last glimpse of the last stand

Get ready for “X-men Origins: Wolverine” on its worldwide release May 1, 2009

X-men: the last stand movie poster

Storm unleashed

Jean turns into Dark Phoenix in her cosmic-hungry form while fighting Professor X’s telephatic attack.

Cyclops awakened the slumbering Phoenix

X-men vs. the Brotherhood of Mutants

Ben Foster is the high-flying Angel

Jean seducing Logan

Ice vs. fire, Iceman vs. Pyro!

Storm, Wolverine, Professor X and Magneto had a visit to Jean Grey’s home

Halle Berry is the weather goddess Storm

X-men (Is this really the last stand?): The Kuris flick trip

(The X-men 3 movie review, previously published in Panay News)

By Ronelo Ladiao

“The greatest joy a teacher could ever have is to be surpassed by his pupil”

Professor Charles Francis Xavier, Uncanny X-men, Marvel Comics

Dark, twisted, unfathomed and tragic, these are the relevant words written by various film critics in America and every loyal X-men fan when the final installment for the world’s strangest superheroes’ fateful trilogy was unleash in the big screen last May 26, 2006.

Anyone who would enthusiastically watch the film would be stuck in a rollercoaster ride of emotions and surprises. Since this is the most-awaited sequel of a breakthrough comicbook superhero film ever, X-men: The Last Stand conceived mixture of reactions from loyal fans, moviegoers and tough critics.

Even the first two films directed by dynamic director Bryan Singer dare to reveal a tragic conclusion for the third sequel. Hints of tragedy were felt through the lines of main characters like Jean Grey (Famkee Janseen), Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) Magneto (Ian McKellen) and many others.

The movie dig deeper and tackles relevant social issue of discrimination, prejudice and injustice. It intensify further the notion of how it is to live in a world that demands conformity among the rest and being different is a reason to be feared. By genetically possessing strange appearance and capabilities makes you a subject of ridicule, hate and as someone fated to be misunderstood.

The film taught an important lesson of acceptance and love for neighbors (a usual sermon by priests and Jesus Christ himself, hehe). Just because someone is different from the rest, acts strangely and has a freaky look gives you the authority to judge that individual. We need to look deeper inside and see beyond our two eyes that only a beautiful heart can see.

Going back to the film, Jean Grey is undoubtedly the central core of evolution among mutants (forget about Oscar Best Actress Halle Berry’s attempt to dethrone Famkee Janseen’s significant character in the film) who struggles to earn a place in the world. Charles Xavier being the goodhearted headmaster of the school for gifted youngster pursues his dream of a united world and advocacy to teach mutants on how to use of their genetic gifts for good. And his philosophy was tested by Jean Grey’s miraculous resurrection.

His superior telephatic abilities that nearly eliminated humankind in the X2: X-men United proved to be futile in controlling the celestial beast that struggles to break free from Jean’s consciousness. Even Logan/Wolverine questioned his ways of creating psychic barriers to suppress the limitless-powered and hungry-for-lifeforce Phoenix
entity (Jean’s second dark personality). “Sometimes when you cage the beast, the beast gets angry,” he said. But Xavier was firm in his decision to prevent Jean from becoming someone he had foreseen as an “entity of annihilation”. “I’ve chosen the lesser of two evil,” Xavier said.

Later, Logan disrupted the process of healing Jean’s mind back to the gentle and soft-spoken woman she used to be. And finally saw the daring and seductive side of what is known as the Dark Pheonix entity.

For clarification, there were two phases of the Phoenix storyline in the comicbooks, the “Phoenix Saga” where Jean saved the universe from cosmic imbalance and “Dark Phoenix Saga” where the cosmic entity that adopted Jean’s body felt insatiable excitement for lust, rage, emotions, other human sensations and hunger for power that drove her to suck cosmic stars!

Okay, the difference between the comicbook and the movie version of Phoenix is this-- Jean was possessed by the Phoenix as a separate cosmic entity while the film suggested that it was really a part of her subconscious mind awakened when she used the cerebro in Xmen 1 and awakened her telepathy. In the movie, she was classified by Xavier as the only Class 5 mutants with limitless potential similar to her designation as “alpha prime” mutant in the comicbooks.

What is annoying about this “last stand” of X-men sequel is that there’s no bird-like flame silhouette that covers Jean in her dying moment in the second film. They focused on the intangible-titanic-telekinetic wave she projects when she engaged on a colossal psychic clash with Xavier. This time (in the movie), no more Shi’ar race led by Empress Lilandra to interfere, no astral plane gladiator-like battle with the professor and yes, no more Cyclops to remind Jean of their eternal love that saved her... no more! So the hopeless Jean gave in to the dark side and did the killing spree like a piece of cake! (why do they always step aside or runaway every time Jean gets mad? what a pity!).

But somewhere in the comicbook storyline long time ago, Xavier uttered these words to the young Jean Grey that struck this me emotionally during his final moment in the clutches of the raging Phoenix (in the film)...”the greatest joy a teacher could ever have is to be surpass by his pupil!” Undoubtedly, Jean is far more superior than everyone expected.

As for Logan/Wolverine, he is the messiah-like hero of this twisted saga never loses his hope to remind Jean how much she mean to him, even if he had to sell his soul in hell. Halle Berry was also impressive for her part as a patient, loyal and tough leader of the X-men like Scott Summers/Cyclops who only had less than 10 minutes exposure in the movie before dying.

Ian Mckellen as Magneto is far more impressive than I’ve expected from his performance in Da Vince Code. Lucky for him in his 60s, this veteran Broadway actor manages to breathe life in his character not only as the perverse villain in the film but also in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy as Gandalf.

Magneto may be one tough idealistic mutant leader but he has a heart for fellow mutants though blinded by his anger for those who killed his family during Hitler’s reign in Europe. He was a perfect deceiver who misled Jean to fully embrace the darkness inside her and other mutants whose only desire is to earn a place in this crowded world.

I was overwhelmed by his insightful words to Jean Grey that says “why would Charles turn this goddess into a mortal, I want you to become who you are the way nature intended you to be...and if we want freedom we must fight for it!”

Brett Ratner’s direction of the most-awaited superhero sequel in Hollywood history might be true to Singer’s original plan but he has his own unique touch with the film.

Whether frustrated movie fans longing to see a fairy-tale-happy-ending for the X-men and other fanatic comicbook worshipper like me clamor for something better...one thing is sure: this is not yet the last stand of the X-men!

Postscript 1: Collecting the stellar X-men movie trailers, it’s a blast from the past as we once again look back to the grandeur and epical story of uncanny beings gifted to protect a world that fears and hates them। “A dream worth fighting for”, the X-men’s philosophy of peaceful c-existence inspires us more to give our fair share in changing the world. Like them, we dream of something big and worth fighting… our passion.

Postscript 2: Rumors suggested lately that after the two X-men Origin films on Wolverine (worldwide release May 1, 2009) and Magneto (no confirmed date yet), another X-men movie is planned to be develop. Picking up from the ruins of X-men: the last stand, the epical saga of the heroic mutants will continue, confirming the return of Cyclops, Professor Xavier, Jean Grey from the dead and the rest of all-new characters. Let’s see where it goes from here… nuff said Marvel.