& # 39; Dark Phoenix & # 39; hangs and burns without reborn from the ashes

Some spoilers to come.

With "Dark Phoenix", X-Men fans have to say goodbye to a franchise that has delighted, entertained and disappointed for 19 years. Summits such as "Logan", an Oscar nominee, the "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" disaster, you never know how to expect a masterpiece or clutter that is awful and unclear. "Dark Phoenix", the last installment of the beloved franchise, is definitely the last. It is almost amazing how the last installment of the X-Men franchise is wrong.

Adapted from one of the most popular comic sagas of all time, "Dark Phoenix" tells the story of Jean Gray, who is overwhelmed by a powerful force in her and has to deal with darker impulses.

The writer and director of "Dark Phoenix," Simon Kinberg, co-wrote the highly despised "X-Men: The Last Fight". So many fans wondered why it was the choice to try once again to adapt the Phoenix saga to the cinema. While working as a co-author on one of the best X-Men films ("Days of Future Past") and two of the most disappointing releases ("The Last Stand", "Apocalypse"), he produced the outstanding 'X-Men First Class', his previous work on failure to capture the iconic Phoenix Saga rightly concerned fans. These already high fears were underestimated, as Kinberg took what was not working on "The Last Stand" and amplified these problems dramatically.

The problem with "The Last Stand" was the inclusion of the Phoenix saga. Ideas about the existence of a mutant remedy and whether the mutation was immutable or whether a problem should be solved as a disease are a fascinating concept that deserved its own film. This dilemma contained more nuances than the previous two X-Men movies, superior cinematic experiences, as it carries the message beyond mere "prejudice, it's bad" to explore really complicated issues.

But then, the writers just had to include the Phoenix saga. What could have been a fascinating, entertaining and action-packed exploration of nuanced and complex themes with some of the best characters ever to wear great costumes has become a rushed mess. The Phoenix saga is one of the most iconic and beloved stories in X-Men comics, and for good reason. Recounting the story of an inherently good woman surmounted by overwhelming black power, Jean Gray's transformation explores the struggle between good and evil in her.

Random, the level C sub-parcel could have been deleted

The choice of adding a secondary parcel on an alien race to "Dark Phoenix" was strange and useless. The film was already cluttered and too complicated, while ignoring the essentials of what made the original story a classic. The sub-plot D'Bari is a minor aspect of the Phoenix saga, and not one of the most convincing parts.

By completely separating John from the energy of the phoenix, rather than depicting it as an integral part of John once she has passed, the once powerful and complex protagonist becomes little more than 39, a pawn in his own story. She spends the entire film at the mercy of the Phoenix force and is manipulated by Vuk, a D'Bari member who is trying to take control of the Phoenix force.

Like "The Last Stand" before him, "Dark Phoenix" explores a scenario in C that could easily fill a fascinating movie. Some of X-Men's best stories come from various attempts to deal with the fear of mutants by humanity, from Magneto's violent genocidal aspirations to Professor X's diplomatic attempts. In "Dark Phoenix", the positions of the two leaders are maturing. fascinating way: Magneto, a Holocaust survivor and a mutant supremacist, now leads a peaceful mutant homeland called Genosha, an obvious allegory of Israel.

Professor X, however, has turned his alumni into a team of superheroes, the eponymous X-Men, who are sent around the world to save humans and generate goodwill for mutants. While Raven fears that his propensities for heroism are at the service of his ego, it makes perfect sense that Charles, who desperately wanted peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants, strives to maintain acceptance delicate by all necessary means. This conflict of ideologies deserves much more attention than a few moments at the beginning of the film, as it has the kind of dramatic weight and serious issues that draw people to the X-Men.

Kinberg's scenario is incredibly weak and offers a dialogue both embarrassing and obvious. At the beginning of the film, Mystic delivers a particularly odious sentence: "It's funny, I do not remember the last time you risked something. And, by the way, women always save men here. You might want to think about changing the name for X-Women. "

The line is called straight, with no trace of irony or nuance. It's doubly funny that Mystic speaks, because it's the biggest handicap of the team and one of the weakest characters in the franchise. The entire script follows this awfully awkward and obvious line.

All the work and no game makes it a dull movie

The stimulation is also poorly executed. Kinberg's status as first director is painfully evident in all settings. The tone is remarkably serious and severe, which makes the game even more fun. Quicksilver is the only character allowed to make jokes, and he sits at the beginning of the movie. What comes next is a series of scenes in a strange order without any amusement.

The pieces of the action board were incredibly random. There was a brilliant action scene towards the end, in a train. All the main characters fought together, using their powers to their full potential in an unexpected and exciting way. Even if it's not at the level of the big final battles, looking at how the characters played each other and used their powers together made for a brilliant viewing experience, which I wish, restored to a larger part of the world. movie. All that was missing was a slow motion Quicksilver scene set on a Nirvana hit.

The film ends with Charles and Erik sitting in Paris for a game of chess before Charles rejoins Erik to lead Genosha together. For fans of the franchise, this moment is an appropriate end. The initial trilogy, though centered on Wolverine and Snape, was linked to enmity, respect and affection between his rivals and old friends, described respectively by Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen. The pseudo-prequel trilogy starting with "First Class" puts this front line in the foreground, while the relationship between Charles and Erik, now played by James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, becomes the central element of the films.

So it seemed strange to fans to see these old friends interact so rarely throughout the film, while their link was at the heart of the series. In addition, Fassbender and McAvoy are two of the best players in the franchise, especially the rebooted prequels, and their chemistry is the best in the entire series. "Dark Phoenix" proves strikingly that X-Men movies only work for Wolverine or the disordered love-hate friendship between Professor X and Magneto.

Sophie Turner simply can not act

"Dark Phoenix" has some of the best and worst actors in X-Men movies. Sophie Turner, best known for her role as Sansa Stark in the hugely popular "Game of Thrones" of HBO, plays the lead character, Jean Gray. As can be seen on "Game of Thrones", Turner is great for crying, but there is not much left. John should be the emotional heart of the film, but Turner's awkward, elevated, and incredible performance leaves the character as a dead presence in the center of his own film. Turner can not act, and his leadership position surrounded by truly brilliant actors only makes this point.

The intensity, rage and passion of Fassbender are reflected once again in his role of Magneto. The former complicated villain is sidelined, with an excessive focus on his ripped reaction to the death of Raven, a woman he was intensely trying to murder two movies before.

Professor X of McAvoy had a fascinating development of character dealing with his guilt for the mistakes of the past and his pride. McAvoy manages development in a masterful way, declaring its terrible lines of dialogue with a surprising level of credibility.

In her brief scenes as Raven, Jennifer Lawrence reminds viewers how she was misinterpreted as Mystic. The film continues the confusing decision to keep the typically naughty mystic on the side of the heroes, which makes it much less interesting than the sweet and cold personality that fans love and love. Lawrence's performance is so bland and uninspired that his death honestly gives the film a life of its own.

Nicholas Hoult returns to train as a Beast, offering a strong, sometimes wild performance, to a man who has lost the woman he loves. His chemistry with Lawrence is at best passable, but the depth and sympathy of Hoult incite viewers to invest in the relationship solely because of the passion of his performance.

Tye Sheridan does a useful job as Scott, Jean's boyfriend and teammate. Because of Cyclops' laser eyes, Sheridan has to give all her performance without using her eyes, which is of course a challenge. However, he shows great concern for Jean despite his serious lack of chemistry and that of Turner. It was also a strange decision to give Scott the one word f, which seemed both misplaced and misplaced.

Evan Peters has brought the same charm and humor to the role of Quicksilver as the previous two, but his role has been dramatically reduced, leaving only a few scenes to the charismatic actor before letting him down seriously injured and leave it well.

Alexandra Shipp and Kodi Smit-McPhee complete the X-Men team as Storm and Nightcrawler. Both actors do a hard job with their characters, although they receive almost no development and very little to do outside of the pleasant action game scenes.

Jessica Chastain works in a thankless role as a villain, Vuk, who manipulates John. Nothing is given to Chastain, and even his immense talent can not make this character interesting or important in the film.

I can not bring myself to recommend "Dark Phoenix" to anyone other than the big fans of X-Men. The train sequence is nice and McAvoy, Fassbender and Hoult perform well. Therefore, watching their latest releases in these iconic roles is well worth the dreadful dialogue and serious tone of each. However, anyone interested in the film should prepare to leave the cinema in a remarkably frustrated state with the latest installment of the incredible franchise.