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It’s amazing how good a superhero movie can be when you treat it with the seriousness it deserves.  Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects) was the perfect choice to direct this movie, and he chose a brilliant ensemble cast.  Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Anna Paquin, and Rebecca Romijn shine in their roles.  Unfortunately, Halle Berry and James Marsden have the thankless tasks of playing one-note fuddy-duddies (both are so much better than these parts).  The script wisely avoids character overload by focusing its through-line on Logan (Jackman) and Rogue (Paquin).  Their scenes are among the best, kind of a bonding of surrogate siblings.

I love the whole first half of the movie, from the flashback of Magneto’s experience in a Nazi concentration camp to Rogue’s decision to runaway from Xavier’s school.  I have a lot of empathy for the characters as they find one another and decide to ‘join the team’.  The second half of the movie almost falls into an unavoidable ‘let’s foil the evil plan’ scenario that could easily get tiresome, but it keeps interesting through the emergence of character relationships.  I love it when Cyclops asks Wolverine to prove it’s him (and not the shapeshifting Mystique).  Wolverine says, “You’re a dick.”  Cyclops says, “Okay.”

The film’s budget was too modest to deliver any truly memorable fireworks or action sequences, but Singer and company are just as well off to focus on character.  And when it’s over, you can’t help but feel the promise of an even more thrilling sequel…

With Famke Janssen, Tyler Mane, Ray Park, and Bruce Davison.