



Whenever talk turns to the quality of a comic book movie, one thing which always seems to come up is its score on Rotten Tomatoes. While many fans can appreciate that trusting a site that lets publications and websites gleefully tear a movie apart just for the attention and hits (as was the case with one very controversial Captain America: Civil War review) may not be the smartest idea, it's fair to say that more often than not, these scores still offer at least a vague indication of how good or bad a movie is.



In the case of X-Men: Apocalypse - which is released tomorrow evening in North America - critics have been split right down the middle, and despite how well international audiences have responded to the movie, I know that there are many of you on the fence about checking it out this weekend.



Well, what you'll find here is a SPOILER-FREE look at the top five reasons why you need to ignore the reviews (both good and bad) and see X-Men: Apocalypse for yourselves. Regardless of whether you're a longtime fan of this franchise or coming to this one with fresh eyes, there's a lot to love here, and it's definitely worth giving Bryan Singer's fourth - and final? - movie in this series a chance to impress.



5. It's The Most Comic Book Faithful X-Men Movie To Date



Bryan Singer has never been one for sticking too closely to the source material, and while X-Men: Apocalypse certainly takes plenty of liberties, it's no worse in that respect than either Captain America: Civil War or Deadpool. Sure, Mystique may be a hero in this timeline, but when it comes to the way characters like Magneto, Cyclops, Jean Grey, and a number of others are portrayed, it's hard to fault this movie.



That aside though, and the action also feels like it's been torn straight from the pages of the comic books, and while it may have taken him four movies to do so, it finally feels like Singer is embracing the source material in that respect. Despite some very small CGI issues (even Civil War had a case of dodgy screen green to be fair), the final battle between the X-Men and En Sabah Nur should leave a massive smile on the face of any comic book fan, especially as it finally feels like we're seeing THE X-Men fighting alongside each other.



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4. Apocalypse Is A Great Comic Book Movie Bad Guy



Ivan Ooze comparisons aside, and Oscar Isaac's En Sabah Nur is one of the best comic book movie villains to come along for quite some time. Infinitely better than the likes of Malekith, Electro, and even the very divisive Lex Luthor from Batman v Superman, Apocalypse's plan may be relatively simplistic, but he's a fascinatingly complex and compelling villain.



Much of that comes from just how great Isaac is in this role, and it's to the actor's credit that his performance manages to shine through those heavy prosthetics (which look a million times better than in any of the images released from the film). Seeing the way he manipulates his Horsemen and learning more about how he views Charles Xavier and his X-Men makes for fun viewing, and there are a lot of layers to Apocalypse which should give fans plenty to talk about for a very long time to come. His powers are also portrayed on the big screen pretty much perfectly which should make most happy.



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3. It Lays The Groundwork For Big Things To Come







After two movies of essentially just teasing the formation of this team, X-Men: Apocalypse finally leaves us in a place where that's happened, and whenever the next instalment is released, it could just be the X-Men movie we've all been waiting for if their appearance here is any indication. Throw in the Wolverine 3 centric after-credits scene, and that too is well worth the price of admission given the kind of ramifications it may have moving forward. I've already taken a spoiler-filled look at the surprising ways X-Men: Apocalypse sets up the future of the X-Men Universe , and if you've read that, you'll already be well aware that Bryan Singer and Simon Kinberg approached this movie with an eye set firmly on where things can go here. By the time X-Men: Apocalypse wraps up, there are in fact quite a few different directions the franchise could go in, but it's the sight of the X-Men finally suited up (that's no spoiler; it's a moment shown off in multiple trailers, TV spots, and stills) which is most exciting.After two movies of essentially just teasing the formation of this team, X-Men: Apocalypse finally leaves us in a place where that's happened, and whenever the next instalment is released, it could just be the X-Men movie we've all been waiting for if their appearance here is any indication. Throw in the Wolverine 3 centric after-credits scene, and that too is well worth the price of admission given the kind of ramifications it may have moving forward.



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2. There Are Some Awesome Surprises



It's a shame that Fox decided to spoil many of X-Men: Apocalypse's biggest surprises in the movie's trailers, but even Wolverine's now well publicised cameo includes something which comic book fans are guaranteed to get a kick out of which hasn't been included in marketing materials so far. However, the movie includes plenty of other cool surprises both in terms of Easter Eggs and the way the plot plays out (how X-Men: Apocalypse ties directly into a previous instalment of the franchise will definitely shock you).



The biggest reveal comes in the final battle though, and it's pretty amazing that Fox managed to resist ruining that iconic moment in the trailers when you take into account how much else they've so far spoiled without giving it so much as a second thought. The point is, while you may go into X-Men: Apocalypse thinking you're already well aware of how thing will play out, rest assured that there's plenty you don't actually know...



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