X-Men: First Class (2011) - 10 stars out of 10

X-Men: First Class (2011) - 10 stars out of 10

"X-Men: First Class" is everything that the previous four X-Men films strived to be.  Edgy, dramatic, filled with action and occasional humor, this film is precisely what its title indicates: First Class.  It goes back to the origins of the X-men, particularly the childhoods of Professor X and Magneto, to develop these characters in a way that we can understand the combination friendship/opposition that gives the X-men series such a unique dynamic.  This time around, we don't have Halle Berry making stupid jokes about toads being struck by lightning and the character development is a lot stronger.  It takes the approach of introducing these characters from their beginnings and developing the formation of the X-men instead of merely incorporating characters that we already know into a story.  Really the only thing that this film is missing is Wolverine, but then Hugh Jackman makes one of the greatest cameos in all of film.  James McAvoy puts on an excellent performance as always, Kevin Bacon makes a great, sinister villain, Caleb Landry Jones effectively breaks the tension at the right moments, simply because he's a ginger and embraces it, and Jennifer Lawrence offers an awesome interpretation of Mystique as a sweet, innocent girl who gets caught up in Magneto's cause.  Lawrence is definitely the most impressive of the group, interpreting her character in an entirely new way and convincing me that this is the way that Mystique was meant to be written.  The special effects are incredible, the emotional attachments are formed with the characters, and there's an awesome final battle.  What more could you want from a dramatic superhero film?