"You picked the wrong house, bub."

Rating: 9/10 (1 March 2017)

Bigger, bolder, and more passionate than its predecessor, Bryan Singer's "X2" is not only an ideal sequel, but it is one of the greatest superhero films ever made. Expanding the canvas of the original film by adding memorable characters and exploring existing characters' mythologies, "X2" at once has a larger scale and a more personal set of themes than the earlier "X-Men." It is a wholly riveting experience.
Beginning with on attack on the President of the United States, the film starts out quickly and colorfully. "X2" wastes no time in setting up a new collection of stakes involving the eventual extermination of mutant kind. The narrative reintroduces favorite characters, sending them off on journeys that will culminate in salvation and sacrifice. The story beats are emotional and archetypal.
The production is as refined as the film's new story. Editing is sharp, and the cinematography is bathed in evocative blues, metal grays, and deep shadows. The film's score is powerful, and the production design blends shiny future tech with derelict power complexes, the clean and streamlined with the classic and textured.
Singer's direction is deft, and his cast is ideal. Characters fill emotional beats only hinted at in the original film in bursts that give the comic book audience all they could want. Hugh Jackman's Wolverine explodes in full berserker glory while giving the film its haunted backbone. Famke Janssen's Jean Grey embodies the power of mutant kind with its potential to destroy and save. Alan Cumming is funny, moving, and soulful as Nightcrawler. He is tortured and human. The film has both great characters and great performers.
Beyond hitting emotional notes, humorous, romantic, and tragic, the film has a thematic depth that only underscores its quality. "X2" is about discovering one's true self and embracing it. It is about understanding the power of one's own history. This is a human story wrapped in comic book clothing.
The strength of "X2" is that all of its elements, cinematic, thematic, and narrative, come together seamlessly. The film is an epic opera of thrillingly executed drama and exhilarating action. It is a personal, powerful experience that has rarely been rivaled in its genre. It is a superhero film for the ages.