The New Mutants (2020)

Directed by: Josh Boone | minutes | action, horror, drama | Actors: Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Heaton, Alice Braga, Blu Hunt, Henry Zaga, Adam Beach, Thomas Kee, Colbi Gannett, Happy Anderson, Dustin Ceithamer, Jacinto Vega SpiritWolf, Chuck | Voiced by: Marilyn Manson

Much has been said and written about director Josh Boone’s ‘The New Mutants’. The film has been shelved for years because of not being good, not at the right time and too difficult. There was even talk of re-shoots to bring the offending film on the market, but that was against Boone’s sore leg. Ultimately, it was decided to release the film in the form that Boone had in mind. Remarkably enough, this troubled production even managed to get a theatrical release.

‘The New Mutants’ revolves around five young mutants: Dani Moonstar (Blu Hunt), Rahne Sinclair (Maisie Williams), Illyana Rasputin (Anna Taylor-Joy), Sam Guthrie (Charlie Heaton) and Bobby DaCosta (Henry Zaga). . These teens are held against their will in a mysterious mansion where they must learn to use their superpowers. dr. Reyes (Alice Braga) wants to teach them to live with these special qualities, but the youngsters discover that something is not right in the mansion. Mysterious creatures sow unrest in the nighttime hours.

You can think of ‘The New Mutants’ as a spin-off of ‘X-Men’. In the early 1980s, these mutants debuted at Marvel Comics. From 1983 to 1991, these comic book characters had their own comic book series. In 2015, Boone hinted that he was eager to create a trilogy around this comic series. The director’s star was on the rise after his 2014 film ‘The Fault In Our Stars’ turned out to be a blockbuster. Marvel agreed, and after a few years of preparation, shooting began in 2017. The goal was to release the film in theaters in 2018. After the takeover of Marvel by Disney, a lot changed and the fate of the film remained uncertain for a long time after it remained on the shelf.

The story behind this film is more interesting than the production itself. Boone’s movie isn’t bad, but it’s very boring. This production lacks a clear vision and doesn’t know what it wants to be: a teen drama, horror or superhero movie. The end product is neither meat nor fish. The film is too soft and not scary for a horror movie. For a teen drama the characters are too flat and for a superhero movie there is little action. ‘The New Mutants’ is a slow-moving film that never really gets boring or interesting. The acting is mediocre with minor peaks up (Taylor-Joy and Williams who get the most out of their roles and stick with them despite their inconsistent accents) and down (Hunt and Zaga act very stiff and flat). The soundtrack is okay, but no more than that. The atmosphere is sometimes a bit creepy, but never oppressive. The special effects are sometimes nice and sometimes bad. What does grace Boone is that he lets a lesbian relationship blossom in a natural way and portrays it. These love scenes are not a gimmick, but an essential part of the story.

This film falls into the typically Dutch category of the six-person mentality. ‘The New Mutants’ is a strange movie. Fans of the comics won’t appreciate the differences between the comic characters and their movie versions, while newcomers never really get to know these strange birds. It’s all fleeting and superficial. A tight enough.