Lesser sequel is only fitfully entertaining

Rating: 5/10 (6 December 2016)

This highly-promoted sequel was one of the summer blockbusters of 2003, but its hard to see what all the fuss was about. Sure, it's a fast-paced and interesting film, packed with absolutely brilliant special effects work, but really its much of the same and a storyline that doesn't add much to the X-Men mythos. Whilst I enjoyed the characterisation of leads Hugh Jackman (as particularly charismatic as ever) and Famke Janssen (the first film I haven't hated her in), the introduction of teenage leads such as Pyro is a definite pandering to younger teenage audiences. The storyline is all over the place, with lots of action and not much really happening; the set-piece finale takes place inside a huge dam which is about to break apart, and sometimes you feel like you've seen it all before.
The action ranges from the ordinary to the very good. Pyro's display of his skills outside a suburban house is exceptional and the battle between Hugh Jackman and Kelly Hu is superb, and really nasty and violent despite the 12 certificate. One of the pluses is that this is a much more violent film than the first. The effects are decently done but the main characters don't go anywhere apart from through the old scenarios. It feels good to see Shakespearian stars Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen teamed up again, but you really wonder what they are doing here other than picking up a pay cheque. Brian Cox turns in a decent villain but he's somewhat wasted in an otherwise predictable movie which doesn't really have a storyline. Watchable but definitely not worth it a second time around.