X3: The Last Stand (2006)
X3: The Last Stand(2006) 6/10
Watched X3 today with the gang at Tampines, and the trailer for Superman Returns was showing during the pre-show adverts. I must say that Kevin Spacey looks absolutely diabolical as Lex Luthor. On the other hand, i was rather annoyed that the movie started almost 20mins late, and we looked at various adverts and trailers before the actual screening.
Moviewise, i went into the film with lower expectation, since its directed by Brett Ratner, a director i have little confidence in and also because of the mixed reviews at RT. Ultimately, X3 proved to be more or less what i expected- a flashy CGI laden film that has the bells, whistles and bangs. It dazzles but does not impress. As a brainless summer popcorn film, its entertaining enough, and certainly, it has enough star power to make several films.
The reason why X3 doesn’t reach its potential is clearly because of 2 main factors: weak direction and scattered plot. Plotwise, it actually has great potential as a social allegory. The first main plot is the ‘cure for mutants’ plotline. You could replace the word ‘mutant’ with another word: homosexual, Jew, disabled etc and it becomes a plotline that is socially relevant and can well touch on issues such as discrimination, genetics, eugenics, social engineering etc. The other main plot is the Jean Gray/Phoenix plotline which likewise has similar potential and the Wolverine-Cyclops-Jean Gray romantic triangle hinted on in X2 could be expanded and developed to its full potential. Instead, what do we get? An sloppy and uninteresting romantic subplot involving Iceman-Rogue-and someone else, complete with cliched ice-skating scene in a film so filled with excesses that one questions the ability of the scriptwriters.
Essentially that is the problem with X3 and it can be summed in one word: excesses. Its literally bursting at the seams with characters and plots/subplots. This results in each being given no more than a cursory treatment. The most clear example lies in the two main plots, viz the Jean Gray plot and the mutant cure plot. Either one of it, if fleshed out properly, could make for a compelling and engaging third instalment. But in trying to cram both main plots inside, together with the perplexing choice of further cramming needless subplots (the Iceman romantic saga being one of the unnecessary subplots, with the Angel subplot being yet another example of utterly superfluous characters) the result is a rojak of unfulfiled potential and superficially developed plotlines.
Another obvious area where Brett Ratner is weak at is his handling of the many characters in the film. Ratner is no Robert Altman, and his inclusion of so many, many, many mutants whose roles are more like cameos than actual substantial roles means that its a blink-and-you-miss-them situation. Its like a sub-par director was suddenly given a wealth of acting talents, among them Oscar winner Halle Berry, thespians Ian Mckellan and Patrick Stewart and A-list star Hugh Jackman and the director does not know what to do with all these characters! Again, the keyword is excesses. Too many characters, most of the not properly developed and/or quickly killed off. Most characters do not get enough screen time, and the best actors in the cast- Ian Mckellan’s Magneto and Patrick Stewart’s Professor X get woefully little screentime- and this becomes painfully obvious when you compare X3 with X2.
The characters with the most screentime- Wolverine, Storm and Jean Gray are unfortunately poorly developed. X2 hinted at Wolverine’s dark past, but this is totally ignored in X3. Storm, inspite of the nice CGI, really does not have much emotional gravitas and the actress who plays Jean Gray is really… unconvincing. This wasn’t so obvious in the previous films because Jean Gray was a smaller role then, but once she given more screentime, it becomes increasingly apparent that Jean Gray is miscast.
But what does work is the pacing and action sequences. Brett Ratner may not know much about character development or plotline, but at least he knows how to deliver the explosions and the CGI. One particularly impressive scene has Magneto transplanting the bridge to Alcatrez Prison. Also, despite their short screentime, Magneto and Professor X do manage to impress, as does the girl who can pass through walls. The pacing is fairly well done, and the film transitions from one scene to the next with frantic urgency and energy, although not always logically so.
Ultimately, X3 is a fat, lumbering behemoth that could have been edited down to a slick, lean machine, but alas that was not so. Entire subplots and wide swaths of characters could have been deleted and replaced with a more focused and better crafted film. There is enough acting talent in the film, as well as big budget effects to make for fun and action laden entertainment, but for those looking for plot or character development, look elsewhere. As a summer popcorn film, X3 delivers what is expected, but as a film, it clearly pales next to X2, and is around the standard of X1.
hey.. are you going to be a director when u graduate? LOL.. get me as ur cast leh!! LoL…Anyway, why don’t we meet up sometime and catch another movie.. with Selwyn too.. haha.. then I can listen to your idiosyncratic comments…LOL..
Comment by Aloysius — June 1, 2006 @ 1:20 am
First off, thanks for the comment on my blog. But I’m going to have to disagree. I know a lot of people expect most summer blockbuster movies to be brainless but they don’t have to be. There should never really be an excuse for a movie to be unintelligent. People’s acceptance of it only encourages mre of it.
I don’t really think X3 dazzles. I’ll admit there’s probably a scene moment here a moment there that I can actually say I liked. Like when Colossus literally knocks someone’s head off during the last fight. But these are moments that I can count in one hand out of a number of moments that would require several hands to count.
I agree with you, there are elements in the plot that could have made for a deep and solid movie. I see them all the time in other movies. And had this been X-men 1 and not 3 I probably would have been more forgiving. But I cant. This mythology was fully polished by X2. Singer show that there is a fool proof formula to this series. There’s no reason why someone should go and drop the ball so low.
I also agree with you about Famke as Jean, she never really grew on me.
But no, Ratner’s no good at making action sequences. They just don’t seem real; in an emmotional sense or in a laws of physics sense. Take the levitation of the bridge for example. Did you notice how he literally drops the bridge on the island. Shouldn’t that have liquify all his soldiers standing on it? Plus why did he needed to levitate the entire bridge? To carry his troops? He doesn’t have that many!!!
The house levitation also looks like crap. It looks akward and unnecessary. Like it doesn’t belong on this movie.
Also the idea to have the story take place in Alcatraz is so idiotic.
Why would you built a high security facility on one of the most unstable unstructures to exist? Alcatraz is an island that is literally falling apart. It doesn’t make any sense to use it.
The CGI also looks like crap. The Budget could barely support this movie. The pull off a sentinel by having this two headlights up in the sky? What is that all about? Most of it went into the bridge sequence. Other effects looked horrible.
And the pacing is not good. The editing in this movie was way off, no real beats or structure. Don’t even get me started on the sound editing, which always seemed to be more concern with music above all.
I think I’m going to keep the one star. The more I think about it the more I hate it.
Thanks again for the comment.
Comment by Gabe — June 17, 2006 @ 3:54 am
Yeah there was a sentinel in the movie. They fight it in the Danger Room.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Q_XeUniBP18
Your spaceship argument is really good.
But I hope they never make an X4.
Comment by Gabe — June 17, 2006 @ 5:27 pm