X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
★★½ — X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
Brett Ratner stepped in to direct this third entry in Fox's X-Men series after Bryan Singer departed to make Superman Returns, a decision that generated considerable unease among fans at the time. Ratner, best known for the Rush Hour comedies, was working at a scale he hadn't approached before, with a reported budget of around $210 million making it one of the most expensive productions of the mid-2000s superhero boom. The film adapts elements from two significant Marvel Comics storylines, most notably Joss Whedon and John Cassaday's "Astonishing X-Men" arc alongside Chris Claremont's "Dark Phoenix Saga", though both are compressed and reworked substantially. Writers Simon Kinberg and Zak Penn produced the screenplay under considerable time pressure, and the resulting film was shot largely in Vancouver and the San Francisco Bay Area.
X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) is a film of contradictions. There are moments of emotional weight and visual flair buried under messy writing, rushed pacing, and a baffling number of missed opportunities. It’s good, in that it has strong performances, some solid action sequences, and genuine attempts at big themes like identity, choice, and what it means to be “cured” of who you are. But it’s also bad (often frustratingly so) because it squanders its potential at almost every turn. The return of Halle Berry as Storm as a de facto leader after Xavier’s death shows promise, and Kelsey Grammer brings dignity to Beast, even in limited screen time. Ian McKellen’s Magneto remains magnetic, and the concept of a “mutant cure” is rich with thematic depth, touching on issues of forced assimilation and self-acceptance. But then there’s the Phoenix saga (Jean Grey’s transformation into the Dark Phoenix) which should be the emotional core of the film… but feels rushed, underdeveloped, and ultimately hollow. Her descent isn’t earned, her power level is inconsistent, and her fate lands with a thud rather than a tragedy. Famke Janssen does her best, but the script gives her nothing to build on. Meanwhile, the new character Angel feels tacked on, the 3D-ish effects are dated, and the final battle devolves into a generic mutant-vs-mutant slugfest that forgets everything the series stood for. It’s not a disaster, it’s too well-acted and occasionally powerful for that, but it’s a step down from X2, trading depth for spectacle and nuance for noise. Watchable, flawed, and frustratingly uneven. A film that had the pieces of greatness but never quite assembled them. Good, yes. But also, undeniably bad in places.
Rating: ★★½ | Year: 2006 | Watched: 2025-09-23
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Related on Movies With Macca
More from Brett Ratner: Rush Hour 2 (2001) · Rush Hour 3 (2007) · Rush Hour (1998)
More with Hugh Jackman: Logan (2017) · Van Helsing (2004) · X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) · The Wolverine (2013)
More from the 2000s: Kirikou and the Wild Beasts (2005) · Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) · Daredevil (2003) · Apocalypto (2006)
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More action: A Better Tomorrow (1986) · The General (1926) · Hand of Death (1976) · Daredevil (2003)
