The Last Stand was fine.

Rating: 7/10 (29 May 2006)

But The Last Stand should have been great.
It has a great premise. Suddenly, the moral question of whether you assimilate, tolerate, or separate is presented starkly, and no one is ready for it, not even the Secretary of Mutant Affairs. And we find out that it's not just the charismatic anti-hero, the Holocaust survivor Magneto, who has been making moral decisions for other people, it's our pure hearted leader Charles Xavier. The special effects are fun, the actors great, and Ian McKellen rocks the house.
But the movie is disappointing. They wave at the big question, they never grapple with it. Give me more of Rogue's anguish; this incredibly powerful woman who can not shake hands or kiss or bear a child. Give me more of McCoy's loss; this man who was a research scientist who can no longer manipulate the lab equipment. Talk to me about the fact that the cure will kill Logan.
And there were strange continuity problems. Xavier unleashes at Wolverine for doing "something," when we just saw him do nothing. Magneto steps over the body of the woman he loves and sends devoted followers to their apparent deaths with barely a shrug. Magneto plays for keeps, but he's always had the grace to regret it before. Storm's in charge, but Wolverine's giving orders? These things didn't work for me.
There were some wonderful bits. The actors were great, especially Sir Ian. That man owned that film, and any scene with him in it was delicious. Some nicely brutal fight scenes. Kitty Pride's fight with Juggernaut was just about perfect. The slight (unintentional?) political commentary of sending a great big blue ape to the UN made me laugh. And the last scene, while not as good as Magneto quoting Malcolm X from the first film, was still nice.
But I was irritated at what it could have been. The other two movies are great; a fun surface romp with depths that go deep. This was all surface.
Worth seeing. But I don't think I'll be buying the DVD. Don't think it'll bear re-watching.