Not as good as the first two

Rating: 7/10 (26 May 2006)

First of all, I would like to say that I was a huge fan of the first two "X-Men" movies. Although they could have very well have been big, loud, dumb action movies with none of the sophisticated and intelligent themes of the comics, director Bryan Singer took them and turned them into intelligent sci-fi allegories for intolerance and acceptance. While the main plot of "X-Men: The Last Stand" is interesting and makes for some good philosophical debates, it makes the mistake of focusing far more on comic book-style action rather than the intelligent sci-fi of the first two films in addition to biting off far more than it can chew.
The main plot deals with the invention of a serum that permanently suppresses the x-gene in mutants, thereby making them human. This is advertised by its inventors as a cure for the mutant situation, which naturally raises the ire of both the X-Men and the much more militant Magneto. While some mutants welcome the "cure" as a way to rid themselves of mutations that are more of a curse, others see it as just another way for humans to control and eventually exterminate mutants. One character states that being a mutant cannot be cured, which creates an interesting parallel to some real-life "problems" such as homosexuality and the belief that they are diseases that need to be cured or controlled. This is some fascinating stuff, and as long as the movie sticks to this premise and the extreme reactions it invokes in the characters the movie manages to be smarter than your typical summer fare.
The film also deals with another fascinating subplot. Jean Grey, who was apparently killed at the end of "X2," has risen from the dead and now is more powerful than any other mutant on Earth. She has manifested a new very destructive personality that calls itself Phoenix, and she is apparently powerful enough to be an even bigger threat to both humans and mutants than Magneto or the cure could ever be. She doesn't hold back with her powers whenever she's in Phoenix mode, and she is downright frightening whenever she uses them. A movie about the Phoenix becoming the ultimate in human evolution and therefore the biggest threat to the human race would've been a great way to end this franchise (it had its own lengthy storyline years ago in the "X-Men" comics), but here it becomes nothing more than a subplot that appears pretty much when the director decides when we should see more people being blasted into subatomic particles. With as frightening and as powerful as Jean becomes here, one could easily argue that the Phoenix subplot deserves its own movie.
Like I said, this movie seemed to bite off far more than it could chew, and not just in the way it handles two concepts that each need their own movie to be fully explored. There are just too many interesting characters that don't get the screen time and development that they deserve. I would've loved to see the continuation of the Cyclops/Jean Grey/Wolverine love triangle in the form of the two men trying to reach Jean while at the same time being at odds because they're both in love with her. I would've loved to see more of the scientist that creates the mutant serum and how he simply wants to cure his mutant son's "disease." For that matter, I would've loved to see more of the son, who is reduced to nothing more than a cool visual. I would've loved to see more of the Iceman/Rogue/Kitty love triangle, and how it might influence Rogue's decision to seek out the cure. None of this is explored very fully, so we are sadly left with a bunch of missed opportunities.
It may sound that I'm doing nothing but trashing on this movie, but the truth is that, despite its obvious flaws, there's still a lot to like. The acting is as good as it was in the previous two installments, with Ian McKellen being the obvious stand-out. Magneto is clearly the villain of this movie, but he's a villain that the audience can actually get behind thanks to McKellen's commanding performance. He can be downright nasty, but he also comes off as very wise and even respectful to his enemies (one line that he has in regards to Professor Xavier carries a lot of weight, especially when one takes into account the friendship that the two men once had). Other standouts include Hugh Jackman (who now seems to be playing Wolverine as someone who has grown from being a somewhat volatile loner to a team player to a potential leader of the X-Men), and Kelsey Grammar as Dr. Hank McCoy (or The Beast, as he is known to fans of the comic), who provides plenty of charm and wit even underneath layers of blue fur. Finally, the action scenes and special effects are possibly the best of the trilogy; the completely insane battle between the X-Men and just about everyone else that makes up most of the film's third act is almost reason enough to see the movie.
In the end, this is definitely more of a typical summer blockbuster than the first two "X-Men" films, but I don't think 20th Century Fox realizes that the reason why so many people like those films is because they're not typical summer blockbusters. They are actually very smart and sophisticated, which is exactly what good sci-fi should be. "X-Men: The Last Stand" is definitely a good comic book-style action movie, but it doesn't have the sophistication and subtlety of the previous two films.