This had so much potential with not only the cure aspect but the Phoenix storyline as well, but it fails miserably

Rating: 5/10 (19 August 2006)

When I first heard that Bryan Singer was no longer directing the third installment I had my worries. Then I heard they got Brett Ratner, most famous for his "Rush Hour" movies, as the replacement and I knew that was the nail to the coffin. This movie is not only the worst of the franchise, but I have not felt this disappointed since "Alien Vs Predator."
The unveiling of a way to "cure" mutants rocks the world. Some mutants see it as a way to be "normal" and others see it as deeply offensive and a way for humans to control mutants. This prompts Magneto and his Brotherhood to step up and only the X-Men can stand in their way. Meanwhile, the X-Men face their own crisis. Jean Grey is resurrected, but in a terrifying new form. Despite almost unlimited power, she suffers from a split personality that only Professor Charles Xavier can control. Her darker personality called Phoenix, has emerged and wreaks havoc. What will happen when Cyclops, Xavier, and Wolverine try to come to her aid?
The first two were great because characters were given attention to and their likability was there. The biggest problem is that they introduce too many characters, making it impossible to give them enough screen time. Several characters had their moments but were forgotten. I felt that some characters were just there to sell more toys and served no other real purpose. Characters like Juggernaut and Multiple Man joined Magneto's Brotherhood without even questioning who Magneto was. Nightcrawler was mysteriously absent with zero reasons explaining why he was not there. Newcomer Angel (Ben Foster) was given a bigger role in the trailers then the movie itself. This would not be an issue if 30-60 minutes were added to the short 105-minute run time.
There were a few characters out of character. Those characters were mainly Professor Charles Xavier, Magneto, and even Wolverine and Rogue. Charles Xavier seemed more like a jerk, "I don't have to explain myself to you Logan." Magneto showed more of a selfish/tyrant type personality, who would gladly sacrifice even his greatest of friends for his personal needs, "Like in Chess, the pawns always go first." Even Wolverine shows a softer personality. Rogue, who was just learning to come to terms with being a mutant, does something completely opposite of her character, which I will not reveal.
The dialog was bad, even for a comic book movie. The dialog was forced and used in a comedic route. There were a couple scenes, most notably used by Juggernaut, "Do you know who I am? I'm the Juggernaut b*tch"(homage to a popular video on the internet) and Kitty Pride, "Look who's hiding D*ckhead" which rivaled Joel Schumacher's "Batman and Robin." The teenagers, in the audience, loved those lines, but I was not one of them.
This was too fast paced with too much action. The problem would have been eliminated with a longer run time. Ratner also did not know how to handle material without killing off or curing a character every 30 minutes. This movie moves so fast that when some mutants die, we have zero emotional output. When a character dies in a film, especially a trilogy, it is suppose to benefit the story; here it was just wasteful.
Another flaw was by the time I actually knew Magneto's cause, I started rooting for the Brotherhood, and when the X-Men come to stop them, I was thinking, "No this is what you want!" I even questioned why the X-men were supporting the humans' cause in the first place. The only true reason was to have cool action scenes. The first two "X-men" movies were exciting because the action scenes served a purpose.
I never could stand Halle Berry as Storm. I never believed she was the right choice for Storm. When Bryan Singer was still aboard, she announced that if she did not get more screen time, she would leave. If I were Ratner, I would say, "We don't need you! There are several actresses that would cost a fraction less!" Unfortunately, I had to suffer because of Halle Berry's ego.
The Phoenix, not the cosmic entity, did nothing for me. I do understand why they changed the Phoenix origin. It would have taken an extra one or two movies just to explain it all and this way it was geared towards the mainstream audience. The Phoenix is one of the most powerful being in the universe, yet she does nothing to show off her true power until the end. She kills a couple of important characters, but other then that she just stood around looking like a zombie from "Dawn of the Dead" and not the majestic creature that comic fans expected.
"X-Men: The Last Stand" is not all crap. Kelsey Grammar was a perfect portrayal of Dr. Hank McCoy, aka Beast. The action and the special effects were the best of the franchise. Ratner also plays homage to many comic book issues, which should make the fans happy. Unfortunately, I recommend you seeing this only for the action and special effects!