Dark Phoenix is a 2019 superhero film about the X-Men saving Jean Grey from wreaking havoc as the powerful Phoenix.
It’s crazy to think that the X-Men movie franchise has been going on for over two decades. After the big news that Disney has bought 20th Century Fox, this is supposedly the last installment of the main X-Men series before these characters are eventually going to be rebooted in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Dark Phoenix Saga is arguably the most popular and compelling storyline in the X-Men universe, and it’s been adapted so many times before. X-Men: The Last Stand has utilized some elements from this iconic storyline, but instead it turned out to be a disappointing adaptation. After Days of Future Past has changed the timeline of the series, it now gives the filmmakers the possibility of re-doing the Dark Phoenix Saga hopefully in a more faithful way. Seemingly being marketed as the culmination of the main X-Men films from 20th Century Fox, we now have Dark Phoenix. Simon Kinberg, who has written and produced some of the previous installments, makes his directorial debut with Dark Phoenix and brings back some of the cast members from X-Men: Apocalypse in this movie. Hopefully it may provide some form of closure to X-Men fans everywhere.
After the events of Apocalypse, the X-Men are now viewed as heroes and go on dangerous missions to save people who need help. However, something goes very wrong during a mission that takes place in Outer Space. Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) heavily absorbs a solar fare in order for her teammates to rescue the astronauts on time, but then it makes her go crazy as the powerful and unstoppable Phoenix. Now Charles Xavier/Professor X (James McAvoy) and his team have to save Jean before she causes even more havoc to people around her.
One thing we can all agree on is that the cast is really good. These actors bring some great performances to their roles, and you’re just having a fun time seeing these beloved characters on screen for you to enjoy. This time around, it’s actually really interesting to have Jean as the main character, which is great because Famke Janssen’s Phoenix portrayal was underdeveloped in The Last Stand. Seeing Turner act as both the hero and villain is definitely one of the best aspects of the movie, and you understand the struggle she’s going through. However, some of the characters especially the fan-favorite Quicksilver (Evan Peters) don’t appear in the film all that much. Everyone expect Jean and Charles don’t have a lot of development, and sometimes it feels like they’re just there for the sake of being there. Also, why is Magneto back? Michael Fassbender is great as always, but it doesn’t really make a lot sense on why he would be coming back to this story, especially that his motivation is starting to get a little repetitive at this point.
Kinberg’s directing style is a lot darker and grounded in regards to the film’s script and action sequences, which actually works at times. However, when characters are talking, the editing does feel a little rushed in some scenes. There are a lot of compelling and memorable moments throughout, but it would have been better if they have a little more time to be fully developed for the audience to de deeply invested in. Some scenes can be easily cut out of the movie, especially the ones featuring Magneto. The biggest problem with Dark Phoenix is that it doesn’t even feel like a finale. The climax just feels like a generic ending like the ones you might have seen plenty of times before in previous mediocre comic book movies. It’s nowhere near the same level of fulfillment as Avengers: Endgame that’s for sure.
Dark Phoenix is not a terrible film as many people have thought it was going to be, but its last act is just a little dull, which unfortunately the audience will never remember as the supposedly epic culmination of the past 20 years in the X-Men universe. It’s not as bad as X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but it’s still not the most memorable installment in the series. However, there is still some enjoyment to be had for fans of the franchise thanks to the great performances from the cast and some fun action sequences. As a culmination, it’s not the best. As another X-Men installment, it actually works at times. And that’s all it matters.