X-Men First Class: The Ability of Disability

   There is a unique narrative decision in X-Men First Class that seems at odds with the films main conceit of mutation. The character flaw is an essential part of any narrative, if not it's beating heart. You would be forgiven then if you thought that Charles Xavier has no such flaws, he is seemingly perfect in every way. He also, as an added bonus has mind reading abilities. In every way Charles Xavier exemplifies the human desire to be perfect, or at least what we wish perfection would represent. So what gives, in a film filled with human weakness where is his. Charles's weakness is that he thinks he has none.

He is flawless, and he knows it. It is here that I would like to thank Matthew Vaughn and his team on how they decided Charles Xavier would overcome this flaw. You see, Xavier in most of the X-Men comics is synonymous with his wheelchair. Not in this film However. In X-Men First Class Charles is fully able-bodied until.... He isn't.
    This character decision is meaningful in two ways. The first is that the film offers a truth, the truth that weakness is not the end, in fact it can help us discover who we are truly meant to be. We find our strength in weakness. Secondly the film offers its audience a glimpse into what living with a real mutation is like.
    Disability may not grant a person superpowers, but it does grant them the ability to become stronger and better than they could be without it. In X-Men First Class Charles Xavier could never truly become Professor X, without first coming to terms with what having a mutation really means.

I find this film enjoyable, meaningful and thought-provoking. I hope in some way you do too.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My Top 5 Films of 2024

Image
5.  Twisters 2024 “Nature's masterpiece.” If you feel it, chase it” “You don't face your fears you ride them” All right, I'll just say it, Twisters is an exhilarating experience. It is one of the most well orchestrated summer blockbusters that I have seen in years. Yet, it is also a film that never forgets the vehicles of utter power and destruction that it illustrates on-screen. Perhaps that is the film's strength: it is able, in a real tangible way, to convey these acts of God with respect and reverence for their awesome power. It does this, without losing, for one second the thrill and wonder of the chase. Twisters is a roller coaster ride in the best sense of the phrase. It has heart, meaning and poignancy in every inch of its special effects filled plunge, into the thrills and difficulties of storm chasing. On that note it is a movie that uses all of the available filmic and auditory tools to the greatest effect. At least to my ears Twisters is an exh...
Read more

Who Made Man's Mouth: Recontextualizing Disability as an Ordinary, Every Day, Purpose Driven Life

Image
Michelangelo's Moses c.1513-1515 Who Made Man's Mouth:   Recontextualizing Disability as an Ordinary, Every Day, Purpose Driven Life     "I want to live in a world where we value genuine achievement for disabled people, and I want to live in a world where a kid in year 11 at a Melbourne high school is not one bit surprised that his new teacher is a wheelchair user. Disability does not make you exceptional, but questioning what you think you know about it does." -Stella Young, TEDxSidney 2014      When you realize that perhaps you've been misunderstanding a core tenant of  yourself for a better part of your life, you begin to deconstruct the factors that brought you to that realization. Now, before we start this journey I want to say that I am not a theologian nor am I trying to be one. This endeavor is as much a journey of discovery for me as it is for you. It is a recontextualization of ...
Read more

The Boys in the Boat 2023

Image
 " It's called Swing, when all eight are rowing in such perfect unison that no single action is out of sync with the rest of the boat. Then you aren't fighting each other, you're moving less effort. Each one of your strokes is worth one and a half of the other boats. Most groups never find it, but when they do, rowing is more poetry than sport.” What does it take to be one? How do we overcome our innate desire to be loners, to fend for ourselves? These are questions that The Boys in the Boat attempts to answer. As a film the story of the 1936 Washington State Crew team brings us back to essentials. What is Sport? Is it a singular endeavor or does it require a team? The truth is, even when a singular person is on the field, their skills are still being honed by many hands. This is the essential aspect of Sport that we are asked to recall in thls engaging journey of the Washington Crew team, as they seek for Olympic Gold. It may seem like you've seen ever...
Read more