Remember when the X-Men Origins: Wolverine Workprint leaked? Tom Rothman, chairman of Twentieth Century Fox released a statement saying:

“The version that went out is unfinished. It’s about 10 minutes shorter, doesn’t have key scenes, it wasn’t edited, and none of the effects shots were in any remotely final form, It’s a complete misrepresentation of the film and is deeply unfair to the people who have worked on it for years.”

Well, press screenings have begun and Ain’t It Cool News reader, Veritas, was at one.  He has a different story:

“Well, having seen the finished film, the mystery is solved: the workprint version IS in fact identical to the release print, sans effect and some audio work. It’s obvious that FOX is trying their darndest to keep this news from getting out, because it will eliminate most of the motivation for people who have seen the workprint to pay for a ticket.”

Also, actual scenes shown in the trailers for Wolverine are missing never made it to either the work print or the final cut.  Plus the effects leave a lot to be desired:

“The finished effects are lackluster, to say the least – some really bad CGI work made me groan numerous times (especially, but not restricted to, Patrick Stewart’s cameo). The scene with Stewart looks so much better in the workprint – trying to digitally de-age him did NOT work this time around… “

Finally, Veritas has some thoughts on the film as a whole:

“Good pacing, good lead performances, and some cool comic book fights overcome a non-existing story, horrible dialog (including the classic “I’m so cold…”), and criminally underdeveloped characters.”

As a Wolverine fan, this bums me out. The fact that Tom Rothman had to lie to try to get people to the theater, says a lot about Fox as a company and the lack of confidence they have in their film. Looks like I’ll end up renting it. I’d rather not re-live X-men 3 again.

[Source: Ain't It Cool, io9, EW]