It has been quite some time since we got to see some mutant action from Marvel movies. While the New Mutants was released in 2020, it is not similar to the other X-Men installments that explored the world of Dr. Xavier, Magneto, Wolverine, and so many more mutated superheroes. Disney and the MCU have only recently acquired the rights over the X-Men universe. However, there have not been any interesting releases on this front recently, save for the 2020s The New Mutants.
It felt like it was time to revisit some of these movies and look at how they had performed in their time. Read on to find out my personal, unranked Top 10 X-Men/Mutant Movies.
Logan
Logan is obviously right there among the greats. Along with an interesting story, we got a little bit of father-daughter scenes, the usual “snikt” of Wolverine’s claws, but wait. Add a few more claws from Laura, the mutated kid that is being hunted, and who was created from Logan’s DNA. The plot is quite engaging, with the mutants facing extinction, Wolverine’s healing powers almost gone, and Professor X in a state of dementia. This movie also marked Hugh Jackman’s last appearance as Wolverine, whom he had played for 17-years.
Deadpool
Obviously, Deadpool is going to be on this list. Deadpool might not be part of the X-Men, but he sure is a mutant, though not a natural one. The first part and its origin story of Deadpool’s creation is quite an engaging watch. However, what really does stick is Deadpool’s sense of (dark) humor and his antics. In addition, Ryan Reynolds’ portrayal of this anti-hero hits the mark.
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Deadpool 2
Surprised? Following up on Deadpool, the second installment gives us more of the dark humor and antics of Wade Wilson. But what it also does is introduce us to more characters in the mutant world (and Peter). Wade loses Vanessa to a minor mistake of his own. Seeking revenge, he also tries to kill himself in the process. But how can one kill himself when he has amazing regenerative abilities? Deadpool comes back to life and joins the X-Men reluctantly, but ends up in jail. From there, he is on a quest to protect Firefist, an unstable mutant, from Cable.
X-Men: First Class
While this is quite an old movie that was released in 2011, it is one of the most unforgettable ones in the X-Men series. We see the childhood of Magneto in detail while catching a glimpse of Professor X and Raven. That is not all. We are introduced to other iconic characters such as Hank and Banshee. On the other side of the story, we have the supervillain Sebastian Shaw and his telepathic mutant aide, Emma Frost. We get to see Xavier and Magneto working together before they go their separate ways, with their own objectives and moralities. This is a must-watch for any mutant fan.
X-Men: Days of the Future Past
In this time-traveling movie, Wolverine takes on the central role along with a younger Magneto and Xavier. Mutants are being hunted to extinction by the Sentinels, machines created specifically to wipe them out. Finding out that it is possible to avert this disaster by stopping an assassination by Raven, Wolverine travels back in time to save his kind. This purpose is what unites Magneto and Professor X, both in the future and the past.
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X-Men: Apocalypse
Set in the 1980s, we see En Sabah Nur’s re-emergence to the surface of the Earth. The main characters are all scattered. Jean and Scott are only now making it to Professor X’s academy. Wolverine is still being experimented on. Kurt Wagner is just being recruited by Raven. In the middle of all this, the telepathic supervillain re-emerges and gains followers that include Magneto, and attempts to take on the world. The X-Men, or the junior team of the X-Men, take it on themselves to save the world from this ancient mutant supervillain.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
This one is a classic. Focusing on Wolverine, the movie is based on Wolverine’s and Victor’s origins. We also saw Wade Wilson for the first time here as a mercenary. Wolverine undergoes the adamantium infusion to be able to exact his revenge. However, he finds that he has been experimented upon. Escaping from his captors, he survives only to have his memory erased in the end.
The Wolverine
The Wolverine is Logan’s personal story. We see Wolverine in Nagasaki at the end of WWII when it is bombed. He protects a young soldier from the blast. This soldier ends up the CEO of a big firm but is at the end of his days. He wants to meet Logan one last time to repay his debt and summons him to Japan. However, his plans are more sinister as he aims to extract Logan’s regenerative abilities to regain his youth.
X-Men 2 (X2)
The second movie in the series is a pretty classic story. It does not have anything out of the ordinary. Logan gets a glimpse into his past when he encounters Stryker. Stryker is attempting to eliminate all mutants using Xavier’s Cerebro and his son Jason’s telekinetic powers. Magneto teams up with the X-Men to stop Stryker. Magneto tries to set the target on all humans instead, but the disaster is averted by Storm and Nightcrawler. In the end, we see Jean Grey sacrificing herself to save the rest of the team. But ultimately, she survives as the Pheonix.
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X-Men: The Last Stand
In this movie, we see Jean Grey’s powers for what they are. Following her sacrifice in X2, Jean Grey survives, but her alternate personality, the Pheonix, is unleashed. Phoenix is a god-like powerful being, and Professor X had suppressed that personality till now. Phoenix surfaces time and again when provoked, each time destroying and killing. At the same time, a “cure” for the mutation is invented. Mutants can now take a vaccine to rid them of their mutant abilities.
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