Review: 'Wolverine' Fast, Ferocious, Fun

'X-Men Origins: Wolverine' (PG-13)(out of four)

Fans clawing for another "X-Men" movie are sure to be satisfied with the sharp prequel "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," the fourth Marvel mutant movie in the superhero series that easily measures up to its predecessors. Smart, entertaining and slickly executed with action scenes and explosive special effects, it's another thrilling adventure into the "X-Men" universe that can't be missed.

Hugh Jackman once again owns the role of Logan/Wolverine, the part that carved out the Aussie actor's path to stardom in 2000. And while the film focuses on the character's beginnings, his fierce relationship with his brother and his transformation into an adamantium-clawed superhero, "Wolverine" smartly incorporates a variety of other mutants in a way that compliments the story and opens the door for more movie mayhem.

Director Gavin Hood establishes a gritty, break-neck pace right from the opening credits in the "Origins," which begins in the mid 1800s where a young Logan (born James Howlett) discovers he has mutated during a tragedy at the family homestead. Springing bone claws out of his fists, Logan flees with his older brother, Victor (Michael James Olson), a fellow mutant with feral claws and strength.

After the brothers stop aging when they reach adulthood, Logan (Jackman) and Victor (Liev Schreiber) exorcise their raging animal instincts by fighting in battles spanning from the Civil War through Vietnam.

Their latest turn as hardened soldiers attracts the attention of military scientist William Stryker (Danny Huston), who brings together Logan, Victor and a band of mutants to form Team X, a special ops unit used almost solely to kill the enemy. Soon enough, however, Logan grows tired of the bloodshed and goes into exile, which leaves his brother feeling betrayed. But after years of living in peace, Logan is drawn back into Stryker's program after Victor, now known as Sabretooth, kills his girlfriend, Kayla (Lynn Collins).

Only shown in brief flashbacks in the first two "X-Men" movies, "Wolverine" fully realizes Logan's back story in the Weapon X program, and it makes for one of the many breathtaking sequences in the movie. With Stryker's assistance, Logan vows to get revenge on Sabretooth by subjecting himself to painful injections of adamantium -- a steel-like substance that hardens to his skeletal system and makes him indestructible. But it's only after Logan is transformed into the steely-clawed Wolverine that he learns Stryker's nefarious plan to pool mutants' powers into individual mutant killing machines.

While "Wolverine" largely concentrates on the plights of Logan, Kayla and Victor, Jackman, Hood, and screenwriters David Benioff and Skip Woods introduce several popular comic book mutants into the "X-Men" movie series in meaningful ways.

There's no question filmmakers take big liberties as to the origins of characters like the sword-wielding Wade Wilson/Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds), the kinetic energy-blasting Remy LeBeau/Gambit (Taylor Kitsch), the teleporting John Wraith (Will.i.Am) and strongman Frederick J. Dukes/The Blob (Kevin Durand), which may raise the ire of some diehard fans. At the same time, though, the characters' stories fit perfectly into the framework of "Wolverine's" big picture. The plot developments are fresh, exciting and in many cases, surprising. (Be sure to stick around to the end of the credits for an important teaser scene).

The only shame is, while Wraith gets a decent share of screen time, we don't get to see enough of Deadpool, Gambit and The Blob -- whose immense size is only detailed in one short, but very entertaining scene. Deadpool and Gambit each have about two 10-minute chunks, but when they appear on-screen, their roles become pivotal. Reynolds is appropriately smarmy as the wisecracking Deadpool, and Kitsch is cool and charismatic in his breakthrough turn as Gambit. Both actors could easily handle their own spin-off films.

While Jackman's presence is as big as ever in Wolverine (he clearly loves playing this character and gives his all both physically and mentally) his contribution as one of the producers proves to be as important. Partly under Jackman's watch, "Wolverine" pays close attention to details from the original films and for the most part, the storylines remain consistent. Apart from Sabretooth, whose existence in this film doesn't exactly jibe with his presence in the first "X-Men," a lot of missing puzzle pieces from the original trilogy snap tightly into place with "Wolverine."

Of course, maybe Sabretooth's evolution into the long-blond haired Tyler Mane version of the character would make more sense in future prequels, and perhaps that's the point of "Origins." Even any casual fan knows that there are myriads of mutants and stories to be told in the "X-Men" universe, whether they are set in the past or present.

And the potential for more stories includes Jackman's Wolverine. Bring on some more stories, Bub.