This newest volume in the super saga turns back time and explores the origins of the mutant race and its most famous members. Scratch Wolverine and enter two titans of the trademark– Charles Xavier (aka Professor X) and Erik Lehnsherr (aka Magneto).
First Class takes us back to the dark times of World War II and details the series of events that bring together the two memorable, and very different, mutants. Charles, played by James McAvoy, benefits from a life of luxury and enjoys a top-notch education. Saddled with an unbridled sense of optimism, Charles believes that he can use his unique telepathic powers for good and help create an atmosphere of tolerance for the yet undiscovered mutant race. Michael Fassbender’s Erik is quite the opposite. The horrific atrocities of the concentration camps have made him a vitriolic cynic bent on using his powers of magnetism to exact revenge.
As Charles and Erik become closer, learning from each other’s differing qualities, they discover a plot by other mutants to bring about a nuclear holocaust. Lead by Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon), the group orchestrates the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 in an effort to pit the American and Soviet superpowers against one another. The extinction of mankind would simply be the next evolutionary step, in Shaw’s mind, culminating in a world ruled by mutants.
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| McAvoy and Fassinbender trade moves as Professor X and Magneto in X-Men: First Class. |
Vaughn takes time to make his film a convincing period piece and does so with style, providing plenty of retro panache. In this respect, First Class differentiates itself from the mundane and escapes many of the situational redundancies of your typically comic book movie. The sixties feel and covert operations are so rich that the film often times seems more Bond than mutant.
The real treat is the two leads of McAvoy and Fassbender. McAvoy captures the charisma of Professor X while adding enough earnest emotion to the part to endear himself to the audience. Fassbender, however, is the star. His portrayal of the conflicted Magneto is so impressive that it borders into a show-stealer on numerous occasions. It is an impressive display from an actor with a trove of talent just waiting to breakout in a big way (see Fassbender in Inglourious Basterds). In the performance category, a nod must also be handed out to the tireless Kevin Bacon who exhibits good range as the evil Sebastian Shaw.
There are flaws to be had in First Class such errors in judgment include the questionable makeup choices for the young shape-shifter Mystique and the blue Beast. There are also some stretches of dialogue that feature hackneyed expressions and bland exchanges. However, this easily fades away as Vaughn and his two leads take charge and manage to invent a new comic book angle that is both fresh and hard-hitting. First Class is a different breed and like Stan Lee’s famous mutants, it has an unusual power to captivate.