X2: X-Men United (2003)

When anti-mutant colonel William Stryker kidnaps Professor X and attacks his school, the X-Men must ally with their archenemy Magneto to stop him.

Director:

Bryan Singer

Writers:

Zak Penn (story), David Hayter (story)

Stars:

Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry

6 wins & 41 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Patrick Stewart	...	Professor Charles Xavier
Hugh Jackman	...	Logan / Wolverine
Ian McKellen	...	Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto
Halle Berry	...	Ororo Munroe / Storm
Famke Janssen	...	Jean Grey
James Marsden	...	Scott Summers / Cyclops
Anna Paquin	...	Rogue
Rebecca Romijn	...	Raven Darkholme / Mystique / Grace (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 / Ice Man
Kelly Hu	...	Yuriko Oyama / Lady Deathstrike
Katie Stuart	...	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:

supernatural power | ice manipulation | canadian abroad | raven darkholme character | logan character | 

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Taglines:

Get ready for the return of the Evolution

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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] Official Facebook

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English German Italian Spanish

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 USA:

$85,558,731, 4 May 2003, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$214,949,694

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$407,711,549

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, Marvel Enterprises, Donners' Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The sunglasses worn by Cyclops are Oakley Pennys, although they look very similar to the glasses he wore in X-Men (2000), they are in fact a different model (with Oakley Juliets appearing in the first movie), both were modified with blinders around the lens. Oakley was also responsible for manufacturing the visor which Cyclops wears, and in some shots, Oakleys logo (a horizontally stretched "O") can be seen on the parts of the visor that cover Cyclops' ears.

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Goofs

(at around 36 mins) During the attack on the school, one of the soldiers opens fire in the kitchen and the Dr Pepper bottle on the counter changes places between shots.

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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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Alternate Versions

In the American version of the movie, Wolverine asks for "something other than chocolate milk" and receives the reply "There should be some Dr Pepper..." In international versions, the replay is "There should be some soda...". In both versions, the bottle is still a Dr Pepper bottle, only the audio is altered.

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Connections

Referenced in I Hate Everything: the Search for the Worst: Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2015)

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Soundtracks

Pastoral Lands
Written and Performed by William Loose
Courtesy of Marc Ferrari/Tinseltown Music Library

User Reviews

A few problems in an otherwise excellent film

They've done a hell of a lot right. That's my response to Singer's X-Men films; they're slick, funny, emotive and a real blast to watch. Without overdrawn character introductions and explanations, X2 launches right into seventh gear and doesn't let up.

Admirably, the film allows the majority of its characters a genuinely engaging storyline amongst the bigger picture, and although the story is not without its fault (using Cerebro as a major plot point two films in a row is like building the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi; been there, seen it before) it is certainly worthy of high praise. It's amazing that in just two films we already have a real appreciation for the relationships between such a considerable group of characters, and it is for the continued development of these relationships - and not the cool story line and action sequences - that makes me look forward to another X-film.

I would love to say that it's the casting that makes the films so brilliant - and it's true, the casting is great - but a couple of these characters have been woefully miscast. Iceman stood out for me, bringing an uncomfortable Backstreet Boy vibe to the role, and although his role in X2 is small, James Marsden just doesn't seem to have it in him to hold a commanding and authoritative position among the X-sters as Cyclops. In the first X-film he managed to at least stand beside the Wolverine with some great gags, but he's been left in the gutter for X2, and in the single scene toward the end of the film where Marsden is allowed to genuinely act, his emotional response feels awkward and forced. I am sure he is capable of more than this, and hopefully when X-Men 3 comes around he'll have more to work with. I've never been happy with Halle Berry as Storm, and she looks bored out of her skull in this film. I hope not to see her return.

Thankfully, most of Singer's new cast are admirable. The recast Pyro is great and Nightcrawler is fantastic. In fact, Alan is the only actor in the film who comes close to matching the quality of Jackman's Wolverine and McKellen's Magneto. These wonderful actors all appear to genuinely revel in portraying their characters. Janssen steps her performance up a notch too and it helps the film no end. I really hope to see her in the next film.

Ultimately, there are just a few slip-ups here in an otherwise classy and supremely entertaining film. With such an established canon of characters everyone is going to have their own opinion on how particular character should be portrayed, and for the most part X-2 does the job. Hopefully the bugs will be ironed out and we'll see a sequel of equal or greater quality in a few years. I'm certainly excited at the prospect.