If you're scrolling through HBO Max for a superhero fix, you've got plenty of options. But one title towers above the rest—Logan, the 2017 film that proved capes and claws can deliver genuine cinema. Unfortunately, fans have only until May 31 to watch it before it leaves the streaming service.
Directed by James Mangold, Logan takes place in a bleak alternate timeline where an aging Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) cares for a deteriorating Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart). Their quiet existence is shattered by the arrival of Laura (Dafne Keen), a young mutant clone of Logan who needs protection from the cyborg Reavers. What follows is a brutal, heart-wrenching road trip that redefines what a superhero movie can be.
Brutal Violence Meets Emotional Depth
From its opening scene, Logan doesn't hold back. Unlike previous X-Men films where Wolverine's claws barely drew blood, here limbs fly and faces are torn apart in sprays of crimson. Mangold deliberately leaned into the comic book violence, but he also introduced a key twist: Logan's healing factor is failing. The adamantium poisoning his body and his age mean wounds take days to heal and leave permanent scars. As Mangold explained before release, "We imagined that it may have when he was younger, but with age, he's getting older and ailing. Perhaps his healing factor no longer produces baby-soft skin." This vulnerability makes every fight feel dangerous and adds real emotional weight.
Xavier's own powers are slipping, leading to devastating psychic seizures that set up one of the film's most shocking twists. Meanwhile, Logan forms a tender father-daughter bond with Laura, a clone who shares his DNA. Their relationship builds to a climax that will leave viewers in tears, cementing Logan as one of the most emotionally crushing movies of the past 25 years.
A Landmark in Superhero Cinema
While opinions vary on Fox's X-Men franchise, most agree Logan is its crowning achievement. It outsold nearly every X-Men film except Deadpool and earned rave reviews. The films that followed—Dark Phoenix and The New Mutants—failed to match its success. Even Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige cited Logan as the inspiration for Iron Man's death in Avengers: Endgame, saying, "We saw Logan like the audience did... and went, 'oh my god, what an amazing ending for Hugh as this character.'"
Though Jackman and Stewart have since returned as Wolverine and Professor X in Deadpool & Wolverine, those versions are distinct from the ones in Logan. This film remains a standalone masterpiece—a gritty, emotional, and violent farewell that changed the superhero genre forever. Don't let it slip away. Stream Logan on HBO Max before May 31.
