Ranking the X-Men Movies

I finally got around to rewatching all of the X-Men movies and I've decided to rank all of them!  Overall, I really like this series, but there are a few duds along the way.  So let's do this from worst to best.

#13. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

I'm sure it surprises no one to see Origins come in dead last.  I don't know if I've met anyone who doesn't have this one as the worst.  While I like Hugh Jackman and Liev Schreiber as well as the first 10-15 minutes of the movie, it quickly falls apart.  The script is a mess with character motivations I still can't figure out, the CGI is embarrassing, most of the characters are underdeveloped, and what they did to Deadpool is unforgivable.

 3/10: Really Bad 

#12. Dark Phoenix (2019)

Dark Phoenix is another film I didn't enjoy.  James McAvoy, Sophie Turner, and Michael Fassbender do their best and the 3rd act battle on the train is pretty fun, but the movie as a whole is boring and generic.  None of the other action sequences are memorable, Jennifer Lawrence really phoned it in, Quicksilver is sidelined for no good reason, and Jessica Chastain is the worst villain of the series. 

 4/10: Bad

#11. The New Mutants (2020)

The most recent film in the series is the only other one I didn't care for.  While it's certainly different from the rest, The New Mutants tells what could have been a interesting story in the complete wrong way.  Maisie Williams does a good job and the horror elements work very, but there are a ton of plot holes, characters are left intentionally vague, which is frustrating, and Illyana (Anya Taylor-Joy) is one of the worst characters in the franchise.

 4/10: Bad 

#10. X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

The Last Stand isn't necessarily a bad movie, it just could have been so much better.  The returning actors are all fantastic, the different philosophies surrounding the "cure" are really interesting, the visual effects are awesome, and I liked the deaths of Professor X and Cyclops.  They show that no one is safe and demonstrate just how powerful Jean has become.  Unfortunately, there are way too many new characters that get no development with Angel being the worst offender, the move is overstuffed with both the "cure" story and the Dark Phoenix story, the love story between Wolverine and Jean feels forced, and the 3rd act is lackluster. 

 6/10: Okay 

#9. The Wolverine (2013)

Hugh Jackman continues to be great as Wolverine, the fight at the funeral and the bullet train sequence are both awesome, I love that Wolverine's healing ability is diminished for the majority of the movie, and the supporting characters do a good job.  I'm just not a big fan of the story overall.  It feels pretty unnecessary.  Wolverine goes to Japan.  It's not that interesting.  The villain is also underdeveloped and the 3rd act battle doesn't fit with the rest of the film and feels pretty generic.  It's good, but nothing special.

 7/10: Good 

#8. X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)

Michael Fassbender gives arguably his best performance as Magneto, James McAvoy is fantastic as always, the 3rd act is very entertaining with a lot happening, but it was easy enough to follow, and Quicksilver has his largest role of the series, which is wonderful.  I will admit this movie feels bloated at times.  We didn't really need Stryker or Wolverine.  That time could have been better served elsewhere.  Apocalypse and the Four Horseman could have been better developed and some of the dialogue is subpar.

 7/10: Good 


#7. X-Men (2000)

The original X-Men kicks things off with a bang.  I love the themes and the social critiques present throughout the series, but they really stand out in this first film.  We get our first appearance of Magneto with a wonderful performance by Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart and Hugh Jackman are perfectly cast, and while the action sequences aren't very elaborate, they're still pretty cool.  The movie is on the short side for a superhero movie and feels a bit rushed and some of the supporting characters are woefully underdeveloped.  Storm, Cyclops, and Jean Gray all play a major role in the 3rd act, but I never got a good sense of who they are as characters.

 8/10: Really Good 


#6. Deadpool 2 (2018)

Deadpool 2 gives us the funniest superhero movie every made with nearly every joke and reference landing to perfection.  And it doesn't shy away from the emotions either.  This movie gets dark and Ryan Reynolds really brings the dramatic performance when the story calls for it.  Plus all of the supporting characters are wonderful and do at least something memorable before being killed off.   The story does feel unfocused at times.  It's a bit all over the place, but it comes together by the end

 9/10: Great 

#5. Deadpool (2016) 

I cannot understate how perfect Ryan Reynolds is a Deadpool.  He was born to play this role and he does so to perfection.  The rest of the cast also does a good job.  T.J. Miller is hilarious, Morena Baccarin is the single best superhero love interest ever, Ed Skrein is an excellent villian, and Stefan Kapičić is a wonderful foil as Colossus.  It's also a hilarious movie and only surpassed in comedy by the sequel.  The pacing is a little wonky thanks to all the flashbacks, but it's still a really fun film.

 9/10: Great 


#4. X2 (2003)

X2 is a sequel that improves upon the original in every way.  Forcing the X-Men to team up with Magneto is really interesting, the death of Jean Gray and the attack on the Academy are emotionally powerful moments, the action scenes are really fun, the large cast is well balanced (mostly), Stryker is an excellent villain, and the scene were Iceman comes out as a mutant to his family is both funny and heartbreaking.  Pyro is a bit underdeveloped and Cyclops is underused, but those are minor complaints.

 9/10: Great 


#3. X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Days of Future Past gives us the best story of the series where the past versions of the characters collide with the future.  We don't get a ton of time with the original versions of the characters, but it's very memorable.  The acting is incredible all around and the action scenes are a lot of fun, especially Quicksilver's.  The only negative is Jennifer Lawrence.  I really didn't care for her performance and it felt like she didn't want to be there.  It's not to the same extent as it is in Dark Phoenix, but I wish she wasn't as important to the story as she is.

 9/10: Great 


#2. Logan (2017)

Our final ride with Wolverine is the best one with a brutal performance from Hugh Jackman and an extremely emotional story.  Patrick Stewart is also incredible and seeing Professor X being taken down by a mental disease his heartbreaking.  Dafne Keen is one of the best child actors I've ever seen, the movie makes the most of it's R-rating with some brutal violence, and I love that this is a superhero movie and a Western.  It's certainly a unique feel.  I just don't particularly care for the villains of Dr. Rice and Donald Pierce.  They're both pretty generic and not memorable in the least.

 9/10: Great 

#1. X-Men: First Class (2011)

I may be a little biased putting First Class in first place because this is the first X-Men movie I ever watched.  The problem with prequels is we know who is going to live and who isn't generally.  We know Professor X and Magneto are going to make it through this movie, but it doesn't matter because their character arcs are so engaging.  It's one of the best prequels ever made because of that.  McAvoy and Fassbender are perfect, the 3rd act is amazing with an incredible death for Shaw, the missiles being fired at the mutants is probably my favorite scene in the series, the training montage is a lot of fun, and I like that we get a villainous version of Nightcrawler in Azazel.  I don't have any problems with this movie whatsoever and it's hands-down the best in the series.

 10/10: Amazing 



So, what do you think?  Did I nail my ranking or am I dead wrong?  Let me know!