It's been a while since we've had a big summer blockbuster. Sure, The Phantom Menace and American Pie were both huge successes last year, but not to the degree that Independence Day or Men In Black had been in years past. This year the biggest contender so far had been Mission Impossible 2, but while that film had a good start, it quickly fizzled out, because there wasn't really much repeat business.
Now we have X-Men, and the only way this movie could have been a bigger hit is if Will Smith had been in it somewhere. It earned almost 25 million in its first day alone, and it deserves every penny. An extremely powerful movie based on comic book that already has a huge following, X-Men has all the elements required for a summer blockbuster: spectacular special effects, an engaging story, and interesting, well-acted characters.
The plot revolves around the idea that the next step in human evolution involves mutants that look and act just like regular humans, but who have special abilities beyond ours. Because they are different, these mutants are being persecuted by the government; the Senate is trying to pass a law that forces all mutants to register their powers like you would apply to get a handgun. One group of mutants fights against the humans who shun them, while another group, the X-Men, seeks to integrate humans and mutants and wants to teach mutants how to control their powers and use them for good.
This story plays on real-life examples of persecution like the Holocaust and the Civil Rights movement to set the leader of the X-Men, Professor Charles Xavier, and the leader of the evil mutants, Magneto, at opposite ends of the spectrum. In doing so, the film is able to identify with many members of the audience who themselves have known that stigma of "being different" at some time in their lives.
The actors who portray Professor X and Magneto, Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan, are able to realistically portray their characters as two friends with many things in common who are torn apart by their differing philosophies. They could almost be seen as the Martin Luther King and Malcolm X of mutants. McKellan in particular is allowed excellent opportunity to show his character's very human side, sympathetically showing the audience that Magneto is merely a man forced by circumstances beyond his control to act in ways that society deems evil. Stewart is unfortunately used as an expositional narrator at times, explaining to characters and the audience the background information, but when acting opposite McKellan, he is given the chance to truly shine.
The characters the audience most identifies with are Wolverine and Rogue, two mutants who start the movie off on their own but are slowly drawn into the conflict between the two factions of mutants. Hugh Jackman plays Wolverine as a brash, tough outsider who almost relishes his role as a pariah. He is truly torn between which side he should take, and his rough-around-the-edges personality clashes instantly with some of the other X-Men's squeaky clean attitudes. Rogue, played by Academy Award-winning actress Anna Paquin, is a young girl who just wants to find a place where she can belong. But the nature of her power, draining people's energy with even the slightest physical contact, causes her to shy away from getting too close to anyone.
These four actors lead the rest of the ensemble, serving as the intellectual and emotional heart of the conflict. But the struggle itself is what keeps the audience on the edge of its seat, as the two camps actually combat each other over which is right. Here the special effects take the forefront, as each mutant displays their powers with brilliant special effects that blend seamlessly with real situations. When the X-Men's battle commander Cyclops shoots lasers out of his eyes, we know it's not real, but we buy into it. The same thing is true about the evil mutant Toad's long, prehensile tongue; it's obviously impossible, but the special effects make it seem so real that we can't help but believe.
The fight scenes, already kinetically charged with fast-paced martial arts moves, have a real element of danger when these powers are added to the mix. An early scene between Wolverine and the evil mutant Sabretooth has real energy not only because we care about the fates of the characters, but their powers also make the fight deadly. A later fight between Wolverine and the shape-shifting mutant Mystique similarly grips us because almost anything can happen.
The only real drawback of the film is that the laughs are few and far between. Such an energetic and tense movie as this requires a few moments of levity, and while Wolverine at times spouts of a few one-liners to break the tension, these moments do not quite come often enough. But the lack of comedy is hardly noticeable through the high-speed action and intense character development within the film.
X-Men is such a strong, lively movie that I left the theater already wanting to see it again. Audiences will easily be able to identify with the characters and the story of oppression, and it is surely destined to become this summer's biggest blockbuster.
