Looking Forward, Looking Behind

Bishop of Bath and Wales: Drugged, by god!
Blackadder: No, by Baldrick actually. But the effect is much the same.

So, there we go. As best we can tell, I was under the effect of food-poisoning Saturday night, which took until last night to leave my system. But I woke this morning feeling more or less human.

Which brings me to the idea of talking about our favorite(?) group of almost-humans. Mutants. Specifically, the X-Men, as portrayed in film. A while back we discussed the future of Marvel Comics films, specifically Spider-Man 3. We mentioned the X-Men franchise, but didn't really discuss it.

This is a movie that has been plagued by just about every disaster that the third movie in a series could be plagued by. Change of directors (twice). A rapidly increasing cast size, both in heroes and villains. And way too much plot for a single movie. I was entirely ready to put this in the box next to Batman Forever and Superman III.

And then I saw this.

Bastards. Just when I think I'm out, they keep pulling me back in.

Well, May 26th isn't all that far away, so I think it's time that we talked about the good, the bad, and the ugly regarding this movie.

The Good: Visually, this movie is just yummy. There's no other way to describe it. The effects shots that have come from the trailer are mouth-watering. Watching Kitty phase through wall after wall as the Juggernaut crashes through them behind her was stunning. We will see a Fastball special. Magneto lifts the Golden Gate Bridge. Moments straight out of the pages of a comic, brought to life.

Oh, and of course, we get Sentinels.

We have some fabulous additions to the cast, namely, Kelsey Grammer as the Beast. Just look at him. He fits the visual, and we all know that the man has the acting chops to play Hank McCoy. So that's good.

Rebecca Romijn remains delectable as Mystique, and there's just something about Famke Jansen in red leather that... oh, wait. Family blog. Uh, she looks great.

Truthfully, with the possible exception of Halle Berry, there isn't a bad actor in the cast. And almost everyone perfectly fits the visual for their character. The casting directors went above and beyond on this movie, and they were somehow able to keep all of the principals involved for more than one movie.

The Bad: There is almost certainly too much plot for a single movie here.

The rise of the Sentinels is it's own film.

Magneto's final assault on the United States is it's own movie.

And the Phoenix Saga is a movie and a half. (She returns as Phoenix as part of one movie, and then the Dark Phoenix aspect is a film of it's own.)

This has me nervous.

Losing Bryan Synger has me equally nervous. The first two X-Men films were crowded, but Synger managed to weave it all together. But can someone else manage that same kind of magic? I don't know.

The Ugly: We lost some important characters. Nightcrawler isn't back, for some reason that I assume will be explained. But the real kicker is that they killed Cyclops.

No, this hasn't officially been said anywhere. But the only place we see him in the trailer is leading up to Jean's rebirth out of the lake. And there's a funeral scene in the trailer that he isn't at.

I know that Famke Jansen and James Marsden never had the right chemistry for Scott and Jean. This is a love that is supposed to overcome the animal attraction Jean has for Logan, and be strong enough to conquer death. In the comics, it is Jean's love for Scott that gives her the control to let herself be killed. And there was no indication of that in either movie.

But they killed Cyclops. And that just isn't cool.

So, May 26th. A little over three weeks. And then we shall see. Until then, some parting words from Charles Xavier:

Since the dawn of existence, there have always been moments when the course of history shifted. Such a turning point is upon us now. The conflict between the better and worst angels of our very nature. Whose outcome will change our world so greatly...there will be no going back. I do not know if victory is possible.

Me either. But I can hope.