Product Details

• Actors: Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber
• Directors: Gavin Hood
• Format: AC-3, Color, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: 20th Century Fox
• Run Time: 107 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (78 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001GCUO16
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #147 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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• This is item 4 in The X-Men Feature Films Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Wolverine, fan favorite of the X-Men universe in both comic books and film, gets his own movie vehicle with X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a tale that reaches way, way back into the hairy mutant's story. Somewhere in the wilds of northwest Canada in the early 1800s, two boys grow up amid violence: half-brothers with very special powers. Eventually they will become the near-indestructible warriors (and victims of a super-secret government program) known as Wolverine and Sabretooth, played respectively by Hugh Jackman (returning to his role) and Liev Schreiber (new to the scene). It helps enormously to have Schreiber, an actor of brawny skills, as the showiest villain; the guy can put genuine menace into a vocal inflection or a shift of the eyes. Danny Huston is the sinister government operative whose experiments keep pullin' Wolverine back in, Lynn Collins is the woman who shares a peaceful Canadian co-existence with our hero when he tries to drop out of the program, and Ryan Reynolds adds needed humor, at least for a while. The fast-paced early reels give an entertaining kick-off to the Wolverine saga, only to slow down when a proper plot must be put together--but isn't that perpetually the problem with origin stories? And despite a cool setting, the grand finale is a little hemmed in by certain plot essentials that must be in place for the sequels, which may be why characters do nonsensical things. So, this one is fun while it lasts, if you're not looking for a masterpiece, or an explanation for Wolverine's facial grooming. --Robert Horton

Stills from X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Click for larger image)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars * SNIKT ! * Jackman Delivers MAXIMUM Logan Spirit & Energy ! (Bub), June 17, 2009

By	RJD-257 "terminally curious" (NYC-Metro) - See all my reviews

This review is from: X-Men Origins: Wolverine (DVD)

I'm not the first person to review this movie, and I'm certain I won't be the last. I WILL stand with many of the other reviewers who encourage a more "balanced" perspective of the film, and not the "berzerker-rage" perspective which some reviewers have offered.

ENERGY & ESSENCE:
My review of the movie can be summarized in the headline of this review. Hugh Jackman's fourth performance as Logan truly is "The Best There Is." Whether it is because the movie's purpose is to focus solely on Logan, or because Hugh has evolved as an actor, or because Hugh has grown closer to the character. Jackman captures the full emotional bandwidth of the character. The pathos, the irony. the overwhelming sense of loss that comes with over 100 years of life on the planet. Part of Logan's appeal as a character has been that he is always seeking to become more than what he is. "Gifted" with "powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men," he sees himself as an animal "less than human." A Samurai without a master, who sees himself as a "failed samurai," etc... The movie, and Jackman's naturally-enhanced physique and dramatic performance perfectly captures all of that ENERGY of the character.

Throughout the movie, Logan is surrounded by people who see either the "light" or the "dark" in him, and as such, the character is continually pulled in different directions, and tested, and as a result - grows. Whether it is the father who raised him - who sees the best in him, or later in life Kayla Silverfox, who acts as a guiding moral beacon to Logan, reminding him over and over that "he is not an animal." They are (unfortunately) outnumbered by those who see the "dark" in him, including his mother, Victor and Stryker - the latter two who continually seek to exploit Logan's dark side to fulfill their own purposes. And Logan himself finds out that focusing too much on his dark side usually results in him paying a price of some sort.

PULSING & PUMPING THEMES:
Someone once said that a great musical score can elevate a move to "the next level." Part of what DRIVES this "testosterone-filled" film is the music. It reaches its successful goal elegantly, and "dovetails" perfectly with the on-screen action, supporting it without overpowering it, or drawing disproportionate attention to itself. There is a solid foundation of pulsing rhythms that are tribal in nature. However, much like Logan himself, the music combines the base primal urges with aspirational tones. A mix of classical and contemporary instruments help give certain tracks a nice sharp "edge."

Some characters have their own unique "themes" yet even these often have a "hook" of familiar notes/chords which remind us that these characters all reflect different facets of Logan himself. This often subtle "echo" also helps the entire soundtrack hold together as one cohesive entity.

All-in-all - Harry Gregson-Williams' score reflects the pure masculine energy of the character - both his "light" and "dark" sides as he grows against challenges - internal and external.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine

CONTRIVANCES - "Marvelwood" & "Hollywood":
I have seen the film in the theatre more than once. The first time I viewed the film, I felt there were elements that were very contrived.
Immediately after that viewing, I went to my "LCS" (local comic shop) to fill in some of the "gaps" in my knowledge of Logan's published history in the past twenty years. In anticipation of the film, Marvel Comics published a comic called "Wolverine: Weapon X Files" - which is an inexpensive "encyclopedia" listing the chronological history of Logan and his supporting cast.

The truth of the matter is that the published history of Logan has been "retconned" to be a LOT more contrived and convoluted than this film was (I mean, "Romulus" ? "The Lupine Sect" ? "Death" ? "Shogun" ? "Daken" ? "Elektra" ? and of course - "more," come on...) The filmmakers (including Jackman) did a VERY fine job of "stripping away" some of those cumbersome contrivances in order to more clearly communicate the pure ESSENCE of the character and his driving forces, as clearly defined years ago by Claremont, Byrne, Miller and Smith.
Wolverine
Weapon X (Wolverine)

If the film had slavishly followed the published history of the character for the past 20 years, as some reviewers had wished for, here's what would have happened:
- A small "comic-fan-boy" percentage of movie goers would have been orgasmically excited
- The larger percentage of movie goers would have been left scratching their heads
- All movie goers would have been spending too much time "in their head" and not in their "emotional heart," leaving the same cerebral feeling that "Watchmen" did.
- A shorter run in theaters (it's on its eighth week as of this writing), and less revenue
- Shorter Run + Less Revenue = Less Demand for Additional Movies
- Most Importantly - the primal feeling, passion, conflict and ENERGY of Logan would have been lost.

- No, in reality, Victor is NOT Logan's brother, or even half-brother
(but, he's also not his father either. That was a red herring for years in the comics)
- No, Cyclops never met Logan before the X-Men
- No, Logan never met Gambit before the X-Men
- No, The Blob nor Deadpool were ever part of Team X
- No, Stryker was not associated with Weapon X (but then again, he was never a General either...)
- No, Logan's memory was not erased with a "really-well-placed-bullet" to the head

However - all of these "adjustments" are less contrived than some of the "retcons" in the comics these days, and may be acceptable "prices to pay" since they made the FILM work better as a representational, cohesive whole, easier to follow for the majority of viewers, and fulfill it's Ultimate Purpose as a vehicle for the character of Logan / Wolverine.

IN (*SNIKT !*) SUMMARY:
"X-Men Origins: Wolverine" strongly succeeds in conveying the pure "testosterone-filled" masculine energy of the character, and the overall essence of the character - his conflicted journey as he strives to become more than what he has been, and some of the key emotional relationships in his past. The filmmakers have wisely chosen to streamline 20+ years of needless published exposition & contrivances - in order to focus on the strong CORE of the character, which is what has "hooked" readers and moviegoers for the past 34 years

Logan / Wolverine is not the "deepest" or "most profound" character ever to grace the printed page, or the cinema screen. The essence of the character is primal, direct, but never simple or two-dimensional. But, in the words of the fictional character himself, in his niche, he is "the best there is at what he does." And more importantly, so is the Driving Force behind this film: Hugh Jackman.

WARNING: If you are a continuity-obsessed-fanboy, this film may cause anxiety, elevated blood-pressure, and in some cases hemorrhaging.

* NOTE: This is a review of the movie, as seen in theaters. As of this writing, the DVD has not yet been released. As such, I have no comments on the package design, DVD extras, etc...

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sound and fury, May 3, 2009

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: X-Men Origins: Wolverine [Theatrical Release] (Theatrical Release)

After three movies of amnesia and claw-slashing, Wolverine is actually getting his own movie, all for his own. Sure, some familiar characters appear, but the stage is for him alone.

And it's neither a horrendous movie nor a good one -- just a popcorn collection of explosions and Matrixian fight scenes, linked together by a rather loosely-strung plot that doesn't have any twists or unexpected events. Hugh Jackman does a simply stellar job as the beclawed titular character and it has some funny moments, but the part of the movie that galvanized me the most was the trailer for "District 9."

After a century of fighting, James Logan (Jackman) and his savage half-brother Victor (Liev Schreiber) are recruited by a mysterious army officer, William Stryker (Danny Huston), to join his elite mutant squad. Logan is sick of killing, so he tries to have the quiet life with his girlfriend Kayla (Lynn Collins) as a humble logger... until Victor reappears and murders Kayla, as part of a vendetta against his old teammates. Intent on revenge, Logan accepts the offer Stryker gives him -- he will accept a horrible and painful procedure that will make him invincible, so he can kill Victor.

With an adamantium skeleton and an instantly-healing body, the newly-renamed Wolverine is invincible -- but he soon finds himself on the run not only from his older brother, but from Stryker's ruthless military forces. Now he must uncover a mysterious "island" that only one mutant has ever escaped from... except there are some other nasty surprises waiting for him there, courtesy of Stryker's experiments.

By all rights, "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" should have been a far better movie than it is. But the story itself is only so-so -- it's rather straightforward in its narrative without many twists, and the Sabretooth/Wolverine backstory is handled pretty confusingly. It's only in the last quarter that the movie really acquires that epic comic-book feeling -- up until then, it's a rather bland you-killed-my-master/relative/truelove-REVENGE! tale.

So with a bland plot, they slather on the action -- it feels like at least 75% of the movie was written to allow maximum explosions, motorcycle chases, Matrixian wire-fu, and endless claw fights. In fact, the movie is at its best when it has either some really tightly-wound fight scenes (such as the boxing match with The Blob), or a sense of humour (Wolverine accidentally destroys a nice little elderly couple's bathroom, and walks out repentantly holding their sink).

And then there's Wolverine himself -- he can heal from anything, and his metal skeleton means he can't even be chopped up. In other words, he's indestructible. It's really hard to worry about the guy physically, and "Origins" never gets around to making us fear that he'll lose anything else.

So it's a credit to Jackman's talent that he actually makes us care about Wolverine -- roaring, confused, grief-stricken, and slowly being hardened by all the betrayals and lies. And Schreiber does an excellent job as well, especially considering that Sabretooth is as likable as an ingrown nail -- he actually almost makes us feel sorry for his character now and then. Too bad we never, uh, really figure out why he wants to kill his brother.

And there's a lot of great lesser roles as well -- Collins does a decent job considering her total lack of chemistry with Jackman, while the coldly contemptuous Daniel Henney, kindly will.i.am, charming gambler Kitsch and puckish Dominic Monaghan all do great jobs with their smaller-scale roles. Huston is okay, but he never quite seems scary or fanatical enough.

"X-Men Origins: Wolverine" has enough explosions, stunts and elaborate aerial fight scenes to shame most blockbusters, but it's lacking heart and plot. The only thing that makes it worth watching: the actors.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great fun, May 9, 2009

By	Raven tales (United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: X-Men Origins: Wolverine [Theatrical Release] (Theatrical Release)

I just saw the movie last night and despite some nit-picky quibbles about some of the events in the movie, thought it was excellent.

Gambit was introduced in this film and was perfectly cast, loved the sequence he was in.

It didn't have a huge deep plot and lots of angst ridden speeches, but it was a summer blockbuster the way summer blockbusters should be, you know lots of action and a rollicking pace. I enjoyed it.