A poorly done finish to the trilogy

Rating: 6/10 (19 December 2007)

Yes, we know all the obvious arguments to sidestep the issue: Ratner was directing, some of the actors were lost, etc. etc. But all these criticisms seem to miss the point: even with the losses incurred from the transition in directors and actors, this movie feels pointlessly pop-shlock in comparison to its predecessors.
X3 details a story that appears to be an amalgam from the House of M, Civil War, and Messiah Complex story lines present in the Marvel universe. The owner of a biotech firm has developed a treatment that suppresses the X-gene, spurred mostly by the horror at finding out that his son is a mutant. Professor Xavier concedes that this cure might help out mutants with powers which have made them social outcasts, but his ex-colleague and friend, Eric Lensherr (Magneto) sees this is as nothing else but an attempt at genocide. The two sides brace for an all-out war that has been vaguely alluded to in the previous films, and one which comes to fruition near the end.
The plot isn't that bad. What sucks is the surface level detail granted to the dedication of this plot. The movie is very obviously and linearly divided into a beginning, middle and end, with other subplots involving minor characters clumsily woven in for probably nothing more than fan pleasing. Some characters play little to no active role throughout the movie. Archangel, the son of the biotech firm's CEO, has about two minutes of screen time total. Callisto and Psylocke play little more than eye candy tribute and perhaps a chance for Dania Ramirez to show off (which she has already done considerably on Heroes, playing an equally unimportant role). The Juggernaut is just a hulking brute with no back-story, no real emotional role other than cannon fodder, and essentially useless as a villain.
What the film fails miserably in doing is providing a reasonable basis for most of its characters. Ororo Monroe (Storm), who played the wise, removed and beautiful leader of the X-Men under Professor X (as was the case in the comics), becomes a maelstrom. Not because she went through a crisis, but because Halle Berry wanted to get herself some extra money and screen time before being committed to the hell of actresses and actors who've long overstayed their welcome. James Marsden's Scott Summers (Cyclops) was in the movie for about four minutes and acted purely as a plot device to bring back Jean Grey - shunted aside like cannon fodder. Of course the real reason why he was discarded is simple - Marsden wanted to switch to Singer's project on Superman Returns, but they didn't do a good job of finding a good way for the character to go out. There are many, many other examples.
The movie nevertheless redeems itself slightly in the storyline and back-story of Jean Grey and a somewhat realistic, non-alien explanation for the Phoenix (although it might have been nice to just leave it the way it was). Her character was powerfully built throughout the movie, but it was at the expense of other characters like Hugh Jackman's Logan (Wolverine). The inclusion of Hank McCoy (Beast) was also a masterstroke, as he was an easily exploitable character who had been altogether left out of the earlier films save for some subtle references.
X-Men 3 is a disappointment, but not a terrible one. It provides entertainment, but nothing beyond that. The social commentary replete in the first two movies is eschewed for wanton battles which are all-too predictable (come on, Iceman versus Pyro, who didn't see that coming). It uses new minor and flat characters instead of looking for well-worn ones like Emma Frost or the Red Queen. So while the general audiences looking for kicks may be pleased with the film, it fails to please even the most die-hard of fans, ultimately.