MovieMantz Reviews: ‘X-Men’ ‘Stand’ Down: May 24, 2006

“X-Men ‘Stand’ Down”
by Scott Mantz

“X-Men: The Last Stand”
Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen
Directed by Brett Ratner

The third, and supposedly, the final installment of the “X-Men” franchise may be prophetically titled “The Last Stand,” but that sure didn’t stop the filmmakers from throwing in a few nuggets to leave the door open for an “X4.”

Maybe they shouldn’t have bothered. That’s because despite a few well-staged action sequences and the best special effects that a reported $150 million budget can buy, “X-Men: The Last Stand” is simply not as well-crafted as its critically acclaimed predecessors — 2000’s “X-Men” and 2003’s “X2: X-Men United” — which together have grossed over $675 million worldwide.

That’s not to say that “The Last Stand” is a terrible movie — it’s entertaining enough, and it’s certainly far superior to some of the other recent superhero flicks to come flying off the Marvel Comics conveyor belt (especially 2004’s “The Punisher” and 2005’s “Elektra”). But the film lacks focus, the dialogue is weak and there are far too many underdeveloped characters, resulting in a franchise that ends on a relative whimper rather than the X-cellent bang that it deserved.

When we last left our heroes, the X-Men were distraught over the death of their beloved colleague, Jean Grey (Famke Janssen). But they are soon snapped back into reality when a controversial cure for their mutancy threatens to drive them apart. Some mutants want to retain their unique powers, while others want to give them up completely and live like “normal” people. Either way, the evil Magneto (Ian McKellen) will have none of it, and when Jean Grey is resurrected with incredible powers that even she cannot control, he seizes the opportunity to wage a final war against humanity that will ensure his dominance once and for all.

If the franchise’s previous director Bryan Singer deserves credit for anything, it’s for crafting not one, but two superhero films that appealed to both mainstream moviegoers and die-hard fans of the comic book (which debuted in 1963 and was re-imagined with greater success in 1975). The first film did a terrific job of introducing the characters and the issues of alienation and intolerance that they faced, but the sequel was even more ambitious, giving those characters and relationships more depth while still fitting the bill as an amazing action film.

But when Singer jumped ship to re-start the “Superman” franchise, he must have taken something with him. Though his successor, Brett Ratner — who was also supposed to direct “Superman Returns” at one point — did a solid job with the “Rush Hour” films, he doesn’t fare as well with wrapping up the broad scope of the third “X-Men.” And as written by Zak Penn (who worked on the story for “X2”) and Simon Kinberg (who wrote the screenplay for “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”), previously established characters are either pushed by the wayside or killed off completely, while others are introduced without being fully developed.

Of the new faces, Kelsey Grammer fares the best as Beast, the Secretary for Mutant Affairs who initially embraces the prospect of a cure. Ellen Page, who was a revelation in the recently released “Hard Candy,” also makes a decent mark as the young Kitty Pryde, who can phase through solid objects and develops a relationship with Shawn Ashmore’s Iceman. But the rest of the newcomers are left jostling for screen time, especially Ben Foster as Angel, who is reluctant to have his wings clipped in the name of the cure, and Vinnie Jones as the Juggernaut, who is relegated to spewing out cringe-worthy dialogue.

As for the returning players, Hugh Jackman once again steals the show as fan-favorite Wolverine, while Ian McKellen remains the type of bad guy you love to hate as Magneto. Halle Berry has a more substantial role as Storm, who takes on additional responsibilities when Patrick Stewart’s Professor Xavier sets her up as his successor. But other characters, such as Anna Paquin’s Rogue, James Marsden’s Cyclops and even Rebecca Romijn’s Mystique, are left underdeveloped after having bigger roles in the previous films.

That’s why “The Last Stand” might have fared better if it had a longer running time. Clocking in at just 1 hour and 44 minutes — a half-hour shorter than its predecessor — there simply isn’t enough time to develop all the characters and the various subplots to make them register on a more emotional level. And what should have been the strongest part of the movie — involving Jean Grey’s reappearance and her transformation into the deadly Dark Phoenix (a famous subplot in the comics) — comes up short, with Grey off to the sidelines for much of the film’s otherwise exciting final battle in San Francisco.

There’s no doubt that the third “X-Men” will open huge, since it has the 4-day (and therefore highly lucrative) Memorial Day Weekend all to itself. And though casual moviegoers may have fun with the action, die-hard fans may be more disappointed by its shortcomings. As a result, overall box office may not be as high as it was for the first two films, which means that despite allusions to the contrary, this may in fact be the last stand after all.

Verdict: See it!

To read more of Scott’s reviews, visit MovieMantz.com.

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