Thoughts on X-Men Dark Phoenix

X-Men: Dark Phoenix suffers from a mix of rotten elements. The script is so boring and creates no agency that you’d expect from a super hero movie. Character arcs are non-existent and the villains create no real threat. Past X-Men movie were at least fun/schlock, this movie is just boring schlock. The actors are great at their craft but this script kills any charm that these performers used to give their characters. I’d give this a miss if you enjoyed the past movies in any way.

X-Men: Apocalypse – review

X-Men Apocalypse is the ninth film in the X-Men franchise. Since X-Men: Days of Future Past essentially retconned the series, the stakes have been raised. The characters were fun and the story was fast paced. The actors bring fine performances for the most part even though there are a few superfluous characters. For a Summer blockbuster it is exactly what to expect from a superhero film.

The first mutant En Sabah Nur has awoken in Egypt. Upon awakening in 1983 he recruits four powerful mutants to act as his four horsemen. Together they intend to destroy the world and remake it where the strong survive and the weak are culled. It is up to Professor Xavier and his X-Men to stop this titanic threat.

The addition of Oscar Issac as the villainous En Sabah Nur was a great choice. Sophie Turner as a young Jean Grey handles the roll with the gravitas it deserves. There are some other characters that seem sort of superfluous to the plot but were seemingly added for fan service- characters like Moira MacTaggart and Wolverine are welcome but not needed for the plot to continue. The actors who were in previous films fall into their respective roll fantastically. The one exception is Jennifer Lawrence, who at times seems to be sleep walking through her role to collect a paycheck.

The effects are fun and the devastation is on scale with some of the greatest Roland Emmerich movies.   The fight scenes are entertaining and work well in displaying what these mutants are capable of on a grand scale. The scenes involving Quicksilver are really exciting to watch. At this point a Quicksilver or Magneto movie would be welcome since their characters are so entertaining to watch.

If you are fan of the franchise, this movie is a must see. If you are new to the world of X-Men then I suggest at the very least watching a few of the past movies. X-Men: Apocalypse is a great follow up for the series and a great popcorn film to turn off your brain and enjoy. I can only imagine where the new storyline will go as the franchise continues.

X-Men: Days of Future Past – review

X-Men: Days of Future Past is the sequel to both X-Men the Last Stand as well as X-Men: The First Class. It bridges the gaps well between the young and old cast and makes a pretty exciting story.  The acting is really top notch. The story is gripping and the characters feel rich and developed.  The effects are exciting and have an almost gruesome element to them, which makes for a very entertaining film.

The future is bleak for both humans and mutants. Relentless giant robots called Sentinels have hunted mutants to near extinction.  A small group of mutants lead by Magneto, played by Ian McKellen, and Charles Xavier, played by Patrick Stewart, devise a plan to send the consciousness of Wolverine, played by Hugh Jackman, back into his past self. There he will attempt to stop the events from occurring that will cause this horrible future.

The cast does a great job with the material. Jennifer Lawrence gives a solid performance as Mystique. Michael Fassbender as Magneto is also very entertaining. James McAvoy is the one who really knocks it out of the park though. His portrayal of young Charles Xavier battling a drug addiction and fear of his powers is incredibly powerful and moving.  Another performance of note was Evan Peters as Peter Maximoff.  It was a very nuanced and amusing way to portray the character of Quicksilver.

The effects are gratifying since they switch from the dystopian future to the 1970s past and the camera work seems to reflect this. In the future the camera captures darkness and shadow nearly constantly, while the 1970s scenes simulate the look of being filmed with the grainy style of a 1970s camera.  In this case, the contrast works well.  The movie has a much darker tone then any of the other films so the ante has to be raised to some degree.

X-Men: Days of Future Past is a damn satisfying movie. It has some silly moments such as the distractingly bad hair they gave Peter Dinklage, or how supposedly JFK was a mutant. At the end of the day though, it is an X-Men movie; it’s going to be a little silly.  The movie is still worth seeing in the theater, especially if you were a fan of any of the past films. Just be sure to stay through the end of the credits.