Just returned from the matinee showing, lots of mixed feelings and thoughts about this latest (last?) X-Men entry....
--Significantly better than Apocalypse, though is that high praise?
--the movie makes a point of saying it is 1992, but unlike the previous First Class movies, there are no obvious 90s pop culture references, fashion or music. If it was not for the space shuttle this could have been present day. Was this one of the mandates of the reshoots/editing to differentiate it from Captain Marvel?
--the first two acts are quieter, more character based which I appreciated unfortunately, many of the beats do not hit home
--all the performances are good, though I think Sophie Turner was miscast and does not have the range needed.. but again this may just poor direction
--there is an event that occurs that suddenly turns America against mutants again, except it is so poorly staged/edited/directed that the US gov't reaction seems like overkill.... again is this because of reshoots or an inexperienced director?
--just when you think the X-Men continuity could not get any messier, this movie happens. Either the producers gave up or just don't care... in the end it is the long time fans that lose.
--best portrayal of Cyclops so far, though not sure that is saying much?
--wow, Nightcrawler really went to the dark side... not sure how I feel about that scene?
--Magneto's character arc is flip floppy
--thankfully no Wolverine cameo!!!!
--the badguys....underdeveloped and one note....
--I thought the opening scenes of the X-Men launching to the save the shuttle and people around the world watching was very well constructed, felt very heroic and had lots of energy but then it quickly dissipates and never truly returns....
--in some ways this movie plays very schizophrenic.... strong opening, exciting third act.... some good ideas and dialogue... but all the key emotional and character moments fail to connect with the audience, the movie struggles to draw the viewer in and make them care intimately about the drama. It does feel like there are scenes missing or shots insert that do not align smoothly with overall narrative.
--all the angst, outsider/minority allegory that makes an X-men story unique among super heroes is mostly lacking...
--cinematography was very bland, scoring was serviceable and the CGI was decent
So what is better, DARK PHOENIX or LAST STAND? Dark Phoenix is Jean-centric as it should be, and attempts to be more character oriented, but it fails to fully engage. While Last Stand is a slick, more polished and exciting movie. Tough call but I would probably go with Last Stand.
I liked Dark Phoenix. It was okay. But it plays like a studio tampered flick and I am left curious what the original cut looked like?
Time to put this franchise to bed for a long, long rest as it played hard and is now very tired.