Early contender for best film of the summer...

Rating: 8/10 (28 May 2006)

Well, I just finished watching X-Men 3, and I quite enjoyed it. Even though there were a few problems I had with it, the sum is greater than the whole parts. Let me talk for a minute about what I thought was good and bad:
Good parts:
-Overall, I thought the acting in this film was great, especially Ian McKellan and Hugh Jackman, who really made you believe that they were conflicted about what they would do in the final battle sequence; I realize that it's not possible (in the case of The Dark Phoenix Saga) to translate a comic book series to the big screen, but I thought that the Phoenix subplot here was very well-done, and didn't go over-the-top, like some comics fans would have liked to seen; I liked the fact that the X-Men were working together AS A TEAM, rather than just all going off and doing their own thing; I quite liked how the Dark Phoenix character was portrayed, and I thought it was pretty damn awesome when she was breaking apart her own house in mid-air, and during the ending sequence when she tries to kill Wolverine; There were many incidents in this film that were direct references to the comics. The scene with Jean telling Scott to take his glasses off, the Danger Room and Sentinel sequence, the bridge scene, Hank reading up-side down, and even Logan stabbing Jean at the end come from the comic books; Incidents from the previous films resolve themselves here, including Rogue's wish to be human, the rivalry between Pyro and Bobby Drake, the acceptance of mutants in society, and Jean's relationship with Logan, which I thought was very well done; The effects in this film especially well done. Notable instances include the scene in the house between Magneto, Phoenix and Xavier, the Danger Room scene, and the ending, when Logan's skin is getting shredded as he makes his way towards Jean. Hell, we even get to see Bobby finally ice up!; and heck, I even thought the score for the film was amazing.
Bad parts:
A lot of characters got short-shifted in the film. I don't even know where Nightcrawler went. Mystique betrays her own friends when she gets de-powered, Angel (who shows up for all of 5 minutes), Colossus (who only exists to throw Wolverine at people and beat up soldiers), and Rogue show up in what is basically glorified cameos, because they hardly do anything. Cyclops is killed 15 minutes into the film, and numerous other supporting characters (Dr. Rao, Multiple Man, Warren Worthington, Arclight, Quills, and others) have almost no screen time whatsoever. It seems that a lot of mutants were just shoehorned into the plot en masse to get a reaction from viewers when they are killed off; I can't believe for one second that Magneto would just up and abandon Mystique after she lost her powers, after all they've been through together; The whole film just felt kind of rushed. I wish that it had been a half-hour longer, so all of the subplots could resolve themselves. As it stands, the film has a sense of closure, but some little things were unresolved; There were a few technical problems as well, such as the sky over Alcatraz suddenly changing from day to night within ten seconds, and being able to see where the Juggernaut would crash through before he hit the walls in the chase sequence with Kitty Pryde; Exactly what purpose did that Leech kid serve? He's a mutant, so I don't understand why Magneto would be trying to kill him.
What many people have to realize is that this film is not adhered to any sort of comic continuity. Yes, it takes incidents from the comics, but it is NOT a direct adaptation of the comic books. I have been reading X-Men for years, and I wasn't offended at all by the changes to the characters.
Bottom Line: I give this film an 8 out of 10. Overall, I thought it was a great film, and if the good reviews are any indication, then many of you folks will probably like it as well. Go see it now!