four Horsemen. Without much explanation, Apocalypse successfully recruits Storm (Alexandra Shipp), Psylocke (Olivia Munn) and Angel (Ben Hardy) to his cause. For the last recruit, Apocalypse finds Magneto just after tragedy provoked him to break bad again.
After the Professor is kidnapped by Apocalypse, the young and inexperienced team of Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee), Quicksilver (Evan Peters) and Cyclops (Tye Sheridan), become tasked with saving the day.
Leading these teenage mutants into battle is Mystique, played uncharacteristically poorly by Jennifer Lawrence. Hollowly reciting her cliched lines, the only emotion Lawrence conveys is disinterest. In fact, it seems pretty clear that she does not want to be in this movie. Admittedly, this is only apparent because of how good and emotive Lawrence typically is.
But Lawrence’s performance as Mystique isn’t the only problem, as Isaac truly struggles as Apocalypse. Coated in a thick layer of blue makeup and given few lines to work with, Isaac’s low, groaning voice and stern facial expressions create a villain that is neither emotive nor intimidating.
Riddled with bad lines, the writing is fairly mediocre. Beyond the simple dialogue, the film leaves most of the characters with unclear motives and shoddy development. Apocalypse vaguely claims he wants to cleanse mankind. With exception to Magneto, the other three Horsemen seem to join Apocalypse without any motives. Moreover, most of the character arcs feel sloppily rushed, as the narrative is too widely split among its characters.
In defense of “Apocalypse,” the film is far from terrible. The intrigue of meeting new characters in conjunction with the film’s steady but constant pacing maintains interest during the rising action. Plus, there are a couple of solid acting performances, with Fassbender and Turner being the most notable. The flawed writing might have even be excusable if the film had memorable actions sequences.
Unfortunately, the visuals are pretty underwhelming. Although Singer is known for his ability to showcase his heroes’ abilities, many powers and stunts occur out-of-frame, and the ones that appear on-screen are reflective of CGI gone bad (because CGI is not always bad).
For as talented as the cast and filmmaking crew behind “X-Men: Apocalypse” are, the end result is a mediocre and ultimately forgettable summer blockbuster.
**MOVE gives “X-Men: Apocalypse” 2 out of 5 stars.**
