I think (and it must constantly be stated that I saw the movie I wanted to see, not the movie they made) that Charles's psychic powers and the casual way he used them doomed them to a quick breakup in this movie. I've told starlady that in my read of the movie, by the time they're at Oliver Platt's facility Charles has already read Erik's mind completely and knows that Erik's mind is a place full of irredeemable darkness.
Perhaps the most charitable reading of Charles in the movie is that his journey is about figuring out if he's willing to go all the way with Erik. Erik already knows his limits, knows what he is and isn't capable of if things get dark enough. He starts the movie already having 'graduated', already trained, while Charles's graduation scene, which is literally shown, shows a man just stepping out into the world. (It's likely a useful metaphor to consider in a film that calls itself First Class)
And what does he learn? He learns that a) he's willing to hold a man down while another man kills him figuratively with his bare hands. But what he's not willing to do is commit an act of casual mass murder, even in self-defense. And isn't that a fascinatingly complex and really human discovery process?
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Perhaps the most charitable reading of Charles in the movie is that his journey is about figuring out if he's willing to go all the way with Erik. Erik already knows his limits, knows what he is and isn't capable of if things get dark enough. He starts the movie already having 'graduated', already trained, while Charles's graduation scene, which is literally shown, shows a man just stepping out into the world. (It's likely a useful metaphor to consider in a film that calls itself First Class)
And what does he learn? He learns that a) he's willing to hold a man down while another man kills him figuratively with his bare hands. But what he's not willing to do is commit an act of casual mass murder, even in self-defense. And isn't that a fascinatingly complex and really human discovery process?