Surprise! A blockbuster with brains, beauty, heart and soul...

Rating: 7/10 (1 May 2005)

X-MEN
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Panavision)
Sound formats: Dolby Digital / DTS / SDDS
Against a backdrop of social exclusion and intolerance, a new breed of superhuman 'mutants' - ordinary people with extraordinary powers - are forced into a confrontation with supervillain Magneto (Ian McKellen), who plans to launch a devastating assault on the world's non-mutant population.
Bryan Singer's magnificent film (based on the Marvel comic book) transcends genre expectations without skimping on the spectacle and melodrama inherent in modern blockbusters. David Hayter's clever script provides an almost entirely character-driven rationale for its flashy set-pieces, and Singer is able to convey a wealth of information at high speed without obscuring the film's primary thematic concerns (tolerance, individuality, finding your own place in the world, etc.).
The performances, too, are uniformly excellent: Stewart and McKellen are unlikely adversaries, but these immensely gifted actors add real depth and nuance to their respective characters. The younger members of the X-Men team (including Halle Berry, Famke Janssen and James Marsden) look suitably spectacular, while Ray Park (Darth Maul himself!), model Rebecca Romijn-Stamos and wrestler Tyler Mane also provide visual fireworks as Magneto's villainous henchmen. Elsewhere, Anna Paquin (THE PIANO) provides the film's emotional core as a young girl targeted by Magneto because of her unique powers, while Hugh Jackman takes center-stage in a star-making role as the most reluctant recruit to Stewart's team of superheroes (his verbal conflicts with rival Marsden are often joyously funny). Production values are predictably solid, betraying little or no evidence of the film's rushed production schedule: Newton Thomas Sigel's scope photography conspires with John Myhre's astute production design to render a silver-blue color scheme that subtly emphasizes the movie's comic-book origins.
While Singer insists the movie's subtext is critical of all forms of intolerance, closer scrutiny suggests more specific concerns about homophobia: Bruce Davison (LONGTIME COMPANION) plays a rabble-rousing politician who frightens Congress with exaggerated 'scare-stories' about a sub-culture they don't understand, while hate-filled protesters gather on the steps outside to wave placards that condemn the 'infiltration' of mutants into schools, churches and society at large. Sound familiar? This interpretation may not have been the central focus of the original comic strip, but Singer's intentions are so conspicuous, and so heartfelt, it's a miracle (and, frankly, a blessing) he was able to get away with it at all. Is this the world's first $70 million dollar 'gay' movie? Not quite, but it provides plenty of food for thought. Followed by X2 (2003).