X3 begins 20 years in the past. We watch Charles Xavier (a digitally remastered Patrick Stewart looking fantastic at 45!) and Eric/Magneto encounter Jean Grey for the first time. Jean Grey is the most powerful of all mutants. She has immense and undetermined powers even at a young age. Fast-forward 10 years. A young boy, the future Angel, works frantically with cutting tools and bandages to rid himself of his mutation. He awkwardly saws away the sprouting wings on his back. His father discovers him and is obviously disappointed his son is not human. Fast forward again to the not so distant future. The young boy’s father has created a cure for mutation. One injection will reverse the cellular damage, turning mutants into humans. Magneto rallies an army of mutants to destroy the now weaponized cure. The usual suspects, Mystique and Pyro are joined by Juggernaut, Multiple Man and various other militant mutants. Jean Grey returns from the grave as Phoenix. Jean’s alter ego joins Magneto. A civil war among mutants begins. I give X3 4 stars. It accomplished the goal of a good comic book adaptation. It kept the geeks happy with subtle references and true to the history characters and it entertained an X Men novice such as myself. My favorite scene in the film occurs in the final battle sequence. Wolverine, Storm and Beast find themselves staring at three vials of the cure. The camera pans as each character looks to the vial, then to their companions. Storm voiced her opinion when a cure was announced. “There’s nothing to cure! There’s nothing wrong with you!” Beast countered, “Some of us cannot hide as easily as others.” A sharp contrast is made between Storm’s obvious beauty and Beast’s blue-skinned furriness. Wolverine’s reaction carries the most impact. Taking the cure would not make him human. His skeletal alterations were done surgically. As Wolverine stares at the antidote for mutation, we see a longing for what can never be: normality. Highlights: *Kelsey Grammar as Dr. Henry McCoy: The Character of Beast had the potential of becoming (for lack of a better word) cartoonish. Grammar’s portrayal of Beast allowed the human side of the furry blue creature to shine through effortlessly. *If you are a Hugh Jackman fan, this entire film is a highlight. He is the star. Lowlights: *The Jean Grey scenes were a bit too “Carrie-at-the-prom”. She levitates and glows red as her hair swirls around her. Objects and people shatter. *Rattner-ism. Director Brett Rattner cannot resist a bad one-liner. He loves to remind us he was once a 14-year-old boy. *Magneto telepathically picks up and moves the Golden Gate Bridge. This seemed a bit over the top, even for a comic book movie. But as Jason pointed out, “It is Ian McKellan. And you know how much the old queen loves the drama.” Go see X3. It’s worth the price of admission. A few asides: *We owe Brett Rattner an apology. (We made some rather vicious RUSH HOUR jokes.) *The special effects people impressed my hubby with the true to character fighting style of Beast. *Why does Wolverine’s shirt disintegrate but his pants are indestructible? *“Here comes the message! Don’t miss the message! This is the message!” –Nitpicker’s Guide ST:TNG Other reviews here. View the trailer here.