X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019): A Fiery Finale Fizzles Out 🔥💔

Directed by Simon Kinberg, Dark Phoenix was meant to be a grand farewell to the prequel saga… but instead, it went out with a whimper. Set in the 1990s, this one tries to give Jean Grey her big moment, retelling the iconic Dark Phoenix saga (again), but without the punch or the payoff it deserved.

Starring Sophie Turner, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, and Jessica Chastain, the cast is stacked—but the spark is missing.

Plot Summary
After a space rescue mission goes sideways, Jean Grey absorbs a mysterious cosmic force that makes her powers go haywire. As she struggles to control her mind and emotions, she unintentionally hurts her friends, breaks alliances, and unleashes chaos. All while some shape-shifting aliens (led by a completely wasted Jessica Chastain) arrive to use her power for their own vague goals.

The X-Men split on what to do: save Jean, or stop her.

Performances & Direction
Sophie Turner does her best with what she’s given, but the script never lets Jean become the Phoenix in a meaningful way. McAvoy and Fassbender still deliver solid work (as always), but their characters are starting to feel tired. Jennifer Lawrence checks out early—literally—and Chastain is reduced to whispery alien exposition.

Kinberg’s direction feels… flat. The emotional beats are rushed, the villain plot is undercooked, and even the action scenes lack that signature X-Men energy. It tries to be serious and grounded, but ends up feeling joyless and cold.

My Review
Dark Phoenix wanted to be a character-driven, intimate story about power, trauma, and identity—but it forgot to bring the emotional depth and stakes needed to make it soar. Jean’s transformation should’ve been tragic, beautiful, dangerous… instead, it feels like a checklist of plot points.

Still, beneath the mess, there’s something poetic about it being the end of this era. The mutants we followed for almost two decades deserved better, but there's beauty in their final bow, however shaky.

And hey, at least Charles and Erik got one last quiet chess game.