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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2009
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 MOVIE REVIEW 
2

Wolverine Lacks Claws

Sharp performance from Jackman saves stale X-Men spinoff from total mediocrity

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(Newser) – A charismatic Hugh Jackman gamely slashes his way through X:Men Origins: Wolverine, say critics, but he's let down by a stale script and effects that fail to lift the movie above generic superhero fare.

  • Hollywood.com: The "action-filled spinoff delivers on the brawn but not the soul of the X-Men franchise that spawned it."

  • Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: The movie "is saved from pure flat-footed blockbuster franchise adequacy by six things, three of them on Hugh Jackman's left hand, three on the right."
  • Nick de Semlyen, Empire: "While not a disaster, this isn’t the claws-out, rampaging adventure we hoped for. No one cares where Wolverine found his jacket—a spin-off with him kicking ass in Japan would have been way more fun."

Hugh Jackman stars as Wolverine, left, and Will.i.am stars as John Wraith in
Hugh Jackman stars as Wolverine, left, and Will.i.am stars as John Wraith in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine".   (AP Photo/20th Century Fox, James Fisher)
Hugh Jackman unleashes his adamantium claws in a scene from
Hugh Jackman unleashes his adamantium claws in a scene from "Wolverine."   (AP Photo/20th Century Fox, Michael Muller)
Hugh Jackman stars as Logan, left, and Liev Schreiber stars as Victor Creed in a scene from
Hugh Jackman stars as Logan, left, and Liev Schreiber stars as Victor Creed in a scene from "Wolverine."   (AP Photo/20th Century Fox, James Fisher)
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Trailer for "X-Men Origins: Wolverine."   (YouTube)

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2 comments
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ethical_person
May 1, 09 10:34 AM CDT
After seeing all of these pictures of Jackman as the disgusting-looking Wolverine, I will never again be able to take him seriously as a romantic lead . . . and he was so good at it! Oh, well -- I guess violence tops love any old day in this world. Reply
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Michael_CT
May 4, 09 12:10 PM CDT
i thought it was awesome. a lot better than some of the other super hero flicks we've seen lately. Reply
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