X-Men: The Last Stand
I’ll come clean. After all the slaps I got from fanboys about my subjective, personal opinion of the first two X-Men movies, I am not eager to jump in and comment on the third in the series. Sure, this one is different. It’s got a different director, it’s got a whole political allegory where any oppressed minority or fringe-dweller in white male heterosexual Christian America can identify with the mutants when presented with the idea of a “cure” for their uniqueness. It’s got a nice, chewy premise in the idea of how each of the mutants would respond to such an affront - or opportunity. But this is still an X-Men movie, and therefore sacrosanct from any criticism - OR - it’s not Bryan Singer and therefore it sucks, and anyone who thinks it compares with the first two is a moron. I have taken the abuse from my gentle readers, and I have done with it.
This one I actually liked. Whether it was because of the directorial differences, whether it was because Act III is always perforce more interesting than Acts I and II because the exposition and buildup is done with, or whether I also identified with the mutants’ dilemma, I can’t even say. I will say that for the first time, I actually cared about these characters. Before, the franchise depended heavily on readership to carry the emotional background of the characters, and here, I felt that we could come in pretty much completely ignorant (well, not totally) and care. I knew enough to understand where everyone was coming from (except the Beast, who remained an enigma motivation-wise for me), and I really cared. I felt their fear and sadness and excitement, and because I actually cared, I really enjoyed it.
It’s no spoiler to say that Jean Grey goes all Dark Phoenix in this one, and I really dug the effects (makeup and hair and all, not just CGI) surrounding her transformation. Famke Janssen took what is basically standing still and looking intense and infused it with all kinds of emotional highs and lows, and the practical effects (as compared to the computer ones) were seriously rocking. Rogue and Wolverine and Rogue’s little boyfriend and Kitty Pryde (woefully underdeveloped as a concept and as a character here) started to go a little tint bit Melrose Place on me, but mercifully pulled short of the edge and kept me interested in Rogue’s journey.
The movie is subtitled The Last Stand, so you know it’s not a telekinetic teaparty. I was especially intrigued by the division among the mutants with regards to the Cure and their approach to what was essentially the same goal. I loved the fact that the issue harkened back to so many historical tragedies of fascism and racism and homophobia and sexism and more. I thought the actual Last Stand was missing some key climax, but then again, I was foolish enough to leave after Negative Cutter passed by in the credits, instead of staying for the incredibly vital scene tacked on after the MPAA logo. Having missed that, I missed a vital sense of impending growth among the mutant community, which was hinted at in the beginnings of the film, but, unless you stayed, left unresolved. That’ll teach me to bend to peer pressure and leave early (not my habit). The movie gave me most of what I wanted when I walked in there, and a little bit more as a bonus. If you fanboys are unhappy with that, there’s not much I can do about that.
MPAA Rating PG-13
Release date 5/26/06
Time in minutes 103
Director Brett Ratner
Studio 20th Century Fox
