robyn millarReview of X3 : The Last Stand
October 27th 2006 06:59
An otherwise good series falters at the last hurdle.
Call me a nerd if you like, but I love X men. The two TV series, the comics, even the video games, it doesn’t matter – there’s a place in my heart for all of them. Something about the cool powers, the realistically divided world and the team itself just works for me. Nor I have to say, am I alone. The Marvel comic is the most popular franchise of its kind, even bigger then heavyweights such as Superman and Batman. Given this fact, it’s hardly surprising that the first two films (made in 2000 and 2003 respectively) were worldwide box office hits. With a massive special effects budget and the return of almost the entire cast (Alan Cummings, who played Nightcrawler in the second film, decided not to make an appearance), X3 was slated to be huge as well. Unfortunately it fails to live up to the hype.
To be fair, I probably walked into this film with expectations that bordered on high, but after the brilliance of the first films I innocently believed that my hopes were justified. Indeed, it was the second film (X-men United) that I had visited with trepidation (as one does when going to the sequel of a much loved favourite), only to be pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be better then the first one. It seemed logical that X3 would continue in the same vein. Oh, the disappointment!
I’m aftraid the reason for the disappointment was simple. The script sucks. A cure to mutation has been found, and naturally the X men are the only ones who can stop Magneto (the fantastic Ian McKellen, he can do no wrong) in his quest to destroy it. But instead of dealing in more depth with this interesting conundrum (Are mutants really in need of curing?), the movie focuses on the relationship between the curiously resurrected Jean Grey (played by the frankly wooden Famke Janssen) and Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). After winding its way through a random assortment of scenes in which most of the major characters either die or lose their mutant abilities, the film culminates in a spectacular final battle where the highly outnumbered heroes somehow manage to endure against massive odds.
Although scattered with highlights (some of the fight scenes are very cool, and Kelsey Grammer as politician Beast is a delight), the film simply doesn’t live up to its predecessors, or indeed my expectations.
6/10.
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