X2 (2003)

The X-Men band together to find a mutant assassin who has made an attempt on the President's life, while the Mutant Academy is attacked by military forces.

Director:

Bryan Singer

Writers:

Zak Penn (story), David Hayter (story),

Stars:

Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen

5 wins & 32 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Patrick Stewart	...	Professor Charles Xavier
Hugh Jackman	...	Logan / Wolverine
Ian McKellen	...	Eric Lensherr / Magneto
Halle Berry	...	Ororo Munroe / Storm
Famke Janssen	...	Jean Grey
James Marsden	...	Scott Summers / Cyclops
Anna Paquin	...	Marie / Rogue
Rebecca Romijn	...	Raven Darkholme / Mystique (as Rebecca Romijn-Stamos)
Brian Cox	...	William Stryker
Alan Cumming	...	Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler
Bruce Davison	...	Senator Kelly
Aaron Stanford	...	John Allerdyce / Pyro
Shawn Ashmore	...	Bobby Drake / Iceman
Kelly Hu	...	Yuriko Oyama / Lady Deathstrike
Katie Stuart	...	Kitty Pryde / Shadowcat

Storyline

Several months have passed since The X-Men defeated Magneto and imprisoned him in a seemingly impregnable plastic chamber. One day, a mutant by the name of Nightcrawler infiltrates the White House and attempts to assassinate the president, setting off a chain reaction of anti-mutant measures by the government. Meanwhile, Logan is trying to discover his past. As scientist named William Stryker discovers Professor X's secret school and Cerebro, Magneto's partner, Mystique, is planning to break her leader out of prison. But when Professor X's school is attacked by Stryker's forces, Logan, Rogue, Iceman and a few are lucky to escape. Those who remain meet in Boston, where they form an uneasy alliance with Magneto to stop Stryker and rescue Professor X.

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Plot Keywords:

mutant | school | professor | wolverine | prison | 

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Taglines:

X-Men United

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action/violence, some sexuality and brief language

Details

Official Sites:

Marvel [United States]

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English German Italian

Release Date:

2 May 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

X-2

Filming Locations:

Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$110,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$1,581,045 (Spain) (9 May 2003)

Gross:

$214,948,780 (USA) (19 September 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Marvel Enterprises, Donners' Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In an effort to keep the ending a secret up until the movie came out, the novelization and the movie comic both have different endings.

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Goofs

At one point in the movie, Rogue, Ice Man and Pyro want to know where their X-Men uniforms are and Wolverine says they're on order. However, later when confronting the President, Rogue and Ice Man are wearing X-Men suits. However, this is clearly one of Logan's frequent sarcastic answers towards juniors.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Professor X: [voiceover] Mutants. Since the discovery of their existence they have been regarded with fear, suspicion, often hatred. Across the planet, debate rages. Are mutants the next link in the evolutionary chain or simply a new species of humanity fighting for their share of the world? Either way it is a historical fact: Sharing the world has never been humanity's defining attribute.

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Crazy Credits

When the 20th Century Fox logo fades away, the X in the logo stays for a second longer before it also fades away.

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Connections

Version of X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996)

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Soundtracks

"Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Romanze"
Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performed by The National Arts Centre Orchestra
Conductor Mario Bernardi
Courtesy of CBC Records/Les Disques SRC

User Reviews

After Watching This, Roll On X-Men 3

Absolutely happy! That is the only word I can use to describe my feelings after spending my hard-earned money to see X-Men 2. It was worth every penny.

Firstly, the makers of superhero films such as this have an unenviable task. They have to please hardcore comic fans and casual movie fans which is no easy task. And The X-Men-with their forty years of history and continuity-are perhaps the hardest heroes to put on the big screen. Well, I've spoken to many hardcore X-fans and casual movie fans and they all enjoyed it too.

I won't go into great detail about the plot. Let's just say that The X-Men and their enemy Magneto have to join forces to combat an even bigger threat. I enjoyed this movie so much because for the first time in years, I didn't read ANYTHING about the plot or any reviews prior to viewing it. That is why I'm not going to go into great detail about the plot. Just enjoy it.

All the favourites are back including my personal favourite Hugh Jackman as Wolverine (I hope Wolverine gets his own movie franchise one day). The makers of this movie have done a great job in making sure various characters get the right amount of screen time. We'd all love our favourites to get more screentime but with so many X-Men (and women), the producers have to do the best they can; and they do indeed.

There are a few really great special effects in this movie but unlike some special effects laden movies, the plot is more important in this movie. Furthermore, the movie is much deeper and really makes you think. Marvel comics (and movies) have always been deep and many of the issues have reflected real life. This movie is about persecution and intolerance of mutants and reflects many issues from the past and the present such as Hitler's treatment of the Jews and the different ideologies of Martin Luthor King and Malcom X. In fact, many longtime X-fans have compared the X-Men's Professor X to Martin Luthor King and the evil Magneto to Malcom X. Seeing a movie like this cannot only provide a couple of hours of entertainment but make you view society in a totally different way.

This is the best superhero film since the 70's (when we saw gems such as Superman The Movie) and the 80's (when we saw Tim Burton's Batman). It was a fantastic film but it begs one question-how are they ever going to top this?