Dark Phoenix
Dull and uninspired! - 3/10
by The Movie Inspector
An underwhelming superhero flick, Dark Phoenix is so poorly written and executed that it results in a completely dull viewing. The issue is that the movie is just so empty that it barely has anything to work with, leading to something uninspired.
As a long-time fan of the X-Men comics and film series, I felt utterly disappointed with the movie I just witnessed. This movie takes almost everything we knew about the X-Men and either misuses it or simply disregards it. It really bummed me out to watch the mess that unfolded on screen because it doesn’t even compare to previous installments in the series. Unfortunately, all we get here is sloppy writing, unjustifiable character actions and poor directing. ‘Dark Phoenix’ follows the X-Men who have to deal with Jean Grey’s transformation into Dark Phoenix after a space mission gone wrong.
First off, the film kicks off in a rather rushed manner and remains like that for the majority of the runtime. Then there’s the plot that lacks any layers or depth. It’s just a bunch of events happening and driving the characters into randomly participating. In fact, nearly all the X-Men characters were provided with underwhelming roles. You see, previous X-Men films would distribute the roles of the characters and have a clear story whereas this one wastes everyone’s potential. Typically, the focus is on Jean Grey but even that feels off as the whole plot seems forced. Additionally, she is meant to be presented as an evil threat but that wasn’t felt here whatsoever. The Villain played by Jessica Chastain is two dimensional and her whole presence lacked reason.
As a whole, it feels like an extended sequence from any other X-Men film and that’s what makes it one of the worst entries in the film series. Underwhelming and lackluster would be the best ways to describe it. I won’t even get into the plot holes, timeline and continuity issues as the whole series has created a mess out of that. All I can say is that this production was seemingly doomed and it seems as though Fox just wanted to get this film done with before the Disney merger. Simon Kinberg also butchered the X-Men in this final outing. I left the cinema in complete disappointment with an ultimately forgettable film.
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