Anchors (Out of Four):I’ll start by saying this. “Logan” was a very good movie, both in the superhero/comic genre and in terms of cinema as a whole. Director James Mangold, who also directed its direct predecessor “The Wolverine” (2013) and the modern remake of the classic western “3:10 to Yuma” (2007), brings a unique style when, combined with some great work by the starring cast, make this movie worthy of the critical acclaim it has received.

But, on the other hand, I don’t foresee myself re-watching “Logan” again anytime soon. This is not for any fatal flaw in the film or any stylistic choice, but rather because, as someone who has grown up with the X-Men franchise, watching the titular character Logan (Hugh Jackman) and his mentor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) reprise their roles for the last time left me with a great feeling of melancholy, one which struck me far more profoundly as the end credits rolled than I thought it would.

So, before we dive into the gruesome details of the first R-rated “X-Men” movie, let’s cover a little history for those who aren’t in the know.

The first “X-Men” film came out 17 years ago, in July of 2000, and over the past decade and a half, that film and its 9 sequels have become a mainstay of the American cinematic experience. “X-Men” arrived on the scene 8 years before “Iron Man” kicked off the critically and commercially acclaimed Avengers series and the so-called “Marvel Cinematic Universe,” a feat DC is attempting to replicate to this day with hit-or-miss films like “Man of Steel,” “Suicide Squad,” “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.” It was 5 years before Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” trilogy had critics talking of the first superhero movies worthy of Oscar contention.

For perspective, “X-Men” is the only superhero series around today that premiered before 9/11. It’s truly from a different world, and from a different mindset. But its earliest installments don’t seem antiquated, but rather simply take a different tone and perspective than some of its more contemporary peers.

It’s more clunky, for one thing. Wolverine – Logan – and the X-Men have had their cinematic highs and lows, from the critically acclaimed “X2” (2003) and “First Class” (2011), to the largely panned “The Last Stand” (2006) and “Apocalypse” (2016). Tying together a 10-part story consisting of alternate timelines, prequels, sequels, directorial changes, acting changes, deaths, and resurrections, can also make the whole series a bit unwieldy to watch.

Nevertheless, as someone who has had the full 17-year long lifespan of the X-Men to watch and re-watch their films, I can say that, overall, it has been a journey well worth taking.

The “X-Men” films are, at their core, an allegory, pitting the Malcolm X-esque Magneto and his Brotherhood of Mutants against the students of Professor Xavier. Magneto, the man who can control metal, who watched his family exterminated in the Holocaust and will do anything to ensure that those with mutant powers don’t suffer the same fate.  Professor X, the man who can read and manipulate others’ minds, knows more about everyone else than about himself.

And, caught in the middle of these two worlds is James “Logan” Howlett – Wolverine. We’ve seen Wolverine’s entire life story over the course of the series, from his birth in 1845 (his healing powers also grant him an extended lifespan) to “Logan,” where we see a grizzled, aging title character operating as a professional driver in the year 2029.

In “Logan,” almost all mutants have died of a genocide-like cause we only get hints of throughout the film. Logan and Professor X, now in his 90s and suffering from an Alzheimer’s-like disease, must be kept sequestered lest he hurt others with his psychic seizures. Wolverine likewise suffers from a debilitating illness. In his old age, his healing powers have finally waned and are fighting a losing battle against the adamantium that coats his bones and is poisoning his body.

With the first new mutant in 25 years having been born and revealed to Logan, he and Xavier must travel northward to Canada, where the mutant will be kept safe from the anti-mutant policies of the United States.

What stands out immediately in “Logan” are influences from western and Japanese cinema, something we saw these overtly in 2013’s “The Wolverine,” where Logan travels to Japan. In “Logan,” the title character plays the part of the Ronin, a wandering samurai (the likeness of Wolverine’s claws to katanas has been commented on ad nauseam), drifting through life without any allegiances.

In “Logan,” which begins on the Texas-Mexico border, we see these same themes play out in a western context. The film has strong elements of the neo-western classic “Unforgiven” (1992), which sees Clint Eastwood as an aging outlaw, who, like Logan, must come out of retirement for one more fight. In the film’s second act, we even see our characters watching and commenting on the classic western “Shane” (1953) in a Las Vegas hotel room.

It only makes sense, then, for a movie with such dark inspiration to be the first R-rated film in this franchise. In “Logan,” we finally see the brutality and vulgarity of this character come to life from on screen. “Logan” spares no time treating us to a barrage of flying body parts and vulgar language that always seems appropriate for the tone of the film.

Neither is the film bogged down by its near-future timeline. In fact, “Logan” probably does a better job than many recent sci-fi movies of portraying what a realistic near future might look like from the ground up – a highway full of self-driving trucks, a highly advanced smart phone that still succumbs to dead batteries, a tricked-out futuristic Lincoln Continental driving through post-industrial deserts on the Mexican border.

And, finally, what can I give except praise for Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart. Stewart, the veteran actor of stage, television, and film, gives a nuanced performance with the confidence that could only come from multiple reprisals over 17 years. Jackman, giving his final performance in the role that has defined the last half of his adult life, delivers his character with such practice and true enjoyment.

Hugh Jackman is Wolverine in the minds of so many moviegoers, and in “Logan,” he and Stewart end their time with the X-Men in the most appropriate fashion possible. Even if you’re not a fan of the series, you should go see this film. If you are, well, be prepared to shed a few tears.