Movie Review: The New Mutants (2020)

The New Mutants (2020) co-written and directed by Josh Boone

Native American Dani Moonstar (Blu Hunt) survives a tragedy that wipes out everyone else on her reservation. She's taken to a special hospital which turns out to be a prison for young mutants with control issues. Dani's first issue is that she isn't really sure what her powers are. There's four other inmates and one doctor in charge. Her methods seem normal (group therapy sessions, one-on-one discussions, some drugs every now and then) but her goals are ambiguous. She says she's getting them ready to work for her boss on the outside. The kids are rebellious and withdrawn and occasionally frightened by bad memories from their past. Will they go crazy before they get whatever cure or control that the doctor is offering them?

The movie suffers from a lack of focus. It seems at one point like it wants to be an insane asylum horror drama. At another point it seems like The Breakfast Club with mutant teenagers. At another point it seems like it wants to set up a new set of X-Men to keep the franchise going. But it never lands satisfyingly on any of those possibilities. The humor and the action are very minimal, which would be okay if there were stronger characters or dramatic plot lines to keep the movie engaging. Everything in the film is average. The creepy hospital/jail was only mildly creepy. The conflicts between the characters didn't feel original or compelling. I've seen it all before and seen it done better in many other films.

Not recommended.