X2 (2003) (1 Viewer)

Does anyone know if Storm will actually fly in the movie or are they saving that for the next sequel as well?

[Malcolm R]

I'd like to see WETA take a jab at the next film after their work with Gollum.

I'm pretty sure WETA will be hot-and-heavy into King Kong.

 

[Jeff_S]

Luis,

Just to clarify, I am neither upset nor offended. I am, however, very interested to see how you climb out of this hole in particular (referring to the differences between the comic books and the X-Men: Evolution cartoon):

Rogue's powers are still the same only that she actually uses them instead of just standing there after 2 movies.

I anxiously await your response.

 

[Luis S]

Jeff your starting to confuse me! stop playing with my mind!



I think I see where I may have been unclear. :b What I was trying to say was that in the cartoon much like the comic, Rogue is a dynamic character. She uses her power offensively where as in the movie all she does is mope around and do nothing.

In the movie shes a wasted character,her struggle could be carried on to any active mutant. Think its easy having to run around with some kind of goggles all day?When you go out? Shower? Do a number 2? Have fun with Jean Grey ? I bet Cyclops hates his power too sometimes.

At least in the cartoon she has the same dilemma (cant touch others) But she still manages to kick some ass. With two movies you'd think shed do a bit more,I mean damn after that sweet poster that came out before the movie I was hoping to see Anna in action! Just another disappointment I guess. :frowning:

And dig out of a hole? Buddy, I can dig my way out of anything! Besides I didn't dig a thing, twas a misunderstanding is all. Not I return to planning my counter attack to some arguments I have yet to address....

Luis S

 

[Jeff_S]

Luis:

I think I see where I may have been unclear. What I was trying to say was that in the cartoon much like the comic, Rogue is a dynamic character. She uses her power offensively where as in the movie all she does is mope around and do nothing.

Nice try.

I didn't realize you had the mutant power of backpedaling at super-speed!

I agree that Rogue in X2 was pretty useless. I thought her character was much better done in the first movie.

 

[Rob Bartlett]

Well, if the movie was made like the current cartoon, I'll tell you one thing that wouldn't improve-the scale.

X-Men Evolution is shamelessly innocuous. If I recalle collectly, wasn't there an epsiode involving a Carnival robbery? Batman wouldn't bother with such things. A lot of it comes down to a setting that's what-a poor man's Albany?

I don't think "more like the Saturday Morning cartoon" is a good direction for any movie to go in, Paul Dini nonwithstanding.

 

[Luis S]

Nice try my ass, whos backpedaling? Thats my explanation and Im sticking to it. Unless I misunderstood what you were refering to? Pretty messed up that I hve to ask someone else to explain my post to me! Please explain so I can end this confusion! I must be understood!

Luis S

 

[Luis S]

Rob,

The carnival thing was just an episode focused on Boom-Boom(I think) and her less than great upbringing. Really nothing more than to give an idea why she was such a rebel. One of the more boring episodes IMHO. It was one time that I remember the cartoon putting a worthless character as the center of the story. Something that as you can see really irks my tater.

 

[Jeff_S]

Luis,

Nice try my ass, whos backpedaling? Thats my explanation and Im sticking to it. Unless I misunderstood what you were refering to? Pretty messed up that I hve to ask someone else to explain my post to me! Please explain so I can end this confusion! I must be understood!

I suppose you could have been referring to Rogue's MUTANT powers (as opposed to the powers she stole from Ms. Marvel) being the same in the comics and the cartoon. But I'm sure someone will come back saying that explanation is a "nice try" and roll their eyes. Muwahahahahaha!

 

[SteveGon]

I think I see where I may have been unclear. What I was trying to say was that in the cartoon much like the comic, Rogue is a dynamic character. She uses her power offensively where as in the movie all she does is mope around and do nothing.

I was satisfied with the way Rogue was portrayed in the movie - she is after all, a teenager with a power that will forever keep her from being able to engage in any real physical contact with others. That'd be a hard thing to come to terms with when you're a teen so if she mopes around a bit, what of it? As for her not being involved in much action, well, there are a lot of characters AND a lot going on. Add to that the fact that her mutant ability isn't an overtly powerful one so she wouldn't be of much use in the kinds of battles the X-Men have been involved in thus far.

Methinks some of you are asking for too much. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I couldn't be more satisfied with Singer's translation of the X-Men to the big screen.

 

[TheLongshot]

Man, people still laying it on Rogue. Sure, Rogue doesn't do much. She shouldn't. She's someone who just came into her powers, so is still trying to learn how to best use them. Also, she knows she can hurt people with it, which is why she doesn't use them that often. She's supposed to be a newbie.

Luis, you claim that what Rogue does could be shown with any other character. True, but you'd be disappointed in that character as well, not really kicking ass because they are still trying to get a hold of their powers. Rogue has the added benefit of having a potential major consequence of using her powers.

John, as far as I can tell, Wolverine does take on a bunch of humans in the film, as well as fighting against equals. I'm still wondering what more you want? Fighting any more humans, and things would look about as bad as the Burly Brawl from Reloaded, which got to the point of ridiculusness.

There are a lot of complaints that these characters aren't accurate to the "core" of the comic characters, but are forgetting that these characters have changed a lot in the history of the comic book. Take a look at some of the early Uncanny books with Wolverine. Wolvie actually got his ass handed to him a lot, and he used to be one that shot first, and asked questions later, and paid the price for it. Also, some have said that they want a bloody and battered Wolvie at the end of battles. Well, in the early days, Wolvie's healing factor was almost instantanious. It was only later, after years of taking beatings, that his healing factor wasn't nearly as good, so he paid bigger prices for his battles.

You also have to remember that the movie is PG-13. There are limits on blood.

Jason

 

[Simon Massey]

I have just seen this for the first time on DVD. I have absolutely no knowledge of the X-Men universe beyond the films, and I have to say that was by far the best of the so-called "summer films" this year.

A fantastic improvement on the original which I enjoyed but which felt like it needed another half an hour.

My only disappointment was the apparent "suggestion" at the end of the film that Jean Grey could come back.
Whilst I have no idea what possible storyline this could be or whether it is true to the comics, my initial reaction was that it softens the impact of the sacrifice which completely took me by surprise in the film and was, I thought a great ending.

Still a great film though.

 

[Richard Kim]

Simon:

According to the end of X2, it would strongly suggest that X3 will follow the "Phoenix Saga" from the comic books.

 

[Simon Massey]

Sorry Richard I have no idea what that means . My impression was that Jean has "evolved" into something else - from your comment it sounds like a bird

One of the things that has impressed me about these films is how well Singer has handled all the characters. Not from the point of how faithful he is to the comics (I have no idea!) but how each of the principal mutants had some part to play over the course of both films without simply being relegated to the background (with the exception of Sabretooth and Toad especially from the first film who I felt were pretty pointless). Granted some got more screen time than others overall, but from my POV (i.e someone who has never read the comics) I was impressed with how he used the characters.

The action scenes seemed to have been planned much better this time, and the strike on the school was tense and exciting. I certainly hope Singer returns for X3

 

[Matt Stone]

Are you willing to be spoiled on the possible storyline, Simon?

If so, try to find a synopsis of the Phoenix Saga. It's great stuff. Probably my favorite comic book arc of all time.

 

[Paul_Scott]

as much as i love the two x-men movies (and that is quite a bit!) i do have to agree that i also felt the 'Jeans sacrifce" angle felt a little contrived to wring much emotion from me.
i realize that there is a little bit foreshadowing it (wigging out in the museum, the light in the eyes in the jet, etc...) but i think there should have been shown, or made more explicit, just why her getting out and parting the water in the way she did was the only available option.
it rang a little hollow to me.
it looked like an arbitary plot twist to set-up a pre-determined future act.
i've criticized Return of the Jedi for doing this before, and even tho i have far more appreciatinon for the X-men movies compared to that installment in the SW series- i have to call it like i see it.

fans are salivating to see the DP storyline on screen, but i just hope its follow thru is much more satisfying than its kick-off.

 

[Ray H]

I also think they could've shown it better, but I think it was the only choice at the time. I've heard arguments including that Bobby could've frozen the water (which considering the amount, speed, and his age probably isn't likely). It was already setup that while she was on the plane, nothing would work. So I can't think of any other possible ways out of the situation.

 

[Simon Massey]

Thanks Matt, but I think I will stay spoiler free for X3. You call it the Phoenix saga so it sounds like a set up for more than one film. I expect Singer and the main cast to only do one more film so maybe they might not do this Phoenix saga if it is a long arc. I actually think my lack of knowledge about the X-Men has made the films far more enjoyable for me as I dont come to the films with any preconceived notion of how certain characters should look or behave, or which plotlines should be used. As long as the story and characters make sense within the context of the films, I can enjoy it. I had somehow managed to avoid knowing anything about the film X2 as well, prior to the DVD, including trailers. Might as well try the same for X3

An interesting contrast for me than say Lord Of The Rings, as I know the books quite well. Although I love the films, I cant help but spot the differences between the book and the film, and it can affect your enjoyment of the film. The X Men films I get to enjoy purely on their merits as a film.

 

[Paul_Sjordal]

• The martial arts in the comic books are part of a story line meant to illuminate Logan's use of discipline to combat his animal nature and bloodlust. The first and second movies have devoted much time to Logan already (at the expense of other characterrs) and even so have not moved far enough in the story arc to tackle this part of his character.
  
  It's taken two movies to get us as far as it got, and couldn't have moved faster without bad or confusing story telling. Frankly, I doubt they'll ever be able to get that deep into Logan. I have a feeling he'll be moving more into the background in the next few movies and rightly so. There are plenty more characters left to explore; the movies can't be All Logan All The Time.
  
  And it's still not inaccurate to the character. The movie Logan is not yet at the point where he can remember things like ninjas, samurai, oni, yakuza, Japan, etc. You have a character who has studied martial arts but doesn't remember studying martial arts. I thought the fight coreography in the movies did a good job of conveying that.
• The movie Rogue is much more interesting than the comic book Rogue (I'm not even going to comment on that stupid TV cartoon). The comic book Rogue suffers from "Neoitis" where it's too hard to create a believable combat opponent for her. That hack Claremont has made things even worse by allowing Rogue to "recall" any super power she's ever absorbed in the past.
  
  The movie Rogue is much more interesting and much better story fodder. We get all the anguish of a woman forever separated from humanity, she can still kick butt when need be, but unlike the comic books she can still be quite vulnerable when the writers need her to be.

All in all, I'm very satisfied with the vision Singer and the writers have brought to the screen. Sure there are things I would rather were different, but they've preserved most of the best parts within the limitations of the medium they're working in.

Of course, being a fanboy I still have to whine and moan about the changes that bug me. (I fully understand that what bugs me isn't the same as what bugs the next fan [e.g. the bulleted list above].)

• Lordy, what did they do to Mystique? I never found the comic book Mystique that interesting, but they've really managed to mangle her, haven't they?
  
  She's an old woman who uses her mutant power to look young. There's no way she could go toe-to-toe with Logan or a room full of special forces guys. That's why the comic book Mystique uses a gun fer cripe's sake!
  
  Oh, and the naked thing? Can you say "plot hole"? She can use her powers to create the illusion of clothes, and that's precisely what she does in the comics. There is no reason for her to prance around naked except as a cheap way to sell tickets. And don't give me that "using her power all the time like that would make her tired" excuse. She uses her power all the time to make herself look young, so there'd be no problem with adding clothes along with her youthful appearance.
  
  On the plus side, I like that they've preserved some of her mental instability. That is one of the more interesting aspects of that character. I can't wait to see her betrayal of Magnus' Brotherhood!
• Is it still to late to get Angela Basset for the role of Ororo? Halle Berry is still nine kinds of wrong for the part. As long as I'm indulging unfulfillable fantasy, can we see Angela Basset in white braids? That was always my favorite Ororo 'do. Oh yeah, and we have to have a "Skydancer" sequence in at least one movie.
• The movie Bobby Drake is never going to be a bimorph, is he? Durnit.
• Hey, Singer! You didn't introduce the idea of younger mutants at the school. That started with the New Mutants. :p)

 

[SteveGon]

I also think they could've shown it better, but I think it was the only choice at the time. I've heard arguments including that Bobby could've frozen the water (which considering the amount, speed, and his age probably isn't likely).

Singer touches on this subject in his commentary on X2 and likens Jean's "death" to Obi Wan's in Star Wars.

 

[Matt Stone]

Oh, and the naked thing? Can you say "plot hole"? She can use her powers to create the illusion of clothes, and that's precisely what she does in the comics. There is no reason for her to prance around naked except as a cheap way to sell tickets. And don't give me that "using her power all the time like that would make her tired" excuse. She uses her power all the time to make herself look young, so there'd be no problem with adding clothes along with her youthful appearance.

I don't think the film Mystique is using her powers to make herself look younger. She made the direct point to Nightcrawler that they (mutants) should not have to hide their appearance just to fit in with other humans. If she truly believes this (surely she does, because of her extremist beliefs), there is no way she'd use her powers to make herself look younger or to wear clothes.

That being said, I agree that it's a ploy to sell tickets. But I'm not complaining