X
MEN 2 : THE SEQUEL !
Here's the full collection of superheroes this movie offers !
Once a kid I was a marvel fan... Like many kids I dreamt of being that guy
who had super skills that would help save the world and that kind of shit ;) I
dind't buy all Marvel zines, dunno why, maybe I just didn't have the money but
there's one crew I STRONGLY remember and it's the XMEN with Wolferine, Cyclope,
Kitty, Orora, Colossus and Diablo (aka Nightcrawler) which was indeed my first
nickname tho not as a gfxman but as a mere hardcore gamer :P
I was therefore happily surprised when I first heard about the first movie
based on these super heroes but unfortunately it was nothing more than a
typical American movie... not bad but nothing more... Now the sequel is given
in theatres and feeling like having some time off I decided to give it a try
esp as Diablo (aka Nightcrawler) was to be present this time !
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starring : Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, Famke
Janssen Plus...
Directed by par Bryan Singer
Running Time : 125 minutes
Official Website http://www.x-men-the-movie.com
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This second episode won't oppose super nasties and super nice heroes but
starts in a darker time where mutants are feared by common people especially
when a strange creature, namely Nightcrawler, tries to murder the American
President in the name of the mutants freedom (no there's no evil Saddam nor
Bin Laden involved in here :p).
This soon leads to heavy military intervention into Xavier's school for
Gifted Youngsters, the place where mutants can develop their skills and follow
a regular education. But how come the military knew about that place ? Well we
learn that an officer is using Magneto's knowledge to unveil this underground
society. In case you have missed the beginning of the story let's recall that
Magneto was the super nasty guy who was defeated and locked up in very special
cell... While the military are taking over the school, Nightcrawler is being
chased by his fellow mutants : why did he assault the President? (Well if that
president is as stupid as G.W. Bush it can be explained :)
One of the best parts in that movie is the military breaking into Xavier's
school with a raged out Wolferine using his claws to slice up the intruders
(uh, does it hurt ?). Fans will surely recognize that heavily built man who
takes care of the children, leading them thru a hidden passage to a safe place.
Yes the guy who changes his body into metal is COLOSSUS ! Yeah the XMEN are
reunited now ! Almost indeed since you can only see him for 30 seconds :( I
guess that introducing another hero, beside Nightcrawler and other newbies, was
too much for a single episode and I'm pretty sure that he'll be among the main
characters in a certain sequel :) No need for a crystal ball here !
Oki so the nasties are trying to get all the mutant kids into cages and it
seems that you shouldn't try to annoy Wolferine. If you want to avoid problems
please follow my advice ! At the end of the day, the military only get 6 kids
but also Professor Xavier and his powerful machine called Cerebro, a strange
device that allows him to mentally connect to ALL other mutants all over the
world ! (must be quite useful when you throw up parties, no need to send
invitations :)
We soon find out that Nightcrawler was drugged and sent to kill the
President against his own will by a loony general who wants to trigger a war
against mutants ! As Wolferine tries to catch up with his past, he discovers
that he was literally "made up" by this general who turned him into a lethal
weapon. Here my little knowledge of US Comics makes me wonder if the producers
respected the real origin of that super hero (but surely they did otherwise
fans would have cried out :).
Then what, I hear you ask breathlessly ? :)
Calm down and let's see the current situation : the war is almost declared,
while our fave mutants are heading for the secret base where Wolferine was
created. There, Professor Xavier is being manipulated to use a replica of the
Cerebro to find and kill all mutants ! Uh, scary, isn't it ? :) I forgot to add
that in the meantime Magneto was freed from his glass jail and is now joining
forces with our mutant rebels. But should they put their trust in him... ?
As you can guess our mutants will break thru the Secret Base and kick a lot
of asses blablabla... The movie is of course packed with a lot of action scenes,
fights with mutants and so on... I'll try not to unveil the final part of that
movie, let's focus on good and bad points instead !
> PLUS :
- A lot of new characters including Nightcrawler of course (with his
terrible German accent but hey, he IS German and you cannot contradict
history the way it was made). Other new characters are Iceberg and Pyro, two
youngsters who play a very small part in the movie tho the end implies that
there is more than the eye can see :) There is also the female version of
Wolferine, hmm tasty and spicy as they say !
- Action, action and action ! Wolferine is a fierce beast and to be honest I
was quite surprised (almost shocked ?) to see him slice up militaries but
hey if you break into my house and attack me, then surely I wouldn't be that
happy, man !
- The "humans vs mutants" theme is really nice and acts as a reminder of
such terrible events as WW2 where people considered abnormal were thought to
be parasites ! History loops they say...
- The movie looks nice and you won't get bored for a second ! The whole
ambiance is a lot darker than the first episode or I have bad memories ?
> MINUS :
- Argh the whole XMEN crew was almost complete but Colossus is missing tho
you can spot him for 30 seconds !!
- Like any American movie it's a bit too sweet sometimes, tho some parts esp
at the end will lead to deadly decisions...
Final words : I would say that this sequel plays much better than the first
movie with new characters, a nice theme, darker ambiance, blood and a lot of
action scenes ! not a master piece for sure, but surely a nice entertainment
for everyone and above all for all Marvel fans ! Maybe hardcore fans won't
like it, dunno since I cannot consider myself such :)
Of course we should use this occasion to draw a comparison between X2
and the many other super hero movies released lately : oki Spiderman isn't
bad, looks even nice, but the bad guy looks RIDICULOUS ! Besides you "only"
have two super heroes while X2 offers a pack of them ! Also we managed
to avoid the -almost- compulsory love affair that tends to spoil the whole
movie ! I haven't seen DAREDEVIL but dunno why - maybe from the teasers ? -
I feel like I'm not missing much :) Last but not least SPAWN as a movie was
so tasteless and remote from the dark, sexy AND damn bloody ambiance of the
comics that I had almost forgotten about its existence !
We can also allude to BATMAN with a first movie that was quite stylish and
nice except for the shocking ending when Batman KILLS the Joker ! C'mon you
cannot do that ! The other Batman movies are pure crap. I also forgot to
mention the old SUPERMAN movies but you can forgive me :)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Then, if not the ultimate super hero movie, I think thart XMEN2 manages to
bring a nice story, attractive characters, enough threads to follow along
the movie, a lot of action, nice pictures. I'm only missing COLOSSUS this
time to be fully satisfied but I guess I will only have to wait till X3 :)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STS
|
