The New Mutants (2020), directed by Josh Boone, stars Blu Hunt, Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Henrique Zaga, Charlie Heaton, Alice Braga, and Adam Beach. This is Fox’s final X-Men film and follows a group of teenagers who are kept as patients at a mysterious clinic that specializes in teaching mutants how to control their powers. After the arrival of Dani (Hunt), a shy teenager with dangerous yet mysterious powers, goings on at the facility begin to take a dark turn. The teenagers soon realize that the clinic may not be all it appears. Together the group trains to master their powers so they can attempt to break free from their secret prison.

Quality performances are one of the most important aspects of making a great film, so it’s a crying shame that the performances here across the board are pretty much awful. Blu Hunt as the film’s lead is unfortunately the worst of the bunch, her delivery of dialogue often coming off as wooden or unnatural. This is compounded by the fact that the character is written to have essentially zero defining features. It’s a bit strange that the actress who has the least talent was cast in the lead role. As for the more recognizable supporting cast such as Anya Taylor-Joy, Maisie Williams, Henrique Zaga, and Charlie Heaton; they provide a bit more natural talent but are hindered by a script that forces their characters to implement very specific regional accents. One character is Russian, one Scottish, and one from the Deep South. There’s nothing wrong with featuring various characters from unlike backgrounds, but when their accents are so over-the-top, they come off as a bit unnatural and therefore silly. They overplay the caricatures to the point where it’s clear that these are actors using fake accents as opposed to the real thing. 

The villain of the film played by Alice Braga may be the worst the franchise has had to offer. She lacks any form of intimidation as well as a clear motivation. The script is such a mess that I struggle to even remember anything about her two days after seeing the film. For the most part, every character in this film is so vanilla that it sometimes feels akin to staring at a wall. 

In the film’s short 90-minute runtime it focuses much too heavily on a variety of unoriginal teen movie tropes. It’s just about the only thing that could feel more boring than unoriginal superhero tropes. The film was also heavily marketed as being a superhero film with a horror edge but likewise failed in that department. Although there are a few unsettling images, there’s no attempt to build any tension. Likewise, it never brings the film home with any horror themes. In other words, it just falls back on a typical comic book climax in its final moments. 

Overall, I don’t have much to say about this film when considering how forgettable it is. It’s no surprise that for a time, audiences didn’t even think this film would get released. It’s clear that it has been reshot/recut into oblivion, resulting in a film that feels like a forced compromise: nothing to offend, nothing to remember. I won’t blame a person if they pretend like this is a film that doesn’t exist within the franchise. D