X-Men
Starring: Patrick Stuart, Sir Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackson, Famke Jackson, James Marsden, Halle Berry and Anna Paquin
Director: Bryan Singer
Running Time: 90
Available now on DVD and Video
As human evolution makes the next jump on the ladder to create a race of mutated individuals, an air of mistrust and apprehension grows within the normal human populace. Trying to promote trust and understanding between man and mutant is Professor Charles Xavier (Stuart) and his school for gifted individuals. Here both mutant children and adults learn how to understand and control their gifts and put them to use within the community. These are the X-Men. However, not everyone believes that humans will accept mutants into society. Erik Magnus Lehnsherr (McKellen)/Magneto, a very powerful mutant, believes war between human and mutant is inevitable.
Writer/Director Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects) brings the world’s most popular comic book to life on the big screen. Taking a more factual approach by setting the X-Men universe within our own, making it seem like a possible future was an inspired piece of reasoning on his part. It makes the story more believable to the viewer, than say the more fantastical approach used in the Batman movies. Using mutant mistrust and political propaganda to draw comparisons between the emergence of mutant rights and the black civil rights moment in the 1960s is the main message of the movie, using Xavier as a Dr Martin Luther King character who promotes understanding and tolerance. This again gives the movie a more realistic slant by asking how society who accept another new race into world. This is what makes this movie a cut above your normal superhero film. The characters themselves will really please any fan of the comic book or cartoon series, with Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackson), Xavier, Saberwolf and Magneto been very true to their roots.
The only real problem I had was the lack of a theme tune. They should have got John Williams (Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Jaws and Superman) to write the score because it really missed it.
With sequels already planned, you do leave the cinema thinking that 20th Century Fox wanted its own super hero franchise, as lot of questions are left open for the following movies. This is still however, the best of the big budget movies of summer 2000, just pippin Gladiator to the post but not quite a perfect 5 star movie. Still it is the best Super hero movie to be seen since the original Superman movie.
Deleted Scenes/Extended Branching Version, Bryan Singer/Charlie Rose Interview Clips, Theatrical Trailers, TV Spots, Soundtrack, Trailer, "The Mutant Watch " Featurette, "X-Men Featurette", Hugh Jackman Screen Test, Storyboard Animatics (Station Flight & Statue Of Liberty Scenes), Still Galleries, Easter Eggs, Trailer for Titan A.E. & Animated Menus
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The Usher 2001
