I have to say that I was really refreshingly surprised. Jennifer Lawrence was probably the casting choice that I was most worried about and it turned out that she was one of my favorite parts of the movie. I love how the incorporated a back story between her and Charles and overall I feel that Jennifer really held her own in this movie.

She did great..I just wasn't feeling the whole 'victim/nobody will love me as I look' reality they had for Raven Darkholme in the movie.  But Jennifer rocked the part of Raven.

I have to say that I was really refreshingly surprised. Jennifer Lawrence was probably the casting choice that I was most worried about and it turned out that she was one of my favorite parts of the movie. I love how the incorporated a back story between her and Charles and overall I feel that Jennifer really held her own in this movie.

the one thing i didn't get was this, in the movie Raven and Charles were like brother and sister, best friends, they were each other's ONLY friends, i'd say they'd die for one another, yet Raven instantly abandons a fatally wounded charles for a guy she just met like a week ago  (Magneto) just because he gives her a few compliments?? wtf?? i dont care how charming he is or how he thinks her 'true form" is beautiful, her brother is lying on the ground crippled and bleeding! your'e just gonna leave??

@Avenging-X-Bolt: I wanted to scream at him not to take it, cause I knew what was going to happen >_< It was a defining moment for her, though. She finally realized that she shouldn't conform to what she thought everybody else wanted to see, she needed to be her own person.

I thought she did well actually, better than I hoped. Thought the interaction with Beast was good, kinda cheesy but it was good though.

my only real problem is them killing Darwin cause it didn't even make sense due to his power it just seemed like the typical movie cliche' of killing the black guy, especially since all the white people in the movie aside from Shaw survived  

@joshmightbe: yeah, cause he loved her and wanted what was best for her (although that path wasn't) but even still, her just leaving her mortally wounded best friend, even if he says do it is pretty messed up

my only real problem is them killing Darwin cause it didn't even make sense due to his power it just seemed like the typical movie cliche' of killing the black guy, especially since all the white people in the movie aside from Shaw survived  

@joshmightbe: Darwin isnt necessarily dead. As comicbook fans we know better then most.

No body = Suspicious circumstances/opening for a return.

Loved JL's Mystique interpretation

@InnerVenom123: it completely took me out of the movie for a second my only thought was "typical" 

She's cute.  
 
I thought she was alright considering what she had to work with. I did have a small problem, but it's not even her fault. I felt that the character development as far as the romance was concerned was done pretty poorly. I felt Mystique and Beast's potential fling could've been a good plot point, but the farthest they went with it was a needle in the arm and a peck on the mouth. I also felt that the relationship between Xavier and Moira was poorly done as well. And they didn't even give us a hint that Mystique would get with Azazel to explain Nightcrawler's true connection with the X-Men. Maybe they'll save that for a potential sequel? Idk, but now I'm starting to rant so's I'll shut up now.  
 
If you read it, I appreciate it, lol. 

@The Stegman said:

the one thing i didn't get was this, in the movie Raven and Charles were like brother and sister, best friends, they were each other's ONLY friends, i'd say they'd die for one another, yet Raven instantly abandons a fatally wounded charles for a guy she just met like a week ago (Magneto) just because he gives her a few compliments?? wtf?? i dont care how charming he is or how he thinks her 'true form" is beautiful, her brother is lying on the ground crippled and bleeding! your'e just gonna leave??

If you notice a lot of the movie's relationships were very fast paced. Charles and Erick were the best of friends by the end of the movie and they met at the beginning of the movie. I guess I overlooked that fact because in that short amount of time we watched a lot of time passed for them.

I though Jennifer Lawrence was amazing as Mystique. When it comes to comic books I always like Mystique best when her character is broken. (Which is why I loved Dark X-Men) This movie had the character of Raven broken from the start than "fix" her into the Mystique we know from the movies and a little bit from the comics.

my only real problem is them killing Darwin cause it didn't even make sense due to his power it just seemed like the typical movie cliche' of killing the black guy, especially since all the white people in the movie aside from Shaw survived  

I thought she did great, she gave Mystique some real presence here, other than just the badass henchwoman she's been in the other X-flicks.

the one thing i didn't get was this, in the movie Raven and Charles were like brother and sister, best friends, they were each other's ONLY friends, i'd say they'd die for one another, yet Raven instantly abandons a fatally wounded charles for a guy she just met like a week ago  (Magneto) just because he gives her a few compliments?? wtf?? i dont care how charming he is or how he thinks her 'true form" is beautiful, her brother is lying on the ground crippled and bleeding! your'e just gonna leave??

                    my only real problem is them killing Darwin cause it didn't even make sense due to his power it just seemed like the typical movie cliche' of killing the black guy, especially since all the white people in the movie aside from Shaw survived  

                   

               

the one thing i didn't get was this, in the movie Raven and Charles were like brother and sister, best friends, they were each other's ONLY friends, i'd say they'd die for one another, yet Raven instantly abandons a fatally wounded charles for a guy she just met like a week ago  (Magneto) just because he gives her a few compliments?? wtf?? i dont care how charming he is or how he thinks her 'true form" is beautiful, her brother is lying on the ground crippled and bleeding! your'e just gonna leave??

As far as characters I felt that were changed significantly for the movie, but still retained a very compelling and interesting characterization that aided the overall movies plot and assisted with other characters roles, I though Mystique was one one if the best if not the best. (As opposed to characters I felt characterization specifically hadn't been changed much) I don't think Jennifer Lawrence looks the part, but thats okay, her performance was awesome and really the most important part about her blue skin look is that she looks different, as opposed to some preconceived notion gained from the comic pages) her role was a lot more softer, and naive, and when I read comics version, I expect to see a hardened and badass type characterization. I don't mind that I didn't get that here though. We know nothing of the comics version experiences of Mystique at that age and I'll be okay if we never know, but one other thing I find the comics could improve on, is stereotyping Raven, I think they could give her a few softer more sympathetic story roles, and so in this sense? The movie more than delivered.  
 
Anyway, her moments with Beast, (and Havok as well) moments were Xavier, and moments with Magneto were some of my favorite parts of the film. Great part. Better fit for this story. Plus really this is what supporting characters should do in comics. Comics are way too frantic and over the top to have perfect translations for every character. Its just too much badass for one film. How Mystique was used her really, really helped characterize Xavier and Magneto and Beast like they are in the comics. At the expense of the owns character accuracy, but say unlike Rogue in the X-Movies who was rewritten to aid other characters but was sort of dull as a result, Mystique here had depth and was rather interesting and complicated. 

@The Stegman said: 

the one thing i didn't get was this, in the movie Raven and Charles were like brother and sister, best friends, they were each other's ONLY friends, i'd say they'd die for one another, yet Raven instantly abandons a fatally wounded charles for a guy she just met like a week ago  (Magneto) just because he gives her a few compliments?? wtf?? i dont care how charming he is or how he thinks her 'true form" is beautiful, her brother is lying on the ground crippled and bleeding! your'e just gonna leave??

 
She didn't leave for him, Magneto, she left for the cause. She left for herself and essentially for Charles. It was a ethics/morales thing. It wasn't because Magneto flattered her ego. Though that probably helped her trust him, and believe that he was sincere with his words and motives. She also knows he (Xavier) can read her mind, and she trusts him. She was probably still in shock. Who were the people who essentially just put Charles in that position? In her eyes, its probably the humans. It was probably a more painful and harder thing to do to leave him there, but if she felt it was the right thing to do? It echoes real life in what people will endure personally when they really believe in a cause.   

She did a really great job. Mystique was one of my favorite characters in the movie.

@SC:  if she did leave for the cause, which i'm not so sure she did as it was never established that she believed that humanity was against mutants or that she even truly believed Magneto's way of thinking, it still makes little sense. they clearly said at the beginning that they were all that each other knew, that Charles was her only friend and vice versa, Charles was the first person to every show her kindness and treat her as an equal, they grew up together, and from what i got from the film, Erik came, gave her a few inspirational words, and that was enough to make her cut the ties from Charles??  i'd say later on (in the other movies) she believes in the cause, but from what i seen i this film, it appears she was on the fence at best

I was kind of confused at their writing of the character, especially because it seems like it really doesn't fit the other movies, but Jennifer Lawrence did some amazing work. She's just a fantastic actress, which she proved in Winter's Bone. In X-Men: First Class, she gets to show something that she didn't show in Winter's Bone, which is look really sexy. I was impressed.

my only real problem is them killing Darwin cause it didn't even make sense due to his power it just seemed like the typical movie cliche' of killing the black guy, especially since all the white people in the movie aside from Shaw survived  

Even though it was probably a Magneto movie first I think she was the second most important character tied with Charles. Which was a nice surprise and she did a great job. Can't wait for Hunger Games now.

I absolutely loved her in it.
 
Seriously, she to me, was the defining character in the film and I loved her scene with her.

One thing that I think has been overlooked in the comics is that Raven is older than both Magneto and Xavier as well as being just as intelligent. I've always thought she should fulfill a role similar to theirs so in a way her portrayal in the movies seemed like it would conflict with what I love about her...
 
HOWEVER 
 
I loved Mystique's arc in the First Class movie. In the beginning, she's an extension of Charles and while he goes to Oxford she studies "waitressing" living a life where she's passing as a normal civilian. There's sort of a gay metaphor in her relationship with Beast where he rejects their true forms, there's also a body-image metaphor too where Raven is being told to suppress herself, and finally in the end she's empowered in a multitude of ways, I loved it. So in a way, she's as prominent and interesting as Xavier & Magneto.
 
They must do another movie and Jennifer Lawrence must do more action!! The only thing I would've liked was to see her kick more ass!

Mystique only went with magneto because charles told her to otherwise she would have stayed(because of that friendship) that's why she went to him first, but charles knew she rather go with magneto who was the only one to truly accepted her blue form(charles was never comfortable with it during the movie, ost kid charles) 
Mystique and charles realized their friendship had become strained and they were growing apart(especially when charles didn't return her feelings and scolded her often), charles was very oppressive to mystique(that sibling aspect) while magneto wanted her to embrace everything that made her different, she saw the similarities between the two men and found mags to be a better fit  
Though they should have had a "__months/weeks later" so more time could have passed and the whole friendship between charles, magneto and mystique would have seemed less rushed 
 
I loved jennifer lawrence as raven, I think she did a great job and she made me want to see a mystique movie(will settle for a brotherhood of mutants movie with her as a front runner) but she did have a fuller face, which didn't bother me and I respect her feelings on the weight subject(she rather look like a woman than a stick) and she was still beautiful and is still an amazing actress

@Mercy_: I thought she was good just to say she is going to be playing her again in X-men Days Of Future Past what are you thoughts

I liked her. She's super sexy.

@The Stegman said:

@joshmightbe: yeah, cause he loved her and wanted what was best for her (although that path wasn't) but even still, her just leaving her mortally wounded best friend, even if he says do it is pretty messed up

She's a villain. She does messed up things.  
 
@joshmightbe said:

my only real problem is them killing Darwin cause it didn't even make sense due to his power it just seemed like the typical movie cliche' of killing the black guy, especially since all the white people in the movie aside from Shaw survived  

That threw me off a lot. 

plus, she's pretty hot ! i thought Jennifer Lawrence add depth to the character of mystique she was able to show a fragile and emotional side to the character, which is something i've never seen in mystique. since, I've always thought she was just this cold hearted b*tch.