How Wolverine: Origins Made Me a Better Writer
In my last post, I talked about finally rewriting my novel. What I neglected to tell you all is that I was partially inspired by finally watching Wolverine. I mean, X-Men Origins: Wolverine (what a lame title).
Fortunately, my expectations were greatly lowered before saw Wolverine (as I'll call it from here on out. Not that it was a great movie, mind you. But it was better than I had come to expect it to be, and it was certainly better than X-Men 3 (although, that is setting the bar pretty low, isn't it?) I mean, I'm not sure I really liked it, but I didn't altogether hate it like I did the last X-Men movie.
But the problem with Wolverine is essentially the problem Marvel's had ever since they decided to tell his origin story: We Really Don't Need to Know.
After the movie finished, I turned to Emma and said, "Wow. That movie ended pretty much where it should've began. It should've been like the Bourne Identity." (Only with Hugh Jackman and razor sharp claws instead of Matt Damon and Mini Coopers.)
You see, I really, really like The Bourne Identity. I like how at the beginning of the movie we see a body floating face down in the ocean with a signal light flashing on his vest. I like that what little we learn about Jason Bourne, we learn it as he does. I like it that we're as shocked as he is (well, maybe slightly less than he is) that he can kick a bunch of people's asses without even thinking about it. And only afterward he wonders, what the hell did I just do? I like that at the end of the movie, we know only as much as we need to about his past. And we realize that what's really important is his future.
Do I need to know exactly how he got recruited? No. Do I need to see him as a child witness something horrible? No.
I don't know if you remember this, but I totally remember seeing the first X-Men movie (Bryan Singer, I love you)! I remember seeing Logan in that cage getting beat up, taking it, then knocking the other dude flat-out. That was Wolverine. I remember X2, where we saw flashes of what Stryker did to him in Weapon X. That was Wolverine. Both times, Bryan Singer gave me just enough to be satisfied, not too much to blow the mystique. I can't say the same for the Wolverine movie.
Show me the shit getting bad at Weapon X at the very beginning. Show me some crazy naked furry guy with claws killing a whole bunch of people and escaping into the bitter cold. Make me wonder if he's a monster. Because to me, that's way more interesting.
In my opinion, that's what should've happened. What I got instead was a script that bent over backwards trying to make sense of itself. Erasing his memories by putting an adamantium bullet in his head? Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. Poor ending, guys. Because it is not a good set-up when you're let down.
That's what I learned from Wolverine - something I learned back at Viable Paradise, but it's good to be reminded of these lessons with startling examples: Tell the audience exactly what they need to know, when they need to know it. Don't waste time on anything else. And yeah, I'm going to do my damndest to practice what I preach here.
Now, like I said, Wolverine wasn't all that bad. Some cool action sequences. A good actor playing Creed. And Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. But when I think of something like the Bourne Identity (or any of its sequels, or the first two X-Men movies), this pales in comparison. And really, with a guy like Logan, that's a real shame, bub.
Fortunately, my expectations were greatly lowered before saw Wolverine (as I'll call it from here on out. Not that it was a great movie, mind you. But it was better than I had come to expect it to be, and it was certainly better than X-Men 3 (although, that is setting the bar pretty low, isn't it?) I mean, I'm not sure I really liked it, but I didn't altogether hate it like I did the last X-Men movie.
But the problem with Wolverine is essentially the problem Marvel's had ever since they decided to tell his origin story: We Really Don't Need to Know.
After the movie finished, I turned to Emma and said, "Wow. That movie ended pretty much where it should've began. It should've been like the Bourne Identity." (Only with Hugh Jackman and razor sharp claws instead of Matt Damon and Mini Coopers.)
You see, I really, really like The Bourne Identity. I like how at the beginning of the movie we see a body floating face down in the ocean with a signal light flashing on his vest. I like that what little we learn about Jason Bourne, we learn it as he does. I like it that we're as shocked as he is (well, maybe slightly less than he is) that he can kick a bunch of people's asses without even thinking about it. And only afterward he wonders, what the hell did I just do? I like that at the end of the movie, we know only as much as we need to about his past. And we realize that what's really important is his future.
Do I need to know exactly how he got recruited? No. Do I need to see him as a child witness something horrible? No.
I don't know if you remember this, but I totally remember seeing the first X-Men movie (Bryan Singer, I love you)! I remember seeing Logan in that cage getting beat up, taking it, then knocking the other dude flat-out. That was Wolverine. I remember X2, where we saw flashes of what Stryker did to him in Weapon X. That was Wolverine. Both times, Bryan Singer gave me just enough to be satisfied, not too much to blow the mystique. I can't say the same for the Wolverine movie.
Show me the shit getting bad at Weapon X at the very beginning. Show me some crazy naked furry guy with claws killing a whole bunch of people and escaping into the bitter cold. Make me wonder if he's a monster. Because to me, that's way more interesting.
In my opinion, that's what should've happened. What I got instead was a script that bent over backwards trying to make sense of itself. Erasing his memories by putting an adamantium bullet in his head? Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. Poor ending, guys. Because it is not a good set-up when you're let down.
That's what I learned from Wolverine - something I learned back at Viable Paradise, but it's good to be reminded of these lessons with startling examples: Tell the audience exactly what they need to know, when they need to know it. Don't waste time on anything else. And yeah, I'm going to do my damndest to practice what I preach here.
Now, like I said, Wolverine wasn't all that bad. Some cool action sequences. A good actor playing Creed. And Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. But when I think of something like the Bourne Identity (or any of its sequels, or the first two X-Men movies), this pales in comparison. And really, with a guy like Logan, that's a real shame, bub.