X-Men Origins: Wolverine
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The Story
“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” takes us back before the 3 “X-Men” films to hear the backstory of the one with the pointy retractable claws and the anger issues. Turns out Logan (Hugh Jackman) was just a pup on the day in 1845 when his father dies and he discovers his powers, including the fierce-looking bones that protrude from his fists and the fact that it’s really hard for him to die. He also discovers a brother, Victor Creed (Liev Schreiber), with pointy teeth and lethal fingernail claws.
The pair become a never-aging fighting force, lending their killing power to the Civil War, WW I and II, and the Vietnam War—until recruited by Colonel Stryker (Danny Huston). Stryker adds them to a special ops team of other mutants for black ops missions around the world. Logan leaves the group—and his brother—over their treatment of innocent civilians.
Flash forward a few years: Logan’s quiet Canadian life with his girlfriend is disrupted when first Stryker, then Victor, track him down and drag him into a growing conflict between the mutants. Before the story is done, Logan will find his bones fused with an indestructible alien alloy—making him even less likely to die—and a new mutant named Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) will have been formed with the combined deadly powers of several other mutants to force an inevitable showdown.
Content Issues
Not only is there lots of action violence in the film—some of it brutal, yet strangely bloodless—there’s also a high body count that includes innocent bystanders and mutant combatants. Logan and his lady live together unmarried; we see both in bed, in revealing attire, and later him nude from behind running for his life from bad guys. Harsh language is constant and includes uses of God’s and Jesus’ names for swearing.
Worldview Talking Points
The first big blockbuster of the “summer” kicks off with plenty of hype and a nearly guaranteed teen audience, especially guys. Those hungry for the rewarding storytelling experiences that came with last year’s “Iron Man” and “The Dark Knight” may be disappointed, but the action and special effect deliver enough heat to make it feel like summer.
This “X-Men” outing worries less about the big worldview issue of evolution, though that’s foundational to the “X-Men” universe in which mutant powers are the result of the next step in the forward advancement of the human species. In fact, “Wolverine” offers very little satisfying worldview meat to chew on, at all.
It borrows heavily from “Dark Knight” in its tone, killing off innocent and major characters one after another without much of a second thought. But it doesn’t follow the Batman, Spider-Man, or even Iron Man films in dealing much with issues of right and wrong, good and evil, or justice and forgiveness.
Logan is the only character who appears to be motivated by moral choices, at all. And even his right choices come across as mostly self-serving. He certainly doesn’t often stand up against evil in a heroic way. And the evil he does fight—especially that of his brother—is also watered down. What do the bad guys really want?
We hope a few of the following questions will provoke some good conversation with your son or daughter about any big ideas that emerge from watching “Wolverine.”
- How would you rank “Wolverine” when compared with the other “X-Men” movies? How about when compared to recent superhero movies like “The Dark Knight,” “Iron Man,” and the Spider-Man films?
- Is Wolverine your favorite of the “X-Men”? If not, who is?
- How would you describe the film’s main message or big ideas?
- What assumptions does the story make about evolution and natural selection? Does the world of the X-Men seem to suggest that mutations generally result in favorable change in species? In the real world, such mutation usually leads to illness or disability. Does it ever result in beneficial change for the human species?
- Do you think Logan should have been held accountable for his killings over the years? How about Victor/Sabertooth? Are both of them criminals by legal standards? Why or why not?
- Do you think Logan’s choice to walk away from Stryker’s group was a moral choice? Was he standing up for what he believed in or just getting away from something he didn’t want to be a part of? Do you think he should have accepted some responsibility for stopping Stryker’s group (and his brother) from hurting others?
- Logan is drawn into standing against bad guys by his desire for revenge. Is revenge ever a valid motive for taking action? Why or why not?
- What would you say is the difference between a desire for justice and an appetite for revenge? Does Logan ever seem to be motivated by providing justice?
- Do you think people with more power are more responsible to stand for what’s right and against what’s wrong?
- What kind of power do we have as Christians and what can we do with that power? (See Ephesians 2:18-20, for starters.)
- Peter Parker likes to talk about the great responsibility that comes with great power. Did anyone in this film see their power as a responsibility?
- What does your power—whatever form it takes—make you responsible for? (See Luke 12:48.)
- What other superhero movies are you looking forward to seeing in the next year or two?
