Directed by: Gavin Hood
Starring: Lynn Collins, Danny Huston, Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds, Liev Schrieber
Rating: PG-13

Hugh Jackman as Jimmy Logan in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. (Courtesy photo)

In February, Hugh Jackman almost single-handedly saved the Oscars telecast. That was undoubtedly a tougher job than leading his already-embraced signature role of Wolverine into “franchisability.” But then X-Men Origins: Wolverine makes things harder for itself than it needs to.

The title, for starters, is too much. There are too many interesting characters vying for time on screen, and there’s too much time spent dealing with the movie’s least interesting character, villain Stryker. That said, Wolverine still manages to be a satisfying summer kick-off. Obviously it’s no Iron Man or Dark Knight, but few blockbusters are. It’s more in line with last summer’s Incredible Hulk—a serviceable super hero movie from the Marvel empire.

The opening is pretty darn fun, as we watch brothers Jimmy Logan (Jackman) and Victor Creed (Liev Schrieber) battle their way through the Civil War, both world wars, and the Vietnam War before landing in the present. This seems to suggest that there might be something unusual about them. Stryker (Danny Huston) notices this as well, and recruits them to join his very unusual special forces team. They meet other mutants, including the fast-talking Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds). But while their violent jobs appeal to the ever-more ravenous Victor, Logan walks away. He retreats to the Canadian Rockies, and lives for six idyllic years as a lumberjack with his schoolteacher girlfriend Kayla Silverfox (Lynn Collins). Yes, that last name probably should clue Logan in that there’s more to her than meets the eye.

It’s no surprise to us when other members of that mutant unit start to die, and Victor comes looking for blood. Then Victor goes too far, Logan craves revenge, and Stryker offers it in the form of the weapon-X program. Now instead of just having claws come out of his hands, Logan will have an entire skeleton made of indestructible adamantium. Once again, Logan is surprised and we’re not when it turns out Stryker is double-crossing him.

In short, Logan is not the smartest hero in the universe. But then his whole struggle is to control the animal in himself, and I don’t think wolverines are known for their smarts. But it does get frustrating when Logan ignores obvious signs and walks away from obvious solutions. Writers David Benioff (Troy) and Skip Woods (Hitman) probably had a laundry list of required action scenes to fit in, but this script still could have been cleaner. And it could have included more of the fun supporting characters, including Taylor Kitsch’s Gambit, Dominic Monaghan’s Bolt and especially Reynolds. But when a huge franchise project is given to an unproven director like Gavin Hood (Tsotsi, Rendition), too many decisions are left in the hands of producers. Luckily, two of the producers are Jackman and director Richard Donner, which is probably why the movie is at least fast-paced and engaging from start to finish. Or almost to finish. There’s a post-credits tag that you really do not need to stay for.

Jackman is known as one of the nicest guys in Hollywood, and somehow he can’t shake it even when playing Wolverine. He is good in the role, but just as Wolverine can physically heal from any wound, he too easily sheds the many miseries he has endured over his 150 years. One of Jackman’s best traits is he never judges his material. He commits equally to the best and worst moments in Wolverine, and in doing so becomes the steadying force he needs to be.

The most fun is had by Schreiber (The Manchurian Candidate, Defiance) a terrific actor who owns every part he plays. Schreiber hisses and snarls with relish, his only limitation being that the effects guys still can’t make a human run convincingly like an animal. Lynn Collins (Merchant of Venice, True Blood) is good as Kayla Silverfox. She conveys the humanity that makes the mutants of X-Men such compelling characters.

Wolverine is an enjoyable blockbuster, and should perform well enough for Marvel to continue the Origins franchise. Perhaps the long-rumored Magneto movie will be next, though plenty of people are rightfully clamoring for Reynolds’ Deadpool. And undoubtedly Wolverine will get another story, though it’s starting to feel like that well may be going dry. He’s still at the center of the fascinating X-Men universe, but it turns out the more we learn about him, the less we need to know.

Alex Manugian lives in Sherman Oaks, California. He grew up in Groton and has reviewed movies for Harvard readers for many years.