so much potential....

Rating: Null/10 (26 July 2000)

First of all, I have to make a confession. I never watched the X-men cartoons as a kid. Prior to this movie, I was absolutely clueless about every aspect of the X-men mythology. In fact, the only reason I had any interest at all in this movie was the fact that it was directed by Bryan Singer, who also directed The Usual Suspects, which, in my opinion, is one of the best movies of modern times. Unfortunately, upon leaving the theatre, all I felt was frustration. Sure, the movie was beautifully made. The sets, the costuming, the special effects and the direction were all top-quality. But all I could think about was the amount of holes in the script. Had the screenwriter spent more time on character development, this could be a truly great sci-fi film, this year's answer to "The Matrix." But I couldn't keep from wondering throughout the movie, "What happened to the little things?" Where was the chemistry between Cyclops and Jean Grey? Where was the explanation of everyone's whereabouts, origins, etc. If only the screenwriter had been more thorough. After all, the little things are what make a movie great. And as for the cliffhanger ending (obviously designed for a sequel) it tied up no loose ends whatsoever. It was almost as if they were in a rush and 'forgot' to film the last few pages of the script! In defense of the ending, a good friend of mine who loved the movie told me, "It left me wanting more." Well....the ending left me wanting more, too, only not in the form of another sequel. It left me wanting more detail, more chemistry, and more explanation. It absolutely kills me to see a movie with such potential sink because the screenwriter sacrificed the character relationships because audiences might think it was boring.