InX-Men: Apocalypse, a brief scene shows Cyclops (Tye Sheridan), Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), Jubilee (Lana Condor), and Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee) leaving a screening ofStar Wars: Return of the Jediand arguing the merits of the entire Star Warstrilogy. Jean ends the conversation with a single line: “At least we can all agree, the third one is always the worst.” Though directorBryan Singerwas probably intending a dig atX-Men: The Last Stand, he unintentionally shot himself in the foot asX-Men: Apocalypseis on the lower end of the X-Men films. Though not as excruciating asX-Men Origins: WolverineorDark Phoenix, it falls far short of the standards set byX-Men: Days of Future PastandX-Men: First Class…and a great deal of that is due to the titular villain.
Taking place a decade after Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) reset time inDays of Future Past,Apocalypsechronicles the reawakening of the ancient mutant Apocalypse/En Sabah Nur (Oscar Issac) and his plans to wipe the slate clean. The X-Men get drawn into the fray when Apocalypse targets Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and recruits Magneto (Michael Fassbender) to be one of his Four Horsemen. With such a stacked cast and an epic premise, not to mention the blank canvas left byDays of Future Past,Apocalypsewas set to be one of the best X-Men films. But execution is everything, and Issac’s performance as the Big Badfalls far short of the menace the character is known for unleashing in the comics.
Oscar Issac Feels More Campy Than Compelling in ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’
In the film, Apocalypse is called “The First Mutant,” and possesses immense powers including matter manipulation, regeneration, and the ability to transplant his consciousness into other mutants' bodies. He also seeks to create a “stronger” world by wiping away civilization and starting anew, which would be a compelling plotif Issac wasn’t hamming it up. Every other sentence is shouted or whispered as if Issac wasn’t sure what take he wanted to go with. On top of that, his voice is also put through an electronic filter that makesTom Hardy’s Bane voice sound clear as day. Apocalypse’s motivation to destroy the world also feels fairly bland compared to previous X-Men films, especially when his goal in the comics is to ensure “the survival of the fittest.” Fans of Issac’s work will no doubt be disappointed by this performance, as it doesn’t let himembrace the full range of his acting abilities.
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Issac’s transformation into Apocalypse also was extremely uncomfortable, as he was wearing a 40-pound suit in addition to layers of makeup and prosthetics for the character’s royal blue complexion. But a combination of bad lighting and dark hues made him look more bluish-gray, and invited unflattering comparisons toPower Rangers villain Ivan Ooze. Issac went further into the hassle of the Apocalypse suit in aGQinterview: “I had to sit on a specially designed saddle, because that’s the only thing I could really sit on, and I would be rolled into a cooling tent in between takes.And every time I moved, it was just like rubber and plastic squeaking, so everything I said had to be dubbed later as well. And then getting it off was the worst part because they just had to kind of scrape it off for hours and hours.”
Apocalypse’s Horsemen Are a Missed Opportunity
In Marvel Comics canon, Apocalypse is known for having his “Four Horsemen”: four mutants with abilities that he can amplify to correspond to the horsemen in the Book of Revelations.X-Men: Apocalypsekeeps this tradition intact, with the Horsemen consisting of Magneto, Storm (Alexandra Shipp), Angel (Ben Hardy), and Psylocke (Olivia Munn).However, the Horsemen have no outstanding character or personality traits, which misses out on a key component of the comics. Most of Apocalypse’s Horseman are conscripted into the role, and struggle with his Darwinian methods;Angel’s transformation into Archangelis a key example, as Apocalypse came to Warren Worthington at a low point in his life. In contrast, Angel is little more than a henchman and Storm receives an even worse treatment, as she joins Apocalypse’s side seemingly out of nowhere, then just as quickly turns against him in the final fight.
It’s Psylocke and Magneto who get the worst of it, however. At the start of the film, Magneto is living a peaceful life with a new family…until they are killed in the crossfire of a confrontation between him and the authorities, causing him to turn his back on humanity. This feels utterly lazy, as if Singer and screenwriterSimon Kinbergcouldn’t think of any other way for Magneto to turn to villainy. It’s even more galling as the originalDays of Future Pastscript features a sequence whereApocalypse forcibly takes over Magneto’s body, which would have made for a far more compelling conflict. While Psylocke has some great fight scenes —courtesy of Munn honing her swordsmanship skills—Apocalypsechooses to leave her fate up in the air after she escapes a plane crash, which feels like a disservice given that Psylocke is one of the more beloved members of the X-Men.
Apocalypse Has Fared Far Better in Animation Than Live Action
What truly makes Apocalypse’s portrayal such a letdown in the movieis the fact that the villain plays a major role in various X-Men animated series. InX-Men: The Animated Series, he served as a major antagonist, particularly in the “Beyond Good And Evil” saga in Season 4. There, he sought to use the world’s psychics — including Charles Xavier — to enact a scheme that would rewrite time itself. The sheer scope and scale of “Beyond Good And Evil” shows how powerful Apocalypse is, and gives the X-Men a personal stake as they race to save their mentor and the world.X-Men: Evolutionalso featured Apocalypse as a major antagonist for its final season, and introduced more personal stakes when he transformed Magneto, Xavier, Storm, and Mystique into his Horsemen. The X-Men had to fight to save their mentors, while Nightcrawler and Rogue were fighting to save their mother. EvenX-Men ‘97looks like it’ll be getting in on the action, asthe X-Men not only meet Apocalypse in the pastbuthe may turn Gambit into one of his Horsemenin the present day.
X-Men: Apocalypsemay have wanted to aim big, but it forgot that the personal stakes are what makes an X-Men story, and their antagonists so compelling.
X-Men: Apocalypse
In the 1980s the X-Men must defeat an ancient all-powerful mutant, En Sabah Nur, who intends to thrive through bringing destruction to the world.
X-Men: Apocalypseis available to stream on Max in the U.S.
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