X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

Preceeded by: X2 (2003)

Review

Bryan Singer is gone and Brett Ratner has replaced him, but the tone and spirit of Singer's X2 is kept, if not enhanced in this third X-Men entry . Arguably the best no. 3 of any film series, The Last Stand thrives on the complexity and diversity of the characters, special effects that are not only technically brilliant, but also highly imaginative, and, last but not least, brilliant writing from the team of Simon Kinberg and Zak Penn. Although the film does belong to the new series-trend which have affected the fantasy genre in particular, The Last Stand works both as a continuance and as a standalone feature, because its starting point is to logically justify every move and to treat every character with respect and depth - despite the fact that there is abundances of them. Based on the quality of the second and this third film, there is little doubt in my mind, that X-Men is the one Hollywood fantasy/sci-fi series you should choose from the first decade of the 2000s.