Directed by:
Brett RatnerCinematography:
Dante SpinottiComposer:
John PowellCast:
Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Famke Janssen, Anna Paquin, Kelsey Grammer, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn, Shawn Ashmore (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
A "cure" for mutancy threatens to alter the course of history. For the first time, mutants have a choice: retain their uniqueness, though it isolates and alienates them, or give up their powers and become human. The opposing viewpoints of mutant leaders Charles Xavier, who preaches tolerance, and Magneto, who believes in the survival of the fittest, are put to the ultimate test--triggering the war to end all wars. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (11)
The Last Stand is definitely the most bombastic part of the whole mutant trilogy. Despite the change in director (Ratner instead of Singer), they managed to film an epic piece of entertainment with great special effects that makes skillful use of the psychology already developed in the first two X-Men. The story revolves around the discovery of a cure against being a mutant (the ever more frequently casted fresh-faced Cameron Bright). Magneto takes advantage of an opportunity and widens the ranks of his followers (Juggernaut, Callisto, Phoenix...) and makes preparations for the long discussed war. Which makes room for lots of playing about. Ratner even came up with several wonderful novelties (the 1 to 5 mutant evolution scale, Wolverine’s improved fighting style) and amazing scenes (Wolverine approaching Jean is absolutely perfect, as well as Xavier testing his strength with Phoenix). But Ratner is no Singer and so his work with character psychology was a little shoddy. He tied up some loose ends from part two and tried to open some new storylines (Angel, Mystique), only to close them again. It’s hard to say how it would have all ended up if Brian Singer hadn’t eloped with the guy in the red cloak, but even so X-Men: The Last Stand is the biggest blockbuster event of this year. P.S. I really like Famke Janssen, but she gave me goose bumps in this movie and I was almost afraid of her.
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The clock started turning back, and Brett Ratner went back to the 1980s. He brought along a bunch of hotshots using special effects and made an impactful action spectacle that could certainly be a full-fledged film in its own right if it didn't want to tie itself to the previous two installments in the franchise. The theme and the screenplay (except for the terrible dialogue!) are fine, but Ratner completely misunderstands the meaning of the plot and instead plays at being a narrator. The mutants are characters with no psychology, no history, and no distinctive dimension. The quantum of new arrivals, most of whom don't even have a name, is brought out around in a disorganized manner and any action they take is completely self-serving. Without these specifics, their emotions towards themselves sound either ridiculous or (more likely) completely incomprehensible. Only Mr. Singer's group of old warriors carry the film forward, but even they aren't enough to keep the mutants from (sadly) burying themselves. The first time it was a blast, the second time an absolute collapse.
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As Hollywood eye-candy entertainment for a young audience, The Last Stand is flawless. As a sequel to Singer’s X-Men 2, however, it’s just sad. Brett Ratner is an enthusiastic filmmaker, an aficionado of nice images, effects and movie heroes, but he’s too superficial and childish for the meaningfulness of the material that Bryan Singer outlined before him. The character of Juggernaut (Vinnie Jones) and the occasional lapses in logic seem to have fallen out of a game adaptation by Paul W.S. Anderson and the film has more in common with Fantastic Four than with its predecessors. At the age of seventeen, when I loved Commando because there was “always something happening” in it, I would have liked The Last Stand best out of all of the X-Men movies. P.S. If Singer had added “his own thing” to the high-octane screenplay and shot it himself with a straighter face and a more modest 120-minute runtime, this really could have been the best instalment of the franchise.
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Well, I don't know. At least given the material, this installment could have been the best one, but the way Ratner narrated the story was just pathetic. There was a lot of action in The Last Stand, but it was so devoid of emotions or spirit, that I just couldn't care less about how it all went and especially how it would turn out in the end, which is a huge red flag for any movie. Plus, most of the new characters and even some regular ones did not appear at all, so after the second installment, the rating dropped back down to average.
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Not as bad as it might seem at first glance. Ratner adores all the various mutant figures and is concerned first and foremost with getting them to show off as much as possible for the audience, and secondly with making sure that their antics and powers properly develop the story and maintain the fatality present in both of Singer's previous films. It's pretty nice to watch and there's always something going on, but the layering between so many characters is a bit shoddy at times and the pace is as frantic as in any guilty pleasure action flick. The final action set-piece is fine, I just don't like the scheme where someone we don't doubt isn't a bastard starts getting harassed in the head, and one invulnerable dude has to talk them through the pain and tell them that you just don't do that.
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Gallery (182)
Photo © 20th Century Fox
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