It is high praise to tell an artist they’ve created something unlike you’ve ever seen. Even higher if you happen to also like what they made. The New Mutants is unlike any comic book movie I’ve seen and I’ve seen most. That alone places it in rarefied company as the comic book movie genre is nothing if not beset by homogenization. Wonder Woman 84 is a perfect example of the conveyor belt style of superhero film that brings nothing new to the table but is easily digestible and more importantly to the suits, easy to market (check out my recent review for the full picture). The arc experienced by Blu Hunt’s Danielle Moonstar in The New Mutants is as satisfying as you’ll see in any film, period. The antagonist (there are two, but you’ll know which one I am referencing) is as compelling as any in the MCU short of The Winter Soldier. The characters are exceedingly likable, even the ones that aren’t supposed to be. The visual effects are as stunning as we would expect in a Marvel-produced film. The X-Men universe is nicely expanded upon and the movie sets up several interesting potential directions for a sequel. There are of number of callbacks to X-Men: Apocalypse and Logan that point to bigger things for The New Mutants. That is, if they figure out a way to blend these characters into the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe. If you like comic book movies, stop what you are doing and go watch it. If you don’t like comic book movies, this is still a worthy film I guarantee will stay with you long after the credits roll. The production and release were both famously muddled by the messy corporate slog of the Disney/Fox merger. Don’t let that scare you away. In a cinematic landscape flush with superhero movies content to give us the same things over and over, The New Mutants is a breath of fresh air. It’s far and away my favorite superhero movie of 2020. I won’t spoil it here, but I wrote down the final line from the film and I intend to incorporate it into my own life moving forward. Write me after you see the film and let me know if you had the same reaction.
The New Mutants receives a 9/10 for both those who do and don't typically enjoy comic book movies although it’s head-scratching that they didn’t cast an Afro-Brazilian actor to portray Sunspot.
The Quick Critic
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