Summer Movie Mayhem, Week 2

$107 million at this weekend's box office means X-Men 3: The Last Stand was the record-breaking champion of the silver screen for Memorial Day weekend.  $107 million also meant many, many people actually went out of their way, and out of their wallets, to see a film with the promise of action and amazement to propel the summer movie season into new heights.  $107 million also meant that we were some of those people in cushy, new theater seats awaiting the on-screen spectacle.

Now, the promise laid-out before this film in X2: X-men United was that of classic comic book stylings filling the silver screen.  We were left with an achingly good cliffhanger, a fully-realized universe, and a set of core characters the audience could now call familiar.  The first film, although very crucial, was definitely not as awe-inspiring as the first.  Shot on a small budget, Bryan Singer (the director) made people care about these character, their lives, and their fears.  If one wasn't in touch with what made Wolverine tick, then he never actually did his job.  When I found out that Mr. Singer would not be returning for X3, I was very... very worried.

Bottom line, I had no expectations whatsoever for the replacement, Brett Ratner, that he would be able to accomplish more than what had come before.  Although competent, Mr. Ratner's directing style thus far has been unremarkable.  While entertaining, his films have been lacking in substance and identity.  What good can come from that, however, is that he is a cinematic chameleon.  As well as he aped Ridley Scott's style in Red Dragon, he was able to bring back enough Bryan Singer in X3.

What to love?  The casting was quite good.  The one new character to care about, Beast (played by Kelsey Grammar), fleshed out the intellectual side all X-men fans may know and love. Action-wise, his stunt men pulled off the acrobatics we were hoping to see, but unfortunately, not enough of what everyone may have wanted.  Speaking of which, all the action scenes were quite incredible.  As far as this movie goes, it's filled to the brim much moreso than its predecessors with action setpieces, all of which are very entertaining.  All this is backed-up by some incredible special effects.  The picture doesn't neglect to remind you that one are supposed to be surrounded by mutants every day.  There's many more little things, Storm's presence and role in the film, the incredible opening sequence with a de-aged Magneto and Professor X, the immense power of the Phoenix, there's a lot to love.  Unfortunately, there's enough to not like as well.

My biggest problem with the entire movie is its lack of cohesion.  I could liken it to the first celluloid Harry Potter in its devotion to a world of amazement while sacrificing storyline and pacing. The difference with Potter and this film though, is that Potter actually had a decent storyline.  While the Mutant cure itself could be compelling, I don't believe that enough of the internal conflict for each Mutant was explored.  While you do get the sense that Beast considers the cure for himself, it's never delved further than a brief look on his face.  Even Angel, who has a somewhat pivotal role in representing how one should treasure his gift, barely shows up at all.  It's very much, "Hey, here's the beginning.  Oh wow, the movie's over?"  throughout the entirety of the story.  Yes, characters die, and yes, there are some good scenes promising even better things to come, and most of it plays out quite dramatically, but it would be so much better if the story focused instead on the Phoenix itself, rather than the cure.

Which is my biggest problem.  After watching X2 again, to get the bad taste out of my mouth, I got a glimpse of what Mr. Singer may have had in store for Jean Grey and her new powers.  You get more wonder, more power, more innocence, and a much better manifestation of the Phoenix force. From what I understand, Mr. Singer's concept for the sequel would have been stretched out over two films.  Would it have been better?  Who really knows.  My thing is, I didn't really expect much from Mr. Ratner in the first place, so I'm neither disappointed, nor am I really surprised.  I can say that I did enjoy it, but I didn't love it.  See it, the summer wouldn't be complete without it.

Overall Score:  2.5 out of 5 stars.