X-Men: Dark Phoenix - Review

'X-Men: Dark Phoenix' is a grounded, character-driven superhero adventure which falls short of perfection but is a solid conclusion to the series

Sophie Turner as Jean Grey/Phoenix in 'X-Men: Dark Phoenix' (CREDIT: Twentieth Century Fox.)

by Jack Linsdell

Simon Kinberg's X-Men: Dark Phoenix is the 12th and final instalment of the long-running X-Men franchise due to Marvel rebooting the characters with younger actors so they can be integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (because Fox is now owned by Disney). And, unfortunately critics, fans and general audiences will have you believe (much like Aladdin actually) that it isn't very good as it scored the lowest opening weekend in North America amongst other "catastrophic" records it's apparently broken. Let me get one thing clear before I start - I'm not a comic book fan (or specifically an X-Men one at that either) and I've only seen a handful of films in the series. However, I would say this about Dark Phoenix. As a stand-alone superhero movie, it probably works better than it does as a concluding chapter to the series itself, that being said, I thought it wrapped everything up in a neat way (give or take). 

So, let's dive right in. Well, Kinberg (whose been the series' long-time producer and of recent years co-written the 'team-up' flick's screenplays) is a solo filmmaker this time, writing on his own and making his directorial debut. And, all things considered, he's done a decent job. Story wise, we follow the "Phoenix Saga" from the comic books, in which Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) is part of the X-Men team in 1992 when a mission to rescue a troubled spacecraft leaves her at the mercy of solar flare energy, in which evil powers absorb her already powerful superhero abilities. Spurred on by Vuk (Jessica Chastain), whose looking to use Grey's new power to help her shape-shifting alien race find a new planet for make their home, Grey becomes the villainous Phoenix bringing havoc to the world and causing the death of one important X-Men member. All the cast from the previous instalment X-Men: Apocalypse return here including Raven (Jennifer Lawrence), Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Cyclops (Tye Sheridan), Storm (Alexandra Shipp), Beast (Nicholas Hoult) and others under the leadership of Proffesor X/Charles Xavier (James McAvoy). As the story develops, feuds between the X-Men team break out over Professor X's methods and the correct way to deal with Jean Grey (whose being used by the Phoenix force inside of her) and Kinberg's screenplay becomes a solid character drama with well-drawn arcs and well-sketched characters creating the story for us, instead of merely participating in it. 

The most notable component of this film (and the one for which it's got it's most criticism for) is how Dark Phoenix becomes a grounded, realistic and character-driven drama, with interesting character conflicts and relatively small-scale and (compared to recent instalments in the series) more grittier action sequences. This has led to some calling it "boring", and I can see why some would say that, especially if they came into this hoping for some two-hours of fantastical, large-scale action of superheroes fighting one another. Indeed, if a fault was to be picked, then the slower pace does endanger itself of losing audience members - at points in the second act the pace was a little too slow for my liking. However, there was just enough going on and the conflict between these characters was just interesting enough to get me through those "slower" moments. Indeed, I'm not a superhero movie fan by-in-large, and the films I like from the genre tend to be more character-driven, emotionally-deep and small-scale ones with more realistic groundings like Wonder Woman and The Amazing Spider-man, so for me, Dark Phoenix's more grounded approach was a refreshing move and right up my street. Although losing some of the die-hard comic book fans, I'd argue that Kinberg has actually made a solid film here by grounding it in our society and building action and story through well-written characters. The fact it's not afraid to slow down the pace to focus on the relationships between our heroes and Grey's emotional struggles is something to commend of itself. 

Action wise, everything is really well-staged and deeply engrossing. If you view Dark Phoenix as a Saturday night "pop-corn" movie for entertainment, then it certainly delivers - we get teased with a few well-constructed, character-driven set pieces throughout, and these do just enough to snap back our attention when the pace has dropped to really low levels, with Kinberg saving the large-scale, all-in action showdown for the third act which is how action/superhero movie should be handled really (think Jack Reacher for example). The opening twenty minutes is deeply thrilling, suspenseful and wholly entertaining, and is by far the best part of the movie and indeed good enough to challenge other action-type movies for best part of the film (in particular the space rescue mission that goes wrong). Part of what makes the film as entertaining as it seems is Hans Zimmer's incredible score, which connects all of the scenes together, with long, progressive music that builds and builds, keeping us hooked - it compliments/heightens all the action scenes, deepening our entertainment, and during some of those "very slow pace-wise" moments gives us enough to prevent us checking our watches. 

I got Mission: Impossible - Fallout vibes from this one - in that both films are more intimate, emotionally-deep and character-driven examinations of their leading characters and aren't afraid to draw action/tension out through the use of a progressive score to create a mood and a slower pace. Like Christopher McQuarrie's 2018 action-epic, Dark Phoenix becomes unique unto-itself for subverting the typical genre etiquettes to make a well-made, character-led film over big-budget fantasy entertainment. 

The other notable thing about this one is the outstanding performances by the cast, in particular Sophie Turner with whom the screenplay asks her to give a lot, emotionally-wise and she more than steps up to the plate with her first leading movie role. Grey is the centre of the movie, and Turner's performance anchors the movie by binding everyone together, and she expresses Grey's confusion, hurt, rage and anxiety in a very expressive and relatable way, making Grey seemingly more human. Other notable mentions include James McAvoy who never seems to put a foot wrong in anything he does - his relationship with Turner's Grey (both as a young girl and with the adult Jean) is a pinnacle dynamic in the film and the two of them have great chemistry together. The performances do elevate the screenplay and enable Kinberg to hit the character beats/emotional conflict he was hinting at through the story and dialogue. 

Although for fan service certain threads are left unanswered (like Magneto finding out Quicksilver was his son), I believe that it left characters in decent places and the finale action scene in which they all work together to protect one another was a fitting action sequence to see our heroes save the day for the final time in. I understand why this one has annoyed some die-hard fans and why some general audience members may find it underwhelming, however I believe that Kinberg's attempt to make a more grounded, character-driven superhero drama as a well-made movie with solid performances and an amazing score is worthy of accolade and something that on the whole worked (for me, anyway). He made the type of superhero movie I like (of which are still very rare) and although not perfect, I believe it's always better to aim high and fall down slightly than never jump higher than where you're already at. It's wholly entertaining and for me a satisfying way to leave these characters as we've spent a proper movie with them all. 

4/5 STARS