The first summer blockbuster has arrived.
Leading up to the release of X3 I was, to say, cautiously optimisitic. I mean, this is Brett ‘Rush Hour’ Ratner we’re talking about. So my biggest concern was that it would be all flash and no substance.
Sometimes it’s tough being right all the time.
They made a movie for muckity-mucks. Thoroughly and completely dumbed-down with heavy fisted plot development and devoid of intelligent characterization.
Here’s a few quick points:
- There’s a reason you don’t put every mutant you’ve ever heard of in a movie. Too many characters means you don’t give a damn about *any* of them
- If you are going to have 6 dozen main characters, don’t bother introducing plotlines that go nowhere. Love-triangles are meaningless when there are 6 of them, and they don’t go anywhere. (Ice-skating?!?! It seemed less out of place in King Kong)
- I cannot blame the actors for super-cheesy lines… they have to work with what they’re given. I mean, it’s Ian freakin’ McKellan. He never sounds dumb… but he did in this flick.
- Unnecessary expository is bad enough, without repeating it multiple times. (Pawns go in first)
- There’s a time and a place for ‘gags’.
- Even if it is a huge summer blockbuster, story does matter. Plotholes are not excusable.
- Whether it’s intended to be the ‘last’ or not, don’t kill or write-off pretty much every major character.
- Ultimately, it has all the subtlety of a mutogenic train wreck
There are some good points, but they are few:
- Visually, it worked. The action was great, and the special effects looked fantastic.
- Some interesting casting of Kelsey Grammar and Vinnie Jones, among others.
- I guess, on some level, it could have been worse. Some good ideas that were just thrown in or tacked on at least were included.
Bottom Line: You might as well go see it. If it’s going to be enjoyed at all, it is on the big screen. Grab some popcorn, turn your brain off, and prepare for an onslaught of mindless eye-candy.
Sidenote: Go out and find Joss Whedon’s ‘Astonishing X-Men’ books. It’s where they got the whole ‘mutant cure’ idea. A great read, and it’s a shame that it can now never be put on screen properly.