Taglines: Whose Side Will You Be On?
In X-Men: The Last Stand, the final chapter in the “X-Men” motion picture trilogy, a “cure” for mutancy threatens to alter the course of history. For the first time, mutants have a choice: retain their uniqueness, though it isolates and alienates them, or give up their powers and become human. The opposing viewpoints of mutant leaders Charles Xavier, who preaches tolerance, and Magneto, who believes in the survival of the fittest, are put to the ultimate test – triggering the war to end all wars.
They are the next link in the evolutionary chain. Each was born with a unique genetic mutation, which at puberty manifested itself in extraordinary powers. In a world increasingly filled with hatred and prejudice, they are scientific oddities… freaks of nature… outcasts who are feared and loathed by those who cannot accept their differences. Yet despite society’s pervasive ignorance, the X-Men and thousands of mutants across the globe survive. Under the tutelage of Professor Charles Xavier, the world’s most powerful telepath, these “gifted” students have learned to control and direct their respective powers for the greater good of mankind. They fight to protect a world that fears them.
X-Men: The Last Stand is a 2006 superhero film, based on the X-Men superhero team introduced in Marvel Comics. The film, distributed by 20th Century Fox, is the sequel to 2003’s X2 and the third installment in the X-Men film series. It was directed by Brett Ratner, written by Simon Kinberg and Zak Penn, and features an ensemble cast, including Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Ian McKellen, Famke Janssen, Anna Paquin, Kelsey Grammer, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn, Shawn Ashmore, Aaron Stanford, Vinnie Jones, and Patrick Stewart. The film’s script is loosely based on two X-Men comic book story arcs: “The Dark Phoenix Saga” by writer Chris Claremont and artist John Byrne, and “Gifted” by writer Joss Whedon and artist John Cassaday, with a plot that revolves around a “mutant cure” that causes serious repercussions among mutants and humans, and on the resurrection of Jean Grey.
Bryan Singer, who had directed the two previous films, X-Men (2000) and X2, decided to leave to work on Superman Returns, as he had not even defined the storyline for a third film. Matthew Vaughn, who was initially hired as the new director, left due to personal and professional issues, and was replaced with Ratner. Filming took place from August 2005 to January 2006 with a budget of $210 million, and was consequently the most expensive film at the time of its release. It had extensive visual effects created by 11 different companies.
X-Men: The Last Stand was released on May 26, 2006, to commercial success. It grossed approximately $459 million worldwide, becoming the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2006; it was at the time the highest-grossing film in the series and currently the fourth-highest-grossing film of the franchise.
The film broke the Memorial Day weekend record with $102,750,665 in its four-day opening weekend. The film’s release was also a new single-day record for Friday openings. The opening weekend gross was surpassed six weeks later by Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, making The Last Stand’s opening the second-highest of 2006. Internationally, The Last Stand topped the box office in 26 countries with a total gross of $76.1 million overall, but suffered competition from The Da Vinci Code, which retained the top spot in most markets, and beat The Last Stand in international gross that weekend with $91 million.
The film’s second weekend dropped 67 percent to $34 million, which was the steepest post-Memorial Day opening drop on record. X-Men: The Last Stand eventually grossed $234,362,462 in the domestic box office and $224,997,093 internationally, for a worldwide total of $459,359,555, the fourth-highest in domestic grosses and seventh-highest worldwide for 2006. X-Men: The Last Stand was also the highest-grossing film in the franchise, until it was surpassed by X-Men: Days of Future Past eight years later.
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X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
Directed by: Brett Ratner
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Ian McKellen, Famke Janssen, Anna Paquin, Kelsey Grammer, Rebecca Romijn, Vinnie Jones, Tanya Newbould, Ellen Page, Mei Melançon
Screenplay by: Simon Kinberg, Zak Penn
Production Design by: Ed Verreaux
Cinematography by: Dante Spinotti
Film Editing by: Mark Goldblatt, Mark Helfrich, Julia Wong
Costume Design by: Judianna Makovsky, Lisa Tomczeszyn
Set Decoration by: Elizabeth Wilcox
Art Direction by: Chad S. Frey, Geoff Hubbard, Helen Jarvis, Justin Scoppa Jr., Sandi Tanaka
Music by: John Powell
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of action violence, some sexual content and language.
Distributed by: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: May 26, 2006
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