Logan 2017 (Review)

Director James Mangold delivered his masterpiece and magnum opus with 2017's "Logan," the best superhero film ever made and one of the greatest comic book films of all-time that is a bleak, dark, and somber tale of a hardened and broken hero. Following Wolverine aka Logan, we find him no longer being the rage machine impervious to damage as he's now a complete shell of himself as his adamantium skeleton is killing him from the inside and he's no longer willing to help anyone anymore.....that is until a young girl by the name of Laura shows up and needs an escort to a safe haven in North Dakota. Despite his reluctance to doing so, he embarks on this journey and along the way proves himself to still be capable of being a protector, and this film truly is the best of the Fox X-Men films as it tells a grounded story about a grisled hero who goes on one last journey of heroism but does it with such class and grace that makes for an emotional ride like never before in the genre. Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart are at the top of their game in their final portrayals as these characters they've played for 20 years, but Dafne Keen as Laura aka X-23 gives us the daughter that Logan never had as she's vulnerable yet brutal in her attacks and their dynamic acts as the heart of this film. The film balances elite character storytelling with themes of pain, grief, loss, and heroism while also paying homage to the franchise in small moments as well as taking inspiration from westerns of the past such as "Shane" and "Unforgiven,' combined with the elements of the superhero genre and creating a collage of a genre-bendinf film. I don't think there will ever be a superhero film better than this one, but it's a testament to the perfection that lies within it.