The film Logan is an R-rated ruthless but heart-wrenching tale of a dying Wolverine that transcends the comic book genre. The combination between the beautiful visuals, an innovative script, the horrid violence and a stellar performance by Hugh Jackman allows for a film so powerful that you do not need to like the Wolverine character to like Logan.

The film follows the Marvel character Wolverine, Logan (Hugh Jackman), in the year 2029 where a group of scientists have wiped out almost all of mutant kind.  The character is deeply distraught through his times of suffering, and he lives in hiding near the Mexican border where he takes care of mentally-handicapped Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) with the tracker mutant Caliban (Stephen Merchant). Now living a simple life as a limousine driver, Logan is dragged back into the world of pain when he stumbles upon a young girl.

The film puts the audience in a dirt yard as Logan is sleeping inside his limousine but is soon awakened by three thugs trying to steal his car tires. Logan confronts the men as one of the thugs pulls out a shotgun and shoots him without hesitation. Once the bullets hit him, the audience immediately notices his healing ability is becoming less, as he cannot take all the hits he once could. Although in pain, Logan brutishly kills the men using his adamantium claws, generating a gloomy atmosphere and giving us a taste of the overwhelming violence in the film.

Soon after the opening action sequence, Logan is confronted by a former nurse, Gabriela, hoping he can escort her daughter Laura to “Eden,” located in North Dakota. Reluctant to do it, he denies her, soon to realize this girl is highly sought out by a group led by Donald Pierce (Boyd Holbrook). After some persuasion by Professor Xavier, Logan decides to take Laura there and is on the run once again.

James Mangold, the director of the film, does a fantastic job with the narrative. Unlike most comic book films, this is very lightly based off a comic book and is mostly an original story. Mangold takes the audience through a film not about action but about characters we have grown up with, watching them grow old. The character development is outstanding as every character is completely hashed out. The reason Logan is separated from the rest of the Comic Book Genre is through its personal tale as well as great action.

The action sequences in this film are unreal. In the seventeen years of Hugh Jackman playing Wolverine, we have never gotten a R-rated film, so there were always great restrictions, but imagine in real life what it would look like if a man had unbreakable claws coming out of his hands… that is what it looks like on screen. Between the blood flying everywhere and the inhumane ways of death, it is so real. James Mangold and his team did excellent work on the action, but none of this was possible without Jackman.

Seventeen years and nine films have all come down to this. Jackman’s portrayal of old Logan is his defining performance as an actor. Everything in this movie can work, but if Logan does not, this movie is garbage. Jackman allows for such a dark, depressing character to still be someone to cheer on. Every emotion Logan goes through in this movie is perfectly depicted.

The filmmakers created a beautifully looking film, an innovative narrative and a career defining performance by the lead. Although an amazing film, it is not made for all ages. There is extreme violence and lots of inappropriate language.

Overall I give this film a five out of five stars, and I highly recommend it.