X-Men: First Class

Rating: ★★★

Even superheroes get ice cream headaches. 

It takes a certain kind of superhero film to get me going. They either have to be extremely operatic (consider X2: X-Men United) or grounded in gritty realism (The Dark Knight, anyone?). Thankfully, X-Men: First Class, dubbed by Richard Roeper as a "pre-boot" (you know, like "prequel and reboot"), found a way to be both without feeling contrived. The first two films, helmed by Bryan Singer, found that balance easily. Then Brett Ratner took over the franchise and made X-Men: The Last Stand completely cartoonish and unbearable. Then, Wolverine took a step closer to the realism that was required, but... well, managed to screw that up, too. Matthew Vaughn, who directed Kick-Ass last year, brings it back to good and manages to capture Bryan Singer's impeccable tone with his entry. It's funny, it's dark, parts of it are incredibly sad, and it's exciting. 

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On DVD Today

A new breed of action zero

This will be a uniquely short article, as the two major releases on DVD aren't of any specific consequence. I Am Number Four (remember that bright yellow poster on all the buses and port-a-potties? the one with the Android QR?) and Gnomeo and Juliet come out to own on Blu-ray or DVD today. Which is more worth it?

Well, I haven't seen I Am Number Four, yet. And I probably won't for a while. There will be a review, for those of you who are aching for one for some reason, but not today. And probably not tomorrow. But, soon, and for the rest of our lives.

Gnomeo and Juliet, however, I have suffered through. Let's take a closer look at each DVD release, though, and you can decide for yourself which you might prefer.


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Starter for 10

Requiem for a Braniac

The oddest thing about a film like Starter for 10 is that it seems to be almost completely pointless until the last thirty minutes or so. And the most unfortunate thing about the project is that the first hour is almost completely alienating. This isn't the type of film where the audience is required to root for anyone in particular, nor are we given much of a climax to look forward to. We follow a young college student in England in 1985 as he enters Bristol University and attempts to find a place and enter a quiz show club, one who does their best to win championships on television. We follow him through bum friends, a failed and unrealistic attempt at a relationship, and a conventional attempt at knowing everything. 

The good news is, James McAvoy is watchable enough to excuse most of that. 

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