Xcelsior!

Rating: 10/10 (9 May 2003)

As a long time X-Men fan I must admit that this movie really delivers! Practically everything is done well, from magnificent cast and intriguing plot to special effects and minor (but yet important) details, all taken from the vast X-Men mythos.
It has been a long since I last felt shivers come down my spine in cinema, but this time the movie nailed so fantastically the essence of X-Men that I was totally entertained. The showing of Jean's rising Phoenix-powers made my skin tingle and hair rise at the back of my neck. Cool! There were so many occasions during the movie that I wondered: "How can this be so good!"
Who says sequels are usually worse than original movies? Take Terminator 2, Aliens and The Empire Strikes Back for example. X2 goes right up there with those classics.
The SFX are great, and to all those dull-minded idiots who say this movie is all about showing off with new computer technology and nothing more: bite me! It's a fantasy movie about super-heroes with super-powers - you need SFX to make it work. The effects are so well blended to the movie that it really looked like Pyro shot fireballs, Wolverine had claws and Storm could create tornados. The FX did not look a bit fake.
Though I must admit that it takes a bit of earlier knowledge of X-universe to get the most of X2, there are so many nice details spread all over the movie. For average science-fiction and action fan X2 serves as a great "summer blockbuster", but for true enthusiast it is totally, absolutely magnificent masterpiece! Thank you Singer & co!
Rating 10/10
PS. While other kids spent their teenage years hanging in discos and downtown having fun, I stayed home and read comics (X-Men being the best). Finally it all pays off!