Fans: Great, Non-fans: Good

Rating: 8/10 (15 July 2000)

Thank god it didn't suck.
After having lived through the various incarnations of Batman and Superman it's nice to finally see a superhero comic turned movie done right.
Granted, it's not the kickass blockbuster summer movie it could have been, but I'm just counting my lucky stars that it didn't suck.
It could have been much worse.
Anybody see the Fantastic Four movie? No? Not surprising. You'd be hard pressed to find it on video.
There have been so many bad superhero movies you'd think someone would have sat down, viewed them all, and finally figured out what wasn't done or was done wrong with all of them. Then they could have produced a good film.
Well, apparently Bryan Singer did just that. Along with the other writers, Tom Desanto and David Hayter, Bryan wrote and directed what may be considered the first good movie based on a comic series.
But there were still things that didn't make it great and they all relate directly to the medium of movies itself.
Things most people won't like about the film: The first problem was the length. Ninety minutes is no where near enough time to present the full depth of history of Professor Xavier and his school of mutants, but they made a valiant effort anyway. Unfortunately they only left the comic series fans wanting more and those unfamiliar with the comic going `huh'?
Second is the ineffective Sabertooth. Through numerous fight scenes we note that he is supposedly wild and beastlike. That's it. He has claws and, occasionally, when he opens his mouth we hear the MGM lion. Fans will know that Sabertooth has the same healing abilities as Logan and is, in fact, a much better killer/fighter than Logan. In the comic series he has wiped the floor with Logan repeatedly.
Non-fans in the theatre will no doubt note that Sabertooth is struck with several lethal blows (including both of Logan's claws sunk knuckle deep into his chest) and never seems to be hurt. For those not familiar with Sabertooth's abilities these scenes will appear as gaffs or continuity errors. Heck they felt like continuity errors to me and I knew what was going on.
Things that will bother the fans:
Rogue is young, definitely in her early teens. And you never get any explanation as to where she picked up her nickname. But her age works for the movie. The relationship that develops between her and Logan is believable and, surprisingly, touching. I also feel her young age played on the sympathy for her curse much more than the comic series ever could. This is aided in no small part by Anna Paquin's marvellous acting.
No Danger Room. Which is a big disappointment to me too, but one I can live with. Including the Danger Room would have been fantastic, and I would have been willing to sit through a three hour movie if they'd been willing to fit it in.
Things that will bother the Fanatics: Bobby Drake (Iceman), one of the original Xmen in the series, is just another teenage student in the movie.
Toad is the best fighter of all the characters, hero and villain. Now I actually enjoyed this, and Ray Park (Darth Maul) did a kickass job of, well, kicking ass. But this will bother the purists as, in the comic series, toad was always there more for comic relief than anything.
We didn't get to see more of the other mutants and their abilities. But this is good, in the long run, for the film since so much of it is taken up with introducing the characters already. If they'd added any more full characters (like Bobby/Iceman) the movie would have ended up being nothing but an Xmen roll call.
The costumes are nothing like the comic book series. Again, though, this is very much a Good Thing.
Wolverine's skeleton is made out of adamantium, supposedly unbendable and unbreakable. Magneto was twisting his blades around like they were tin.
Orroro and Jeans' powers are pale shadows of their comic book versions. I can't help but wonder if this isn't another indication of Hollywood's vaguely misogynistic ruling class. But that's a rant, and better suited to a different article.
Things that will bother the non-fans: Who the hell is this Charles Xavier and where the hell does he get the funding for this school of his? We can assume Magneto stole money for his nefarious offshore base, and probably constructed most of it himself too, but Charles is supposedly a Good Guy and wouldn't stoop to anything illegal. So what's his source?
Actually, I don't think this was ever explained in the comic either.
Things to absolutely love about the movie: Mystique kicks ass, both figuratively and literally. As a villain she is smart, cunning, and powerful. She comes very close to defeating Wolverine, which is impressive in either incarnation. (Another Hollywood paranoia moment, though: only villainous, murderous women can be powerful? Just a thought)
The special effects are used effectively and sparingly. The only gratuitous inclusion, in my mind, was Magneto's little `executive toy' hovering above his desk.
Toad kicks ass. I can't help but feel that Ray Park is on his way to an action movie series. I can only hope he winds up better than Jeane Claude Van Damme. So far he is kept to short lines between fight scenes. He gets to use his signature `weapon spin' at least once, as he did in Episode 1 and Sleepy Hollow.
Quotes like: `Don't kick him in the balls.' `But you said anything goes.' `Yeah, but if you kick him in the balls, he'll take it personally.'
`Wait, how do we know it's you?' `You're a dick.' `Okay, it's you.'
Rating? For the fans: 5 bottles out of six. For the non-fans: 4 bottles out of six.