After thousands of years, the oldest, most powerful mutant (Apocalypse) emerges, so the stars from the previous movies (Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, James McAvoy) get involved, along with some new recruits to ensure the franchise’s future. Toss them in a blender and you have the inevitable fight to save the world. One of the things that makes this more enjoyable is that each hero’s abilities are used in interesting ways, instead of the typical massively-destructive battles. The character interaction is usually engaging and best of all, there are no long scenes of metaphysical hand-wringing or interpersonal drama. Most of the encounters are brief and compelling. The action sequences are well staged, even sometimes cool. After 2.5 hours, the last 20 minutes drag down with muddy conclusions, but it’s still one of my favorite superhero flix. Of course, stay thru the credits for a very confusing setup.
(4 / 5)