X2

X2; Sequel knows key to X-Men success lies in Wolverine, and maintains focus on him and his backstory, while offering up some new mutants that explode off the screen. Some excellent set pieces and character combinations make for poignant dialogue exchanges filled w/allegory. Storm still sucks; B+

X-Men

X-Men; Great start to the film series, giving us a sense of the characters and their motivations, while keeping the moral allegories intact and underlying throughout. Centres on Wolverine, which is understandable given he’s always been the most popular mutant and Jackman doesn’t disappoint; B+

The Wolverine

The Wolverine; What happens when the best comic book stories are done right. The character serves the story. Best film since Dark Knight; A

City of Industry

Directed by:  John Irvin
Starring:  Harvey Keitel, Stephen Dorff, Timothy Hutton, Wade Dominguez, Famke Janssen
Running Time:  1h 37min

A very slow, unevenly paced movie.  It shows what happens before the action and after the action with absolutely no action.  Relationships aren't fully developed, motives very unclear, and dialogue very simple for complex situations.  There is a multitude of unnecessary shots, mostly of people driving around in cars, or sitting around waiting for something to happen.  Then, when they are given something to do, we are whisked away to yet another character driving around doing nothing.  Keitel is wasted, as is Janssen, whereas Dorff is given an interesting character but can't do anything with it due to lack of screen time, especially for a main protaganist.  This movie was probably made of other movies' cutting room floor!

Grade:  D+