X-Men (Telugu) Review

The battle between good and evil has just been taken to another level - only, it is a few notches below the most mundane of them. Mutations and mutants are the premise for another comic strip that finds it way onto the big screen. But X Men left me wondering that if, scientifically speaking, mutation is a step forward in evolution, then what is a step backward? This one is surely a step behind in the genre of science fiction movies, and when you consider how booby they all are, the nature of the ordeal of sitting through a boring sci-fi flick can only be left to your imagination. Believe me, I'm not raving against sci-fi movies, but actually trying to warn you off one that may induce you to swear-off this dazzling genre.

To begin with, the premise of the movie is rather suspect, even after allowing for oodles of imagination. Evolution, even if it takes a giant leap forward every few millennia as the movie claims, ought to spawn a new breed of species. This is unlike the mutually exclusive characteristics that the characters here develop, which can't make them a single species (or is it too early to segregate?). Secondly, it's just too slow and sloppy. An hour into the movie, you are still familiarizing yourself with the characters, and that is unpardonable in this 'ready-to-serve' age.

Wolverine has the gift of steel blades that shoot out of his knuckles every time he has to defend himself (give me Edward Scissorhands any day). A mutant, you ask? Well that's what they say, but his appearance suggests that he is well on his way to becoming a werewolf, and his sharp nose only strengthens my belief. Anyway, he is taken in by Prof. Xavier who runs a school for exceptionally gifted children, or more of Wolverine's kind. Xavier is at odds with another clique of mutants - headed by Xavier's ex pal Magneto - which believes that a war is imminent between mankind and them (talk about paranoid mutants). So, there you have it - the good and the bad.

Some other weirdos that make up this drag are Storm, Cyclops, Toad, Mystique, Sabertooth and the like. I wouldn't put Dr. Grey (Famke Janssen) and Rogue (Anna Paquin) along with the rest, for they are the only ones who are easy on the eyes, and this is nothing to say about their impact on the mind, which is just as painful. While histrionic abilities are no more a prerequisite to appear in such flicks, Anna Paquin is the only one who has the audience's sympathies, even if it is only for her innocent looks.

Watch it only if you have an unshakable faith in these kinds of movies.