Good? Yes. Uncanny? Not so much...

Rating: 7/10 (11 September 2007)

I have never been more excited to see a movie than when I first heard that they were going to release a film based on my favorite comic book characters, the X-Men. I remember I watched the trailer online twice a day for the last two weeks before its nationwide release. I was there opening night with my friends and was blown away. They brought these fantastic characters to the big screen, and they did it well. And it was this movie that opened the floodgates for more comic book movies to come forth.
One thing I had to overcome when watching the movie was that it's not the X-Men as I know them, per se. They're a Bryan Singer-ized version. Keep in mind, that's not entirely a bad thing. Singer and the writers kept a majority of the comic intact when translating it to film, but there are differences. If you can look past some inconsistencies, as with any book-to-movie conversion, then the movie is definitely good fun. The visual effects were spectacular, from Wolverine's claws to Cyclops's optic blasts, and the fight scenes were great. The cast is near perfect and some seem born for the roles (i.e. Patrick Stewart as Professor Xavier or Sir Ian McKellan as Magneto).
I don't really have too much that bothered me about the movie (aside from the minor changes mentioned above). I thought the majority of the movie was too dark (I'm referring to light, not subject matter). There were a lot of scenes at night or in dimly-lit rooms/caves and I felt like it gave the movie a very heavy, serious feel. While I believe the movie should be serious, I also think that it should have some more exuberant lighting to keep with that extraordinary, comic-feel (Note, I said "extraordinary", not "over-the-top" or "campy"). The X-Men may tackle some serious subject matter at times, but they still had their lighter moments.
My only other problem was that it felt the movie tended to drag on, despite it's short running time (barely 100 minutes). It seemed at times as if the story was slowing down to a crawl. Another action sequence may have given it the kick it needs to keep its pace, but the movie never fully stalls. It stills keeps you engaged until the finale.
Overall, Bryan Singer did a good job. This is an awesome way to kick off the X-Men franchise and open the doors for future comic book-based films. I was completely satisfied when I walked out of the theater in 2000 and I'm still satisfied when I watch it today. Now that Singer has a feel for the characters and actors, things will only get better as the X-Men continue into the future.