X2: X-Men United (2003)

Director: Bryan Singer

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Alan Cummings, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen

Country: United States

Rating: PG-13

Run Time: 133 Minutes

After revisiting the entire X-Men franchise within the last month, I can honestly say that X2: X-Men United is the best film in the series. The film is both a fantastic continuation of the original's themes and characters as well as an excellent expansion of the mythology established in the first film. Whereas the first film depicted the battle between mutants good and bad, the sequel pits all of the mutants against a greater enemy. 

Therefore, the mutants must literally combat racist forces in order to survive X2, a film that gives all of the hatred and racism from X-Men a physical form; case in point: William Stryker. It seems that the X-Men series is at its best when all of the mutants have to work together against a greater enemy, just as in X-Men: Days of Future Past. X2: X-Men United has everything that one expects from a sequel: greater stakes, bigger action set pieces, and deeper themes. The film is very similar to The Empire Strikes Back, consistently regarded as one of the greatest sequels of all time, in that it is the darkest and lengthiest of its trilogy too.

Alan Cummings, of all people, kicks ass as Nightcrawler.

X2 takes place three years after the events of X1. Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) has been off searching for his origin, Magneto (Ian McKellen) has been rotting in a plastic prison, and Xavier (Patrick Stewart) has been working hard at helping mutants hone their skills at his school for the gifted. Unfortunately, danger lurks on the horizon when a teleporting mutant nearly kills the President of the United States. What follows is a mass hysteria of anti-mutant sentiments across the country. In steps William Stryker (Brian Cox), a man with the ability to control mutants and military backing. When Stryker alerts the White House to the location of Xavier's school for the gifted, the X-Men and their fellow mutants find themselves under attack. It's a scramble for safety and survival as all mutants good and bad unite with one another to stop Stryker's attack on mutant kind.

X2's opening action set piece signals to the viewer that the film is on a whole other playing field in contrast to its solid but flawed predecessor. Nightcrawler's raid on the White House is infinitely more exciting than every single action scene from X-Men put together. In fact, the film is filled with several memorable action beats. Besides Nightcrawler's unforgettable entrance, X2 also contains a thrilling military raid on Xavier's mansion, Magneto's chilling prison escape, and Wolverine's bloody fight to the death with Lady Deathstrike. Each and every set piece is as dramatic, compelling, and exciting as one would expect from a sequel of this magnitude. While X2 is already a mature and gripping meditation on racism, hatred, and team work, the film's fantastic action sequences drive it into the upper echelon of superhero entertainment.

Singer's greatest achievement within the X-Men franchise is his masterful handling of character. After all, what is a good superhero film without fantastic characters? Wolverine steals the show once again as the bad ass hero and truly comes front and center this go around of the franchise. A major portion of the sequel is devoted to uncovering Wolverine's origin and past. Fortunately, Wolverine's origin is made all the more interesting thanks to main villain William Stryker, Wolverine's creator. Brian Cox gives an incredible performance as the physical representation of humanity's hatred of mutants. Cox's Stryker is made all the better because of his relationship with Wolverine. The two go together like Doctor Frankenstein and The Monster, one a cruel and maniacal creator and the other a confused yet sympathetic beast. Stryker is an exceptionally complex villain because he hates mutants but chooses to control them at the same time to achieve his goals.

Wolverine digs deeper for his origin.

Fortunately, Stryker and Wolverine are joined by an equally excellent supporting cast of new and old favorites. Almost every character gets a chance to shine this time around, including Iceman and Pyro who are granted far more screen time than they were in X-Men. The most notable addition to Xavier's X-Men is Nightcrawler, a teleporting mutant played to perfection by Alan Cummings of all actors. Nightcrawler, a fan favorite from the comics, is given several scenes to shine and more or less steals the show whenever Wolverine is not around.

Magneto is once again a standout. After all, he is one of the greatest comic book villains of all time. Magneto's journey in the film is exceptionally interesting. He starts off as a helpless prisoner who is taken advantage of by Stryker, a man with more power than Magneto at the time of their meeting. However, Magneto eventually gains the upper hand on his captors and escapes from prison with the help of his trusty mutant side kick, Mystique. After escaping from jail in an unforgettable fashion, Magneto puts his differences with the X-Men aside and joins them in an effort to defeat Stryker. I love whenever a film forces its villains and heroes together in order to stop a greater threat. Magneto eventually succeeds in defeating Stryker, only to turn Stryker's plan against himself and the rest of the world's humans. This switcheroo of Professor X and Jason Stryker's mind attack on the mutants of the world is an excellent example of Magneto's villainy. Few villains surprise and meet your expectations time and time again as much as McKellen's Magneto does.

One of my largest praises for X-Men was how Singer set up this eventual sequel. X1 ends on several exciting notes that make resisting to watch X2 after it nearly impossible. Singer gives the audience exactly what they want and delivers upon everything teased at by the end of X-Men. However, Singer one-ups himself and sets up even more ideas for the eventual third film (which he unfortunately did not show up for). He once again teases the eventual war of the mutants. Singer also sets up Pyro's turn to the dark side and his rivalry with Bobby. The most unforgettable tease of X2 is its final shot in which a bird-like shape can be seen swimming in the waters that encased Jean. This image of a bird was meant as an easter egg for fans of the comics, as Singer had wanted to explore the Dark Phoenix Saga within his third X-Men film. Unfortunately, Singer did not show up for the third film and both the war of the mutants and the Phoenix Saga were butchered and not seen through properly. Still, Singer did a fantastic job creating a great film that laid the groundwork for what could have been an excellent third film.

McKellen gives a "magnifying" performance as everyone's favorite villain.

X2: X-Men United is a fantastic superhero film filled with exciting action sequences, interesting characters, and gripping themes. Singer crafts a group of set pieces that one up every piece of action from his previous X-Men film in every way possible. Wolverine's massacre of Stryker's soldiers within the mansion is worth the price of admission alone. The film is also filled with several new characters, such as Stryker and Nightcrawler, who help add even more heroism and villainy to the proceedings. However, it is X2's intelligent themes that wrap the entire film in a bow of thought provoking greatness. X2 will jog your brain and make you question your fear of the unknown, as well as any racism or hatred you have towards others.

Bryan Singer can go to his death bed knowing that he crafted not only one of the best sequels of all time, but also one of the defining pieces of superhero cinema. Unfortunately, only disaster followed X2, as Fox would go on to produce two of the most hated and derived pieces of superhero cinema to date. If it were not for X-Men and X2's critical and commercial success, I don't think that Fox would have brought the X franchise back on track the way they have with First Class and Days of Future Past. Therefore, fans should view X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine as speed bumps in an otherwise excellent franchise.

Rating: 10/10 - A masterpiece of superhero cinema that solidified the X-Men franchise as one of Hollywood's premiere superhero franchises.

Franchise:
X-Men (dir. Bryan Singer, 2000)
X2: X-Men United (dir. Bryan Singer, 2003)
X-Men: The Last Stand (dir. Brett Ratner, 2006)
X-Men: First Class (dir. Matthew Vaughn, 2011)
X-Men: Days of Future Past (dir. Bryan Singer, 2014)
X-Men: Age of Apocalypse (dir. Bryan Singer, 2016)

'Wolverine' Spin-Offs:
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (dir. Gavin Hood, 2009)
The Wolverine (dir. James Mangold, 2013)