Dark Phoenix

MOVIE TITLE: Dark Phoenix

DIRECTOR: Simon Kinberg

YEAR: 2019

GENRE: Superhero Adventure

RATING: PG-13 for violence and language

GRADE: Pass

While the X-Men are performing a space mission to rescue astronauts from a spinning shuttle, telepath Jean Grey absorbs a fiery supernova into her body and becomes even more powerful than she already is. Before she has the chance to celebrate with her fellow mutants, her powers spin out of control and cost loved ones their lives. With the human world and some of her own X-Men turning against her, Jean struggles to find acceptance despite her godlike and lethal abilities. While she’s figuring herself out, an alien race known as the D’Bari want to harvest her powers so that they can rebuild the world they lost due to the supernova. Not a friend in the world can save her now.

I’ve accepted the fact that I’m part of the minority that actually liked this movie. I know I’m on an island when it comes to Jean Grey’s character development and her extreme case of Impostor Syndrome. People are dying all around her and she (sometimes rightfully) believes it’s her own fault. She wants to do good things in a world that has a fragile relationship with mutants, but she hasn’t mastered her newfound powers yet and she can’t help herself when she gets explosive. Imagine having your own low self-esteem confirmed by pretty much everyone around you and there’s no evidence left to prove yourself wrong. That hurts. It hurts so much that normal people who watch this movie can relate to it (sans murder). Does someone out in the world still love Jean Grey? Does someone out in the world still love us all? I guess we’ll never know until the dead end.

An even more imperfect character is Professor Charles Xavier, owner of the mutant school that houses the X-Men. Comic book fans know him as the super intelligent, ultra wise leader who can solve any problem with his wits. But even he makes the gravest mistakes sometimes and he becomes just as much to blame as Jean Grey. Using the X-Men as a superhero taskforce was his idea to earn goodwill with the human race. Some mutants don’t want their lives risked in such a way and I can’t say I blame them. Yet I continued to feel heartbroken during Charles’s most downtrodden moments. I wanted him to redeem himself and show Jean Grey that someone out there still cares for her. Excellent performance by James McAvoy, the actor who played Charles Xavier.

Jean Grey and Charles Xavier aren’t the only characters in this movie that have valid points. All of the characters do from Beast to Storm to Magneto himself. If I remember correctly, this was one of the director’s goals for the film: everybody is right and a healthy debate among the audience is encouraged. This is the dictionary definition of a 3D character. Not even the villains will admit that they’re wrong. You’ll never see an X-Men character named Captain Evil or Kitten Stomper. You know why? Because just like in real life, we all like to believe that we’re the good guys despite our flaws.

I’m plainly aware of how much hate this film has gotten since its release. It holds a below thirty percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s even been called the worst movie of the X-Men franchise by many critics. But I don’t have a one-way ticket aboard the hate train. I came into the movie theater wanting to be entertained and that’s exactly what happened. I was so entertained that I considered giving this movie an Extra Credit grade during the ride home. But the reason it earned only a passing grade was because the social impact couldn’t compare to other great superhero movies like Black Panther and Wonder Woman. Otherwise, great job, Marvel!

X-Men: First Class

MOVIE TITLE: X-Men: First Class

GENRE: Political Superhero Movie

RATING: PG-13 for violence and language

GRADE: Pass

In America, there are always two sides to every political battle: liberal vs. conservative, white vs. black, rich vs. poor, etc. In X-Men: First Class, a very different political battle takes place: between “normal” humans and mutants. All the mutants want is the same civil rights their “normal” counterparts are entitled to. Due to the mutants’ unstable superpowers, they haven’t been granted those rights and are often seen as second-class citizens.

If you take a peaceful and loving approach to mutant rights, you’ll want to side with the Martin Luther King, Jr. esque Professor Charles Xavier. If you want to stain your opponents in their own blood and filth, side with the Malcolm X esque Magneto. Despite being worlds apart in their approaches, Professor X and Magneto were at one point best friends. They needed each other’s friendship in the worst way in X-Men: First Class when they had to battle a powerful nemesis named Sebastian Shaw in an attempt to stop him from exploiting the Cuban Missile Crisis to further his evil agenda.

If you’re a sucker for political analogies melded into a superhero backdrop, X-Men: First Class is for you. The movie maintains a safe distance from the problems we face in the real world so that the audience can enjoy the movie without starting a riot. Those who wish to delve deeper into the movie’s meaning of social justice will also be satisfied. Or if you just want to watch a bunch of overpowered superheroes beat the shit out of each other, that’s fine too, there’s nothing wrong with that.

If you’ve seen other X-Men movies directed by Bryan Singer, then you’ll appreciate the extra effort he puts into making sure his storylines don’t contradict each other between movies. Mystique for example starts out as a beautiful human woman who only occasionally transforms into the scaly blue assassin we all know from the later movies. If you’re interested in knowing how she got that way, First Class will be happy to explain it to you. Same thing with The Beast. He starts out as a webbed foot scientist and later becomes the blue gorilla berserker we all know him to be today. No spoilers, you’ll have to watch the damn movie. Are you also curious as to why Professor X in the later movies rolls around in a wheel chair? What about where the name X-Men came from? Watch the damn movie.

This movie has everything a superhero fan could ever want: energy-tossing violence, a solid storyline that doesn’t falter or contradicts itself, a little bit of romance, a little bit of friendship, and a whole lot of interesting superpowers for these mutants to wield. Have you ever wanted to know how to win a fight with a teleporting demon? Have you ever wanted to know what will happen if a powerful mutant swallows a volcanic orb? Do you still think the ability to control metal and the ability to read minds will make you so godly that you can’t be beaten? There are no gods in this movie, only martyrs. But just because there are no gods, doesn’t mean an Armageddon flame shower isn’t possible. This is the Cuban Missile Crisis we’re talking about there, this is serious stuff. A mutant with a missile? God help us all.

A passing grade is what I give X-Men: First Class, along with any other X-Men movie in this canon. Well done, mutants. Wait a minute, did I just say “well done” in a conversation about fire? That was an accident, I swear to god, or the mutants who think they can play god.