By Chris Kavan - 08/27/20 at 09:52 PM CT
The Long and Winding Road is one of the greatest songs ever written - and while I'm sure The Beatles didn't have The New Mutants in mind when creating the masterpiece, no other description best describes the path this film took to finally get into theaters. Made all the way back in 2017, New Mutants has suffered a series of delays (though, not emphatically for reshoots as director Josh Boone has vehemently stated) before landing in a world where a real pandemic (as opposed to awesome genetic mutation) has made going to theaters a dicey prospect at best. But here we are, New Mutants vs. Unhinged - we'll see if audiences are hungry for some mutant teen angst.
THE NEW MUTANTS If there is one thing New Mutants has going for it - it's that it will be unlike any superhero-based film before it, Marvel or otherwise. That is because New Mutants is going to be based on horror - sure, PG-13 horror-lite, but horror none-the-less. And it will also feature the first same-sex romance in any superhero film. That romance is based on the characters of Danielle Moonstar aka Mirage (Blu Hunt) a Native American who wakes up in psychiatric facility for teen mutants who finds she is not alone. Seen through her eyes, her connection is with Rahne Sinclair aka Wolfsbane (Game of Thrones Maise Williams), a Scottish werewolf who tries to reconcile her powers with her strict religious upbringing. The other patients include surly Russian llyana Rasputin aka Magik (Anya Taylor-Joy), the red hot Roberto da Costa aka Sunspot (Henry Zaga) and Sam Guthrie aka Cannonball (Stranger Things Charlie Heaton). They are watched over by Dr. Cecilia Reyes (Alice Braga) who serves as a mentor but is probably hiding something. The power of Moonstar is to project images based on fears and desire and when more fear than desire comes through - well, things can get a little scary. The film also seems to draw quite a bit of inspiration from The Breakfast Club and A Nightmare on Elm Street - take that as you will. Other than its long path to being released, much of the discussion surrounding it recently has been the fact Disney did not allow critic so screen it nor give out digital copies, thus many critics have boycotted the film as they aren't willing to risk going to theaters at this time to review it. It's tough to say if the impact of New Mutants is going to be any better than last week's Unhinged. Time will tell.
With theaters still slowly opening, New Mutants is still only a stepping stone until Tenet drops. That being said, it should have a bit more appeal than Russell Crowe going psycho, but we'll find out for sure come Sunday.
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