Marvel Mania 2: X-Men

X-Men (2000)
Starring: Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackman
Directed by: Bryan Singer


We've got another X-Men movie coming out this year (this month, in fact), so there's no time like the present to give my thoughts on all the previous X-Men movies (not counting Deadpool, because I already reviewed that earlier this year when it came out). By the time the first X-Men movie was released in 2000, Marvel had already received a modest amount of critical and financial success with Blade in 1998. However, X-Men was really the first major success story Marvel had at adapting a globally known comic book franchise to the big screen. People knew X-Men through the comics or the '90s animated series, so when it was announced it would be a movie, it was a big deal. And Marvel movies from a decade earlier were horrible, so the pressure was on to make sure this was a success. With how the landscape is for comic book movies, it comes as no surprise that the film struck a chord with its core audience at the time. But that was 16 years ago when all the concepts felt new. With how saturated the genre has become, can one of the originals still hold strong all these years later? Well, I'm going to look at X-Men and base my thoughts on two playing fields. The first is the directing style of Bryan Singer and the second is looking at the early 2000s style decisions (I'm already assuming the latter is going to show some serious signs of aging). And of course, I'll take a look at those iconic characters and how many were (and some weren't) adapted properly in the original X-Men trilogy. So for now, let's focus our attention to the one that started it all, 2000's X-Men.

Let's start with the character that has become the icon of this series: Wolverine, played by Hugh Jackman. It's almost impossible to separate the two in today's society. Hugh Jackman IS Wolverine and has been for quite some time. It's a shame that's all coming to an end next year, but we can look back on his debut performance in this film and smile. Wolverine was the fresh set of eyes the audience needed to be introduced to this strange world of mutants. Wolverine is that proper blend of attitude and humor that works really well in all the scenes he's in and I honestly couldn't see anyone else play him at this point. Once Jackman is done as Wolverine, retire the character for at least a decade and maybe then we can find an actor who would be willing to fill out those claws.

Another iconic performance in the X-Men trilogy is Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier. Not much else needs to be said. Watch the films, look at that guy and tell me that isn't Professor X. It's a perfect casting. He can be a compassionate mentor, but knows how to get serious when it's towards the proper objective. When he speaks, I'm glued to the TV. Maybe it's not an act. Maybe Patrick Stewart really has mutant powers to control my mind. With how good he plays Xavier, I'd believe it.

The third major staple of the X-Men series is Magneto, played expertly by Ian McKellen. It's already a plus that Magneto has awesome powers, but where McKellen really gets to shine in the role is through Magneto's motivations and rules. When he gets a chance to speak, you really understand where he's coming from and you know what his objective is. You may not agree with it, but there's not a whole lot you're gonna do to be able to stop him. I recently heard a critique of the performance saying McKellen felt too old and wasn't as physically imposing as other villains, but I kinda liked that. He's not supposed to be like the other villains. He should have his own style and flavor that makes him stand out as one of the greats, and I think McKellen helps make that very possible as these films go on.

For all the iconic performances we had in the original X-Men series, we had a few that fell a little flat. The first major one is Halle Berry as Storm. Berry is a good actress when she wants to be, but something fell flat when she was Storm. I didn't get this strong and empowered vibe with her, but more of a '90s "girl power" vibe. And that was the problem. Berry as Storm felt more like she was playing up to the girls, rather than play the dignified woman she is in the comics. Her performance is especially awkward in this first film due to an accent that comes and goes throughout the entire film. It's entirely dropped with the sequels, but listening to her talk in this first film is very confusing. The other character that disappointed was Cyclops, played by James Marsden. However, I don't blame Marsden. I actually didn't think he was bad at Cyclops in his performance. The problem throughout the entire trilogy was that I don't think the writers knew what to do with him. He was always the noble character, almost a boy scout, which doesn't lead to the most interesting opportunities for a character that's supposed to lead this team. Because of that, he always feels in the background and he doesn't deserve that. Mardsen could've shined as Cyclops had they just figured out his purpose to the main plot.

When Bryan Singer was selected to direct X-Men, he hadn't really paid any attention to the comics or the animated series. Not that he hated the idea of comic books, as he has stated he values the art of storytelling and has a passion for science fiction. With how we perceive his movies today, it's hard to see anyone else direct an X-Men movie because he's so good at it, yet he's not an expert on the source material. I think Singer is a great filmmaker for the reason that he isn't necessarily a fanboy. He takes in the source material and finds an opportunity to adapt it into a story that makes sense on film. That's why I didn't mind the costume design for the film. People were probably holding out for the yellow and blue spandex, but at the time, it probably wouldn't have translated as well as we think it would. We needed a good, but serious superhero movie at the time so the genre could have some faith and credibility restored. Where the story needed to succeed on was in the story and the characters, something Singer knows how to do very well. Because of that, the movie was a huge success, opened the door for other superhero movies to get the green light, and left the door wide open for this successful film to turn into a franchise.


Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

X-Men holds up very strong as a superhero movie thanks to many standout performances, as well as the storytelling and directing style of Bryan Singer. Sure a few of the major characters aren't handled the best and this film is teeming with filmmaking tropes from the late '90s and early 2000s, but I still think this is a crucial point in the history of superhero films that deserves to be watched by all comic book fans.

X-Men and movie images are copyrighted by 20th Century Fox