Very nice sequel !

Rating: 8/10 (23 December 2010)

First of all, my first good surprise was to discover that X2 was longer than its predecessor (2 hours long !). Basically, I enjoyed watching this movie, really. The music is excellent (for example in the early scenes of the movie, when Nightcrawler attempts at killing the president) and varied all along the movie. Added to this, we are presented with a bunch of new characters (new or more present than in the first film) : I particularly liked the character of Iceman, for many reasons, and that of Pyro, we see how he eventually ceases to be "a good guy" and rejoins Magneto. Another very good point is that the line between good and evil is (slightly) tarnished by moments, for instance, when the X-men side with Magneto in order to fight against ... a new "evil" ! This is to be found when Magneto and Pyro discuss for the first time in the plot, when they are aboard the plane.
To get back to the characters, I would praise in another review that the character of Mystique, which I really appreciated to see one more time on screen, I think that she actually adds something to the screenplay and the general atmosphere of the movie. Like I said, the intervention of a dozen of new characters on screen(really!) is a big plus for the franchise even though it seems logical to include them as many already were in the comics. Another good point was that Kelly Hu was so astonishing for the part of Lady Deathstrike that I had the impression to watch something like Terminator III, which of course does not disturb me. The FXs are tolerable, like always, for example when Magneto manages to escape his plastic prison (I really liked the idea that Laurio had too much iron in his blood.)
As far as the plot is concerned, I would say that it is far more ''complex'' : it is easy to understand but the audience clearly sees that the screenplay has been worked upon very carefully and seriously. Some scenes I found long but far from boring. I don't believe in the death of ''who-you-know'' (let us avoid spoilers :D), this character is too important for it to die like this... we'll see. To put it in a nutshell, if you have not seen X2 and wish to see it, do it, but watch X-Men 1 first : the evolution (of the franchise, not of mankind !) is obvious and positive, let's hope that the suite to the franchise is better.