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X-Men: The Last Stand (Frank's Take)
01/09/2006 . Source: Frank Ochieng 
Sadly, X didn't mark the spot convincingly this time around for director Brett Ratner's third instalment involving our beloved mutant misfits, finds Frank. In X-Men: The Last Stand, Ratner fills up on the eye-popping action pieces and lets everything colourfully go BANG and BOOM with each overindulgent explosion. Buy X-Men: The Last Stand in the USA - or Buy X-Men: The Last Stand in the UK  But what The Last Stand is missing that the two previous X-Men showcases demonstrated was the emotional and psychological development that was invested in our complex crime fighters. Sure, X-Men: The Last Stand looks to capitalize on its surging reputation as an energizing, pulsating popcorn pleaser with escapist thrills pumping its excitable heart. However, sometimes being less and substantive is sufficiently more than presenting an overbearing serving of boasting entertainment fluff.
Ratner, best known for the immensely popular Rush Hour flicks, directs this Marvel Comics-inspired action-adventure with all the urgency of a nervous Nellie with a bladder problem. Filmmaker Ratner is so caught up in letting things go on a monumental whim. Consequently, there's no particular structure or discipline to his overactive scattershot direction. Confusion and chaos is substituted for compelling cohesiveness. And it certainly doesn't help that the movie stocks up on way too many characterizations especially when they're arbitrary and underdeveloped in the middle of Ratner's aimless, overwrought big-budgeted concoction.
Granted rambunctious actioners such as X-Men: The Last Stand should be gleefully frivolous and thus become the ultimate blast in its mindless mayhem. Still, the stakes are raised quite a bit because predecessor filmmaker Bryan Singer's first two solid X-Men flicks were blessed with the unique combination of sophistication, lingering angst, dry wit, hearty action sequences and a sense of self-reflective inner rage. In a nutshell, the roguish Ratner is more consumed with tapping into the visceral vibrancy of his pyrotechnic production than he is willing to ensure the continuation of this trilogy's quest for elevating the mutants' malaise in thought-provoking mode.
On a positive note, The Last Stand is frenetically stylish and packs a punch for those that want to lose themselves in the movie's manufactured madness. One could still contend that the X-Men in their "third time a charm" cycle should have been more relevant and complete had they maintained their composure as moral-oriented oddballs in a judgmental world ready and willing to challenge their conflicting philosophies.
Well, the usual suspects are all back and ready to take on the situational pressure that ensues. The storyline evolves around a mutant-based standoff between the conscientious wonders and the contemptible cretins (we'll leave it up to you to determine who's who in this mixture). Giving off the negative vibes is malcontent mutant supremacist Magneto (Ian McKellan) whose motto is that the mightiest shall prevail while the weak (man) suffers the inevitable consequences. Opposing Magneto's sense of privileged power is telekinetic Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and Secretary of Mutant Affairs Dr. Henry McCoy a.k.a. "The Beast" (played by multi-Emmy winner Kelsey Grammer).
Among those lingering on the sidelines as the madness develops are the popularly testy Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), moody Storm (Oscar-winner Halle Berry), plagued Rogue (Oscar-winner Anna Paquin), the spicy Pyro (Aaron Stanford) and erotically devious Mystique (Rebecca Romijn). Even Dr. Jean Grey/Phoenix (Famke Janssen) is back from her watery resting place with an unspeakable vengeance as her telekinetic talents are up to speed. The newcomers that join in the fray consist of Juggernaut (Vinnie Jones), Angel (Ben Foster) and Multiple Man (Eric Dane).
The verdict may be lukewarm for avid comic book fans and action-oriented enthusiasts because Ratner's X-Men: The Last Stand doesn't quite hold a candle to its previous outings. Moviegoers may appreciate Ratner's protrusive visuals as his playful stamp runs the gamut from the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters overactive exercises to the surreal futuristic showings of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge.
The stunning pyrotechnics and Ratner's preference for his expensive CGI toys may stir up some percolating frolic. It's too bad that the intent to search the soulful pulse of these antagonistic superpowers is considered an antiquated notion. The narrative's yearning for moral contemplation would have been the genuine redemptive charge that rectified this summertime sizzle.
Frank Ochieng
© Frank Ochieng 2006
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