X-Men: Dark Phoenix
One of the better X-Men films, Dark Phoenix erases the painful memories of sitting through Apocalypse, and while it never reaches the heights of X2 or Days of Future Past, it’s definitely in the next tier down from them. With a melancholic tone and sense of impending dread, Dark Phoenix feels like its own beast rather than a recycling of earlier X-Men films.
Premise: Following the events of the earlier films, Mutants have finally been accepted by the public and Charles Xavier’s (James McAvoy) X-Men are full-blown superheroes, being sent on dangerous missions by the US President. But during a rescue mission on board an orbiting space shuttle, Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) is almost killed and comes back to Earth a changed woman, setting in motion a chain of events that will have tragic consequences for everyone.
Review:
There are a couple of points that I want to address right off the bat. Firstly, it’s not fair judging Dark Phoenix by how well it works as a “swansong” for the X-Men film series because Dark Phoenix was never intended to be the final film in the franchise. Unlike Avengers: Endgame (which some have unfairly compared Dark Phoenix to), Logan or any other concluding chapter, Dark Phoenix was not conceived, written or filmed with the intention that it would be the final chapter in the series, and so it is unfair to judge it by asking how satisfying is it as a concluding instalment. Let’s be honest – the only reason why Dark Phoenix has become the final chapter in the saga is because Disney bought Twentieth Century Fox, and then decided to pull the plug on the franchise once Dark Phoenix had already been shot (possibly, but by no means certainly, because Disney want to reboot the X-Men within the MCU). So Dark Phoenix should really be judged on its own merits as “another” instalment in the series, rather than as an epic conclusion and farewell to the franchise.
Secondly, many of the minor flaws with Dark Phoenix are ones inherited from the earlier X-Men prequels, and what I mean by that, is that I don’t think the decision to set each of the prequels a decade after the previous one has ever worked. The first prequel, First Class, was set in 1962 and stared James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender playing characters who were presumably meant to be around 30 - and now in Dark Phoenix, set in 1992, they’re meant to be around 60, despite only being 40 and 42 respectively in real life. Equally, Nicholas Hoult was meant to be around 20 or so in the first film, and is now meant to be passing for 50 or so, despite only being 29 in real life. (I’m excluding Jennifer Lawrence from this, given that she plays a shapeshifter!). The new recruits fare no better, each now playing characters several years old than they are in real life.
“…the film’s greatest strength is that it finds interesting material for all of the main cast…”
In truth, these aging issues are not the end of the world - but they are an unnecessary distraction, and one that was arguably never needed. But even worse than the aging issues is the lack of character progress between the films – particularly between First Class and Apocalypse, where the characters seemed to accomplish very little in the twenty years between 1962 and 1983...
Thankfully, although Dark Phoenix has inherited a lot of these issues from the earlier prequels, it arguably does the best job of conveying to audiences that life has moved on and that characters have developed in the decade since Apocalypse.
“…Nicholas Hoult gives perhaps his best performance yet as Hank McCoy…”
Since we last left the characters, the promise of public integration and acceptance that was first teased at the end of Days of Future Past has finally been realised, with the X-Men now publicly cheered as heroes by crowds of onlookers as they return from their latest mission. For a film series that often felt like it might be going in circles a little, this is a welcome step forward. But perhaps most interesting of all, is that it quickly becomes apparent that “open” acceptance in public has not magically solved all of the Mutants’ problems. For one, there’s an ever-present sense that, for all of talk of acceptance, the Mutants are just one controversy away from being seen as a threat again – which is perhaps just as important a part of the “racism allegory” as the open hostility. I’m sure there are many racial minorities and other “outsiders” in society that could relate to the idea that, even if they are publicly accepted now, it just takes one scandal for all of the prejudices to return with a vengeance.
But the other interesting plot development is how the newfound fame has gone to Charles Xavier’s (James McAvoy) head. In this respect, I think one of the triumphs of the prequel films has been that they have given James McAvoy plenty of interesting material to work with. As iconic as Patrick Stewart was in the role originally, it’s clear looking back that the writers never really knew what to do with the character - which is why he’s in a coma for the finale of X-Men, he’s in a trance for the finale of X2, and he’s “dead” by the finale of The Last Stand. In contrast, James McAvoy got to play Xavier as a naïve and idealistic playboy in First Class, a despairing junkie in Days of Future Past, and now in Dark Phoenix, Xavier has begun to believe his own press, and allows his ego and pride to blind him to his own shortcomings. It’s a credit to writer/director Simon Kinberg and James McAvoy that (the mis-step of Apocalypse aside) they’ve found fresh and interesting ways to interpret the character in each of the prequels.
“…Sophie Turner carries a lot of the emotional weight of the film…”
And this is thankfully true for all of the main returning cast in Dark Phoenix – in fact, the film’s greatest strength is that it finds interesting material for all of the main cast (which, sadly, was certainly not the case in Apocalypse). In terms of the “First Class” themselves, Jennifer Lawrence’s Raven is at her most maternal yet, as the de facto leader of the X-Men now that Charles is more concerned with his political networking. She truly cares about the Mutants under her care, and this character trait has been the motivation behind her entire journey from first stepping out of Charles’ shadow, to becoming a Mutant avenging angel, to running the Mutant Underground Railroad, and now finally being the leader of the X-Men. Nicholas Hoult (who was sadly completely wasted in Apocalypse) has some great scenes with Lawrence and McAvoy, and later with Fassbender, and gives perhaps his best performance yet as Hank McCoy.
Equally, Michael Fassbender makes a triumphant return as Eric Lehnsherr, after being given arguably the worst (and certainly most clichéd) plotline in Apocalypse. When we met Eric, he’s trying to live the quiet life as a community leader in the Mutant commune of Genosha, which is a role that feels like a genuine evolution of this character rather than an attempt to hide it (as in Apocalypse). His attempts to turn his back on violence and redeem himself through positive action, rather than inaction or more violence, make for a very interesting plot thread.
“…first time director Simon Kinberg does a good job handling both the action scenes & the emotional moments…”
It’s great to see these four actors given material that they can get their teeth into again, and they’re ably supported by the younger cast (whose addition to the team was the highlight of Apocalypse). Sophie Turner takes centre stage as Jean Grey, who becomes increasingly unstable (physically and emotionally) following her contact with the “Phoenix Force” in space, and she carries a lot of the emotional weight of the film. And unlike the portrayal of Jean Grey in The Last Stand (where she was effectively an “alter ego” that was all but unrecognisable from the real Jean Grey), Sophie Turner’s version is very much grounded in the emotional trauma caused by repressed memories – so while the “Phoenix Force” does make her less able to process her emotions in a calm and stable manner, the emotions themselves still feel grounded in her “real” character.
Tye Sheridan is back as Scott Summers, and in truth, he probably gets more character development and is more integral to the plot than James Marsden ever was (which, to be clear, is a failure of the writing and not a failure of James Marsden). Kodi Smit-McPhee once again comes close to stealing the show with his wide-eyed portrayal of Kurt Wagner, and even Alexandra Shipp gets a bit more to do here as Ororo Munroe than she had to be in the last film. The only character who is perhaps underserved (although Shipp doesn’t get as much to do as the others) is Evan Peters’ Quicksilver – but I’d probably rather he be used sparingly and well (like in Days of Future Past and Dark Phoenix) than be shoehorned in where he didn’t fit (like in Apocalypse).
“…an emotionally satisfying farewell to the characters…”
Jessica Chastain plays a new character, but in reality, she’s more of a plot device than a three-dimensional character – but I can forgive that if it means that the rest of the fantastic returning cast get more to do. There are a number of highlights other than the cast – for example, first time director Simon Kinberg does a good job handling both the action scenes and the emotional moments, and Hans Zimmer’s score is fantastic, and helps to further distinguish this film from the Bryan Singer era instalments. But I do genuinely think that Dark Phoenix’s greatest strength is its use of its talented returning cast, and if this is the last time we see them in these roles, it is an emotionally satisfying farewell to the characters.
If Apocalypse had been the final film with this cast (as had been the plan back in 2016), then it would have ended the X-Men series on a really sour note. As it stands, although Dark Phoenix was not intended to be a swansong for the franchise, it has (through no fault of its own) become one – and while it may not be an unqualified success in the same way that X2 and Days of Future Past were, Dark Phoenix is certainly one of the better X-Men film, on a par with the likes of X-Men and First Class (and head and shoulders above the weaker instalments in the series). And after Apocalypse, I’ll happily take Dark Phoenix as the final instalment of the series, bringing the (fractured) timeline almost full circle back to the beginning of X-Men.
