X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

What a mistake!, 28 May 2006

Sadly, the third movie in the X-Men series doesn't come close to living up to either its potential or the precedent established by the first two movies. But before I get to that, I'll cover a couple aspects of the film that really worked for me. First, the action sequences are generally well done. As individual set pieces, the action scenes work. Second, when I first heard that Kelsey Grammar was brought on board to play the Beast in X-Men: The Last Stand, I was a little apprehensive. I mean the thought of Frasier Crane doesn't exactly conjure images of an action hero. After seeing the film, I cannot imagine anyone else in the role. Grammar is the center of attention in every scene in which he appears – and it's not just the makeup.

On to the problems:

I can sum up most of the issues I have with X-Men: The Last Stand in two words – Brett Ratner. The decision to allow Ratner to direct X-Men: The Last Stand was a total mistake. Ratner seems to think that throwing together action sequences and CGI effects is all you need to make a good movie. Sorry Mr. Ratner, but the first two films were much more than this. The script and direction feel rushed and sloppy with little thought given to what made the series so good to begin with. There is no character development. Mutants are thrown on screen with the sole purpose of showing off special effects – not in an attempt to create memorable characters. And the characters from the previous two movies are handled poorly. Jean Grey's conversion to the Phoenix isn't explained at all. And she does nothing for most of the movie other than standing around looking like a reject from an army of the undead. Cyclops, a major character from the other movies, is killed off with no fanfare. And his death occurs off-screen! Why? Rogue is totally unnecessary. None of her scenes have anything to do with the plot other than adding some unneeded WB style melodrama. Professor Xavier and Mystique – gone far too quickly. And Wolverine has been reduced to little more than an Arnold Schwarzenegger wannabe spouting one-liners like he's working at the local comedy club.

I could go on and on, but you get the idea. In short, it's a disaster.

4/10