Review: Newest 'X-Men' lets Hugh Jackman join earlier incarnations, too - Sioux City Journal

Do a little homework before you head into “X-Men: Days of Future Past.” There’s so much time traveling (and character sharing), a newcomer might give up in frustration.

Because the government has unleashed a group of mutant-unfriendly robots called Sentinels, someone has to go back in time to stop the madness.

The job, of course, goes to Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine (because he’s the franchise’s biggest star and can easily straddle two worlds). The goal is to prevent the initiative from advancing, particularly since it means certain death for those who aren’t quite like everyone else.

With the help of Kitty Pryde (Ellen Page), Wolverine gets a small window of time in 1973 that enables him to meet the young versions of Magneto, Dr. Xavier and Mystique. Together, they mount an attack and discover Richard Nixon (a bad impersonator playing Nixon) is behind the plot.

Director Bryan Singer does plenty with the era and its quirks, makes good use of Jennifer Lawrence (as Raven/Mystique)and dazzles with some pretty special effects.

But the process of time travel is so sketchy (particularly in light of other sci-fi excursions) it’s hard to feel the tension or understand who’s a younger version of whom.

The best moments come from someone who isn’t even double-dipping. Evan Peters checks in as Quicksilver and gets big laughs as the fast guy who can outrace bullets and ever-so-slightly adjust our heroes. It’s a fun bit that introduces the new character nicely (and sets us up for a promising future). He has fun with duct tape, too, and keeps the Paris Summit segment from becoming a fairly big yawn-fest.

Halle Berry’s Storm has what amounts to a cameo and Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart have the same impact as teachers at a class reunion.

The most intense moments go to McKellen’s earlier self (stay with us) played by Michael Fassbender. He’s imprisoned under the Pentagon and madder than hell at Stewart’s earlier self (played by James McAvoy).

John F. Kennedy gets a shout-out, U.S. history is tweaked and Jackman has figured out a way to get into every possible X-Men film made.

While “Days of Future Past” isn’t as engrossing as “First Class,” it does introduce enough ancillary drama to suggest the franchise will go on for decades.

Bone up on the earlier films, take a peek at the comic books and you might just figure out who’s headed for a big role in the next installment – without sitting through the credits for a clue.