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Xplosive!
by Yahoo! Movies User (movies profile)
Jun 1, 2008
12
of
15 people found this review helpful
The great comic book series has been made into a very good movie, but not a great one. The great cast, terrific action sequences, and interesting storyline help keep "X-Men" together.
If you read the comic books or watched the animated series, you certainly would have noticed the constant hatred and intolerance that the humans have toward the mutants. It has been proven that humans fear what they do not understand. Such is the case with this constant feud. Some mutants struggle for peace, constantly avoiding usage of their extraordinary powers against the weaker humans. Other mutants use their powers to their advantage and seek to destroy humans completely. This inevitably leads to the division of the mutant people, eventually causing an everlasting battle between themselves, while at the same time trying to pursue their initial intentions.
An interesting choice for director was the fairly young Bryan Singer, who, I thought, did a pretty good job. I can say that after seeing this movie, the direction in "The Usual Suspects" (1995) still remains unrivaled in terms of quality and originality.
The visual effects are stunning. Most of the visuals come in at the fight inside the Statue of Liberty, which I thought was brilliant. In my opinion, that's one of the best and most unforgettable scenes in the movie. Storm bursting out from the elevator to Toad's surprise and Wolverine's fight with Mystique are among my favorite duels. Though the action sequences were not as good as those in such films as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (2000), and "The Lord of the Rings" series, they're still pretty exciting and well done.
The casting has its good and bad sides. I mean, now that I have experienced Professor Xavier a la Patrick Stewart, I could not think of a more suitable person for the character. He's always so calm and cool, much like the professor in the original comic books. They also share a very similar resemblance, unlike some of the other characters in the film. Ian McKellen was mysterious and incog as Magneto. I hadn't felt such an omnipresence of evil since Anthony Hopkin's performance as Hannibal Lecter in "The Silence of the Lambs" (1991). Hugh Jackman was good as Wolverine, remembering to bring the mean and hostile attitude we loved in the animated series and comic books. A downside was Rogue, portrayed by Anna Paquin. Everything was missing. The Southern accent, some of her abilities, and her relations with Mystique. However, I cannot entirely blame Paquin for this. Her performance was nicely done, and I liked the innocence she gave to the character. Since she was what the film primarily focused on, she cannot be dismissed entirely. Halle Berry's miscast role as Storm was probably one of the worst in the film. James Marsden gives Cyclops practically no personality, making him a very mediocre character. With major credit due to Stewart, McKellen, and Jackman, the cast ensemble still remains respectable.
I'm still trying to decide whether the short running time was good or not. I mean, 1 hour and 44 minutes isn't that long, and I would have liked to see more character development. If they had lengthened the movie just a bit, perhaps they would have been able to develop the minor characters as well. I would have enjoyed seeing Rogue's and Iceman's relationship grow some more. And I definitely wanted more of an explanation on the bond between Wolverine and Rogue. On the other hand, the running time did keep the film fast-paced and exciting, which is always important.
"X-Men" is one of the better comic book adaptations. It is a good tale of good versus evil, and an even better tale of origin. The last great movie to show us how a hero came to be was "Superman: The Movie" (1978). Fine performances and superb action scenes help in the end. This is a good film that brings an extra amount of intelligence to its genre -- sometimes more than it should.
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