Solid comic adaptation; Jackman steals the show

Rating: 8/10 (28 July 2006)

The film that brought comic book adaptations back into the Hollywood forefront, director Bryan Singer's X-MEN works for many reasons, but mainly because Singer and company take the entire premise and characters with the utmost seriousness and respect. This film does not exist merely to wow audiences with effects and set-piece or bombard them with zinging one-liners (both of which are present, of course), but Singer also wants to elicit an emotional response form his viewers, and he succeeds. Although Singer perhaps crams too many characters into a film with such a short runtime (which leaves the movie a bit top-heavy), he has effectively laid the groundwork for a likable assortment of characters. This is also aided, of course, by the terrific cast that Singer has tapped.
The real casting ace is then-unknown Australian actor Hugh Jackman, who delivers a fierce and emotive performance that justifiably turned him into a major Hollywood star. When asked if his metallic claws hurt when they tear through the knuckles of his hands, Jackman replies, "Every time," and his somber delivery perfectly captures all of the physical and psychological pain that comes from being different. Singer also pulls memorable work from Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, although it must be pointed out that both Anna Paquin and Halle Berry are terrible, inflicting completely unlistenable attempts at character accents upon us. The film has so many characters and set-ups that the whole picture is a bit top-heavy, however, X-MEN is still one of the few film blockbusters of the 21st century to dig below surface-level aesthetics, and it proved that audiences still respond to heroes at the box office.