A very good start to a new comic book movie franchise

Rating: Null/10 (11 June 2001)

Superman is the definitive comic book film, but in 2nd place comes X-men. I've never read any comics, so I was really surprised by this picture, it's certainly moving in the right direction, and expect a decent sequel. X-men lays the foundation, a bit like Superman, but whereas Superman 2 was a step down, X-men 2 should blow away the original.
The X-men has interesting Super-heros, they have powers which have a bad side, they are not perfect. I really like this idea, it makes the films franchise last longer, and the potential of sequel ideas is infinite.
The acting in the film is excellent, Hugh Jackman as Wolverine is excellent, steals the show in my opinion. James Marsden and Halle Berry didn't have a lot of meat in the picture, I think the sequels could sort this out.
The editing of the picture was the major disappointment, the 2nd act was disjointed and the progress of the picture was hampered. This was an editing error, can be sorted out when and if A Special Edition cut appears. Storm, Cyclops, Toad and Sabertooth have no depth, I think a bit more work on them in the sequel.
The screenplay isn't bad, hard to judge when the picture is obviously edited harshly.
The direction is nice, I think Singer has put in verisimilitude, which make us believe just like Superman The Movie.
The wide-screen framing is pretty good, unwatchable in pan and scan.
Overall, a good start despite the 2nd act being disjointed.