Fox has released a slew of “X-Men: First Class” images over the past few weeks. Promo photographs and cover art for Total Film, a picture of Mystique in uniform and a brand new movie poster. Unfortunately, save for the Total Film magazine covers, the renderings are disappointing.
Lets start off with the promo images from Total Film.
First, take a look at Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique) in the yellow trench. The background looks like a painting. Perhaps a black backdrop should have been used instead.
Also, the first three group shots are pretty terrible. Each actor looks like a cardboard cut-out and they are all out of perspective. The shading is off as well. Where is the light source? Why is James McAvoy (Xavier) darker than the rest of his associates when he’s in the front? Kevin Bacon is blurred, yet Jason Flemyng (Azazel), who is standing beside him, is crisp.
Next we have Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) leering at Emma Frost (January Jones) as she transforms into an organic diamond. My issue is that only Frost’s skin and hair should change, not her clothing. I’m not keen on the visual effects either. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” did it better.
Now onto the image of a uniformed Mystique. I’ll just come right out and say it: It’s awful. It’s not just the dreadful make-up either. The reason why Rebecca Romijn worked is because of her larger features. No, not THOSE features. I’m talking about her larger eyes, nose and jawline. Baby Mystique has none of that. But you know what she does have? She has a massive forehead. We’re talking Sputnik proportions here. On top of that her hairline is crooked. Oh hell, she just looks a mess.
Finally, we have the international poster, which is a bit of an improvement, but not by much. The three principal actors in the front suffer from bobble-head syndrome. And again, what the heck is wrong with Mystique’s forehead? January Jones looks great, yet she’s stuck in the back. Who made that call?
Hopefully, the shoddy marketing campaign isn’t a reflection of the film as a whole. After all, Matthew Vaughn is a great director. “Layer Cake” pretty much put Daniel Craig on the map and it’s doubtful he’d be viewed as James Bond material without that film credit. The lighthearted and romantic “Stardust” was one of my favorite films of 2007 and “Kick-Ass” was an all-around good time.
“X-Men: First Class” opens June 3. Voice your opinions about the images above to the right.
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