Dark Phoenix Should Not Have Risen From Last Stand’s Ashes

The X-Men film franchise is one of the most important intellectual properties in the subgenre of comic book films. However in recent years it is one that has been surpassed by its contemporaries. In 20th Century Fox’s swan song to the franchise, Dark Phoenix screenwriter/director Simon Kinberg — writer of X-Men: Last Stand — asks the question, “can I do a better job this time around telling a story that I failed at once before?”

Dark Phoenix takes place nine years after the events of X-Men: Apocalypse, which Kinberg wrote and produced. The X-Men respond to a distress signal from the space shuttle Endeavour, which is critically damaged by a solar flare. While the X-Men save all the astronauts, Jean Grey absorbs the solar flare in her body. Her psychic powers are greatly amplified as a result. The solar flare turns out to be an ethereal cosmic entity known as the Phoenix Force.

So, I sat through this movie with the lowest of expectations, and it managed to meet them. The story in this one was so disjointed and cliché ridden that I just don’t know where to begin with my critiques.

Simon Kinberg attempts to weave a deconstructionist yarn of superhero films in Dark Phoenix, but here’s the problem — there is absolutely no point to the deconstruction. This is the first of this rebooted franchise to actually depict them as a superhero team, but just for all of 15 minutes. Yes, there is a good amount of action, but it looks more like an episode of Heroes than an X-Men story.

What we are mostly treated to are scenes of our heroes lamenting about the better world that they have finally achieved despite the fact they can’t live in it per se. But here’s the thing about that logic — peace is not something that you achieve one and done. It also requires vigilant peacekeepers to preserve it and that has always been one of the underlying narratives of X-Men. Heck it’s one of the most important parts of EVERY superhero story!

Jean Grey’s quest to discover her past bears no fruit at all, and this is the closest thing we get to a plot. She goes on a wild goose chase to figure out how to control this new power, ultimately leading to a very unsatisfying cop out of a conclusion.

One thing that really stands out to me is how much Dark Phoenix reeks of Last Stand — you know the one that thought using a tired internet meme was brilliant comedy. Sadly, Last Stand at least had some elements of fun in it by comparison.

Hans Zimmer’s soundtrack was what you expect from one of Hollywood’s best, and it was easily one of the only enjoyable parts of the movie.

Simon Kinberg, like Bryan Singer, is clearly embarrassed by the fantastical elements of the X-Men mythos and produced this at best banal version of what he likes about the X-Men. However, in this, his first feature film directing role (and only second overall, the previous being an episode of Jordan Peele’s Twilight Zone) Kinberg proved that he has learned nothing from his time writing and producing these movies and I can’t wait to see the franchise free of his hipster hands.

I give Dark Phoenix (20th Century Fox; PG-13; 1hr 53mins) a 1.5 out of 5.