What the Wolverine movie SHOULD be

April 11th, 2009

I’ve been watching the deluge of trailers for the new Wolverine film with mixed feelings. On one hand, I’m happy to see more comic book films – they make great popcorn entertainment, even when bad. On the other hand, the ensemble being shown in the previews (Blob! Gambit! Emma Frost! Deadpool! etc.) makes me worry that this is going to be a “Wolverine fights a lot of villains” film instead of an earnest retelling of the character’s origin.

Given Wolverine’s rich history and here’s the rough outline for my Wolverine origin film:

Act I: Wolverine is born and raised as a young man in frontier Canada. This would be a direct adaptation of the “Origins” storyline.

Act II: Wolverine plays a role in World War I and World War II. He finds love in Japan and it’s taken away as the United States detonates the first atomic weapons. This would adapt the events in Brian K. Vaughn’s “Logan” miniseries.

Act III: After WWII, he adopts a more nihilistic attitude and is recruited by the CIA’s Team X, trying to shut down the Soviet’s Super Soldier program as the Soviets try to sabotage the West’s programs. This chapter would have a very Tony Scott feel and would end with Wolverine recovering from his nihilistic attitude by realizing that he can be more than a pawn between the great powers.

Act IV: Wolverine attempts to leave the conflict between the Soviet bloc and the West, but his exit is blocked as his CIA/Dept. K handlers hold a loved one hostage. With no other choice, Wolverine consents to become the first member of Team X’s successor: Weapon X. This would set the stage for the next film’s first act, which is an adaptation of Barry Windsor-Smith’s original “Weapon X” miniseries.

In my version of the film, we never see Wolverine with his trademark adamantium claws, but we do witness the sequence of events that leads a sickly child in frontier Canada to become one of the most fearsome killers in the Marvel universe. We would see episodes from his past that shape his later actions in the X-Men films: befriending Rogue, his thing for redheads, the eternal conflict between him and Sabretooth, and so on. The last scene in the film would depict Wolverine being lowered into the water chamber to receive his adamantium. There would be only a handful of recurring characters: Sabretooth, William Stryker (the film version), and a Japanese love interest who is thought to be killed at the end of Act II, but lives to become the hostage in Act IV.

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So that’s how I would do the film if I were in charge. One other minor thing that I’d do differently: no 7-11 Slurpee cups. Wolverine is and has always been a beer drinker.

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