X2: X-Men United Movie Review
The second X-Men movie came in 2003, three years after the first one. The same cast of characters is back in action. The villain in this one is Colonel William Stryker (Brian Cox). After a mutant named Nightcrawler (Alan Cumming) tries to attack the President, Stryker suggests they attack Xavier’s school. Stryker has been interrogating Magneto (Ian McKellen) using a chemical and has learned all of the information he needs to attack.
With their school under siege the mutants flee and are separated. Due to this separation, this one is kind of plot heavy and there are a few different threads with Xavier, Jean and Storm, Wolverine, and then Magneto’s group. Stryker’s master plan is to use Xavier’s Cerebro to kill all of the mutants. Of course the X-Men are trying to prevent this from happening. At one point Magneto even teams up with Wolverine, Jean Grey, and Storm to gain access to Stryker’s lab. Don’t worry their alliance doesn’t last too long.
I liked this one because it was a little more developed than the first one. Wolverine is one of my favorite characters and you get hints of his back story and how he ended up as Wolverine. They give you enough details to make you intrigued but also leave you in the dark as to what actually happened. You definitely have to pay more attention in this one because of the competing story lines but that makes it much more fun. Stryker is a compelling villain and the added component of his son Jason (who of course is a mutant) makes for a fascinating duality.
I love to see the dynamic between all of the members of the group. They each have such distinct personalities and I love to see them interact and work together. Plus the end is a bit of a shock and involves one of my favorites, Jean Grey. This sequel builds nicely on the foundation of the first X-Men movie and it sets up the third installment perfectly. You’re going to want to watch it!
Film or Movie: Movie
You’ll like this movie if:
1. You liked X-Men (2000)
2. You want to see a more plot heavy action flick
3. You want to see one of the coolest X-Men, Nightcrawler in action
Head to my X-Men Movies Ranked post to check out more reviews of the X-Men movies.
