Logan: 10 Ways It’s The Best Wolverine Movie (By Far)

After the immense success of Deadpool gave 20th Century Fox faith in R-rated superhero blockbusters, the studio allowed Wolverine’s third solo movie to aim for the more lenient MPAA rating. Hugh Jackman also intended to retire from the role after almost two decades with this movie, so it was a pretty important one.

Fox brought back James Mangold, who previously helmed the character’s second solo outing with a PG-13 rating, to direct the darker, edgier threequel Logan. The filmmaker stuck the landing masterfully with an ultraviolent neo-western inspired by Shane, earning the first Best Adapted Screenplay nomination given to a comic book movie.

10 It’s Rated R

A superhero whose main power is retractable metal claws that he uses to stab bad guys in the head isn’t well-suited to a PG-13 rating. But since profitable blockbusters are, Fox enforced a PG-13 rating on Wolverine’s first two solo outings. Thankfully, the success of Deadpool gave the studio enough faith to allow an R rating for Hugh Jackman’s final movie as Wolvie.

An R rating alone isn’t enough to make a great comic book movie — look at Birds of Prey, Kick-Ass 2, and 2019’s Hellboy — but it did give James Mangold the freedom he needed to make a great comic book movie.

9 Hugh Jackman Gives His Finest Performance As Wolverine In Logan

Since his introduction in the first X-Men movie, Hugh Jackman has fit the role of Wolverine like a glove. He played the part in nine movies before calling it quits, earning himself a Guinness World Record for longest career as a Marvel superhero. Jackman never gave a bad performance as Wolverine, but easily his finest portrayal of the character was in Logan.

The material gave him the chance to explore the darkest sides of Wolverine, and there’s a poignancy in seeing an invincible superhero as he reaches the end of the road.

8 It’s A Deconstruction Of The Superhero Myth

Whether Wolverine is pointing out the inaccuracies in X-Men comics or challenging the traditional role of a protagonist, Logan is a sharp deconstruction of the superhero myth. In an age when comic book movies hit theaters almost weekly, Mangold’s dissection of the genre landed beautifully.

As a quintessential antihero who always reluctantly does the right thing, Wolverine is the perfect character to explore the darker side of superhero legends.

7 Laura Gave The Audience A Reason To Care About Logan

One of the main criticisms of the previous Wolverine solo movies is that they give the audience no reason to care about Logan. Since he’s an unstoppable killing machine, he can be easily used as an engine to create action sequences as opposed to a protagonist who drives an actual plot.

But in Logan, some depth is added to the character when he meets his cloned daughter, Laura. At first he wants nothing to do with her, but she grows on him and he eventually takes responsibility for her and will do anything to keep her safe.

6 It’s A Poignant Character Study

After X-Men Origins: Wolverine was more of a team-up movie than a solo outing despite its title and The Wolverine didn’t dig as deep into the title character’s psychology as it could have, Logan arrived as a poignant character study of a mutant antihero that was long overdue.

Everything in Logan, from Professor X and Laura’s supporting roles to the appearance of the evil clone X-24 to the time the characters spend on Will Munson’s farm, is there to serve Wolverine’s journey toward the end of his story.

5 The Story Is About Humanity, Not Spectacle

Many superhero movies are written with the intention of creating spectacle. The plot is developed to culminate in a huge final battle, or the characters are devised with their potential for set pieces in mind.

What made Logan so refreshing was its focus on humanity. This is a story about accepting family and the futility of trying to live a normal life with the baggage of a dysfunctional past.

4 Wolverine And Professor X’s Father-Son Dynamic Came To A Powerful Conclusion

Since the beginning of the X-Men franchise, Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart have shared impeccable chemistry in their respective roles of Wolverine and Professor X. They developed a sort of father-son dynamic that reached a powerful conclusion in Logan.

At the beginning of the movie, Charles Xavier is struggling with dementia and Logan’s taking care of him. To anyone who’s looked after an older relative with dementia, these scenes are far more emotionally engaging than the average comic book blockbuster.

3 There’s Something Heartbreaking About An Invincible Character’s Death

All throughout the X-Men franchise, fans were led to believe that Wolverine was invincible. He’s survived countless gunshots, stabbings, and merciless beatings, and in the Vietnam War, he effortlessly recovered from execution by firing squad.

At the end of Logan, following a brutal fight with his evil clone X-24, Wolverine dies. And there’s something heartbreaking about seeing an invincible character’s death. Plus, his sacrifice allows a new generation of mutants to live on.

2 It’s Dark, But There’s A Light At The End Of The Tunnel

With grittier violence and more sadistic villains, Logan is way darker than its predecessors, which was ideal for both the Wolverine character and a moviegoing climate crammed with bright, colorful MCU entries.

But it’s not all dark. Logan doesn’t devolve into the bleak dreariness of a lot of “dark” comic book movies. Its message is ultimately a hopeful one about the importance of fighting for what’s right.

1 Shane’s Themes Transferred Perfectly To Logan’s Story

James Mangold made the influence of Shane pretty clear in Logan. Charles Xavier watches the movie in a Vegas hotel room and X-23 recites Shane’s “There aren’t any more guns in the valley” speech at Logan’s grave in the movie’s closing moments.

Thematically, the classic western is about the difficulty of escaping your past. Just like Shane, Logan can’t escape who he is, so he sacrifices himself in one final bout of violence to save the next generation of mutants.

About The Author

Ben Sherlock
(3465 Articles Published)

Ben Sherlock is a writer, comedian, independent filmmaker, and Burt Reynolds enthusiast. He writes lists for Screen Rant and features and reviews for Game Rant. He’s currently in pre-production on his first feature (and has been for a while, because filmmaking is expensive). You can catch him performing standup at odd pubs around the UK that will give him stage time. Previously, he wrote for Taste of Cinema, Comic Book Resources, and BabbleTop.

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