X-Men: The Last Stand (B- or 3/4 stars)
'X-Men: The Last Stand' (directed by Brett Ratner) is a fantasy film based from Marvel comics. It is the 3rd, and possibly, last film in the X-Men franchise. This really is a fun, exciting end to a great trilogy. But is it too much to ask for more character development within a comic-driven film?
Under the keen supervision of Magneto (Ian McKellen), the Juggernaut, Phoenix, and a host of new, tricksy mutants are starting a war against our X-Men and the human race. A 'Cure' to mutantism is found, in the form of a young boy, & the mutants are conflicted as the whether they should stay 'special', or become normal like every other human being. Mutants like 'Storm' (Halle Berry) are proud of their abilities, others like 'Rogue' (Anna Paquin) are dismayed by them. Magneto feels that Dr. Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) constricts his students' powers too much. And when Dr. Jean Grey (Famke Janssen) returns as the almighty (even more powerful than Charles & Magneto) Phoenix, Magneto wants to use her powers to conquer the 'Cure', and Charles wants to harness her powers so that she doesn't take-down the World, quite literally. Her transition from Heroine to pseudo-villain is uneasy to watch. Other familiar faces such as Mystique & Cyclops return briefly (Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden).
There are several new mutants this time around. Kelsey Grammer plays Dr. Hank McCoy; but he is also 'Beast'. I do not find much purpose to this character. I mean, good for Kelsey to find a role where his familiar 'Frasier' face is hidden, but anyone could have played the Beast. Vinnie Jones plays Cain/Juggernaut. He is an awesome mutant; having the ability to just crash and bash through anything unscathed. Ben Foster plays Warren Worthington III/Angel. The opening scene that includes Warren Worthington III as a young boy is hard to watch. His mutant name is Angel because wings spring from his shoulder blades & he can fly; boy, am I jealous. 'Angel' is a great addition, but he is barely present through most of the film. I was saddened by this. Ellen Page plays a great Kitty Pryde. And Shohreh Aghdashloo plays Dr. Kavita Rao; gotta love Shohreh.
Some additional characters are cool, some are wasted. I wish Ratner could have focused a little more on some characters, new & old, and less on others ... perhaps making the film a good 15-20 minutes longer. I was eager to learn more about our familiar & beloved mutants, as well as the new guns. None of the characters are used to their full potential. However, that annoyance aside, I really did enjoy many parts of this film. The true stars of the film were the special effects, nifty action sequences, & an effective musical score.
There are some brilliant battle sequences between our mutants. A scene where Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) slices & dices some opposing mutants in the woods is spine-tingling. Storm uses her genius weather powers to counter-attack 'Callisto'. And the big climax scene is chock-full of non-stop action & multiple deaths. I was on the edge of my seat several times! Magneto is a great villain because he is as evil as evil can get, and yet, completely respects his ultimate enemy. Ian McKellen continues to be an amazing asset to any film project he is in. His physical & verbal presence is essential to a film of this nature. The name of this film could have been 'X-Men: The Magneto Show'.
Some of the new mutants are impressive (I particularly like the guy who could protrude porcupine needles from his body, at will. And I like Multiple Man, as well). Another impressive aspect of this film is the CG effects. There is a cool scene where Magneto & Charles are made to look 20 years younger and it is incredibly believable. Hugh Jackman is stellar, but there isn't any kind of character growth with him, or most others. I just can't imagine that this will be the end of this franchise because the characters/mutants that we have come to love over the years have very little dialogue and/or emotional substance here.
A lot of people are saying that this film was far superior to the initial X-Men film & far inferior to the second one. I don't particularly agree. Having enjoyed every one of the X-Men films, none of them jump out, to me, as a 'best'. If it is the last film, that is a shame. I have thoroughly enjoyed this wild, wild ride. So, with some questionable plot directions & various other shortcomings aside, 'X-Men: The Last Stand' is a solid summer blockbuster.
Under the keen supervision of Magneto (Ian McKellen), the Juggernaut, Phoenix, and a host of new, tricksy mutants are starting a war against our X-Men and the human race. A 'Cure' to mutantism is found, in the form of a young boy, & the mutants are conflicted as the whether they should stay 'special', or become normal like every other human being. Mutants like 'Storm' (Halle Berry) are proud of their abilities, others like 'Rogue' (Anna Paquin) are dismayed by them. Magneto feels that Dr. Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) constricts his students' powers too much. And when Dr. Jean Grey (Famke Janssen) returns as the almighty (even more powerful than Charles & Magneto) Phoenix, Magneto wants to use her powers to conquer the 'Cure', and Charles wants to harness her powers so that she doesn't take-down the World, quite literally. Her transition from Heroine to pseudo-villain is uneasy to watch. Other familiar faces such as Mystique & Cyclops return briefly (Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden).
There are several new mutants this time around. Kelsey Grammer plays Dr. Hank McCoy; but he is also 'Beast'. I do not find much purpose to this character. I mean, good for Kelsey to find a role where his familiar 'Frasier' face is hidden, but anyone could have played the Beast. Vinnie Jones plays Cain/Juggernaut. He is an awesome mutant; having the ability to just crash and bash through anything unscathed. Ben Foster plays Warren Worthington III/Angel. The opening scene that includes Warren Worthington III as a young boy is hard to watch. His mutant name is Angel because wings spring from his shoulder blades & he can fly; boy, am I jealous. 'Angel' is a great addition, but he is barely present through most of the film. I was saddened by this. Ellen Page plays a great Kitty Pryde. And Shohreh Aghdashloo plays Dr. Kavita Rao; gotta love Shohreh.
Some additional characters are cool, some are wasted. I wish Ratner could have focused a little more on some characters, new & old, and less on others ... perhaps making the film a good 15-20 minutes longer. I was eager to learn more about our familiar & beloved mutants, as well as the new guns. None of the characters are used to their full potential. However, that annoyance aside, I really did enjoy many parts of this film. The true stars of the film were the special effects, nifty action sequences, & an effective musical score.
There are some brilliant battle sequences between our mutants. A scene where Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) slices & dices some opposing mutants in the woods is spine-tingling. Storm uses her genius weather powers to counter-attack 'Callisto'. And the big climax scene is chock-full of non-stop action & multiple deaths. I was on the edge of my seat several times! Magneto is a great villain because he is as evil as evil can get, and yet, completely respects his ultimate enemy. Ian McKellen continues to be an amazing asset to any film project he is in. His physical & verbal presence is essential to a film of this nature. The name of this film could have been 'X-Men: The Magneto Show'.
Some of the new mutants are impressive (I particularly like the guy who could protrude porcupine needles from his body, at will. And I like Multiple Man, as well). Another impressive aspect of this film is the CG effects. There is a cool scene where Magneto & Charles are made to look 20 years younger and it is incredibly believable. Hugh Jackman is stellar, but there isn't any kind of character growth with him, or most others. I just can't imagine that this will be the end of this franchise because the characters/mutants that we have come to love over the years have very little dialogue and/or emotional substance here.
A lot of people are saying that this film was far superior to the initial X-Men film & far inferior to the second one. I don't particularly agree. Having enjoyed every one of the X-Men films, none of them jump out, to me, as a 'best'. If it is the last film, that is a shame. I have thoroughly enjoyed this wild, wild ride. So, with some questionable plot directions & various other shortcomings aside, 'X-Men: The Last Stand' is a solid summer blockbuster.