Jackman sheds a tear for end of ‘Wolverine’ franchise

BERLIN - Hugh Jackman’s rip-roaring final turn in the “Wolverine” franchise premiered at the Berlin film festival Saturday, as he admitted he shed a few tears saying goodbye to the juggernaut role. “Logan” sees the blade-fingered superhero reunited with his ailing father figure Professor X (British actor Patrick Stewart) and introduced to Laura, his mutant daughter he was unaware had been created in a Mexican laboratory. Though still small, Laura (newcomer Dafne Keen) inherited her father’s steely claws and awesome strength. She joins him in battle against the agents of an American company that wants her back after engineering her along with a band of superhuman child soldiers. Jackman, who first appeared in the role of The Wolverine from the Marvel comics X-Men series in 2000, said the family story packed a heavy emotional punch for him and, he hoped, the audience. “When I saw the movie I was very nervous, knowing what was at stake for me and it exceeded my expectations. I looked at that character - there were some moments I cried, in weird places like carrying the child (Laura) back up the stairs,” he said. “I can’t say I’ll miss him because it’s difficult to describe, it’s not going anywhere for me. It will always live here. The fans will remind me every single day of my life whether we got it right or wrong.” The film’s opening chapter takes place along a heavily militarized US border with Mexico, in the near future. Logan - or Wolverine - and Professor X are living in hiding when Lisa surfaces, having escaped her creator-captors with the help of a nurse from the clinic. The woman pleads with Logan to shepherd Lisa to “Eden”, a safe haven in North Dakota, near the Canadian border. The three generations of the family end up on a fateful odyssey through an America populated by ruthless corporations and the decent citizens who try to stand up to them. Stewart said the resonance of the picture’s themes had grown stronger during production. “We did not set out to make a political movie and yet there are references and echoes in this movie that could not have been anticipated but exist today,” he said. “That is serendipity.” “Logan” screened out of competition as the final feature at the 11-day Berlinale, which will award its Golden and Silver Bear prizes at a gala ceremony on Sunday. - AFP