"We are not all that we appear. Not all of us." The phrase that accompanied one of the most downloaded trailers in 2000 also defines its role in the comic book movie genre. X-Men takes it's place in the top five movies based on comic books, and does it with an interesting twist -- make a movie based on the comic, ignore the comic's timeline, but stay as true to the characters as possible.

This movie had potential disaster written all over it. Bryan Singer, the director, had an interesting challenge -- to make a movie that can be enjoyed by all without losing the non-fans with an overload of insider information, all the while keeping the longtime, rabid fans pleased. The answer to this dilemna is to have a story with lots of character development and a minimal storyline.

The interesting thing is that the solution works. While this movie has sequel written all over it in letters 15 feet high, Singer picked the characters that would work the best on the screen, added a supporting cast, and made sure each character had a moment to shine. While gems in this genre like Superman, Superman II and Batman Returns had only one or two characters to really worry about, X-Men is by nature a movie about a group of heroes and villains that require special attention.

Basically, this movie had three objectives -- bring the X-Men to life, make a boatload of money and sell a lot of toys. While the last two objectives are still pending, Singer met the first objective full force. And, to his credit, without any major current box-office blockbusters.

Obvious great performances from Patrick Stewart (as Professor Charles Xavier, head of the X-Men) and Ian McKellen (as head bad guy Magneto) were expected and their casting applauded. However, the stand-out performance from this movie came from Hugh Jackman, the unknown Australian actor picked to fill the boots of pop-icon Wolverine. As the outsider coming in to the conflict between humans, good mutants and bad mutants, it was through his eyes that we meet all of the characters. To put it bluntly, Jackman is Wolverine, or more correctly, what Wolverine would be like in the real world. Instead of the snarling, feral character from the comics, we get a living, breathing, lethal weapon used to living in solitude. He doesn't deal well with people, but it's the subdued way that Jackman portrayed the character that really works.

Anna Paquin, as the lifeforce stealing Rogue, turned in a great performance as well. How would a teenager, already dealing with enough internalized issues, identity crisis problems and "fitting in," handle the knowledge that her touch has the ability to kill? Paquin answers with a performance that should make everyone remember what it felt like to not fit in.

In supporting roles, ex-pro wrestler Tyler Mane fit the bill as the barbaric Sabretooth (complete with digital lion growls), ex-Darth Maul Ray Park finally got a speaking role as Toad (and showed that George Lucas made the right decision in dubbing his voice), ex-House of Style host Rebecca Romijn-Stamos has secured her place in the dreams of America's male population for her portrayal as shapeshifter Mystique, and ex-Harry and the Hendersons star Bruce Davison turned in a creepy, if accurate performance as the McCarthyesque Senator Kelly, out to force all mutants into the open where they can be counted, registered and controlled.

Turning in ho-hum appearances were Famke Janssen as X-men telekinetic Jean Grey, James Marsden as Cyclops and Halle Berry as Storm -- although the script is more to blame than the actors. Janssen had the insurmountable task of portraying Xavier's successor and the focal point in a love triangle between herself, Wolverine and Cyclops -- all with about five minutes of on-screen time. Hopefully, a sequel will allow her to do more with the character. Marsden had the bad luck to play one of the most universally disliked characters in Cyclops, Mr. All-American Goody Two Shoes, but he played him exactly as Cyclops should be played. However, if anyone in this movie was incorrectly cast, it would be Berry. While she was a very attractive Storm, the strong leader/weather goddess of the comic comes across as a mousy lightning rod. Some of the worst lines in the entire movie come from her mouth, and she constantly reminds the audience that it should have been Angela Bassett filling those black leather boots.

With all of the great character development in this movie, turning 2-D comic book heroes into real humans/mutants that you actually care about and can relate to, the plot suffers. The scenes were designed to give all mutant characters a chance to show off their abilities, as each character's fight scene (with the exception of Wolverine) consists of "I do my special attack, you do yours, someone wins." While this shows off some excellent special effects, the big fight scenes are almost all anti-climatic. To be honest, this movie needed another half-hour added to it's run time just to give it justice and to allow the characters to shine.

Does the movie suffer because of a lack of plot? Not really. X-Men is the perfect summer movie -- a good time, lots of special effects and excitement about the eventual sequel. The surprise is the brilliant way that Singer brought these characters to life -- something you don't normally see in a superhero movie. The language was at times racy, the fights scenes are a bit violent, and yes, Stamos is naked underneath all that blue makeup, but I think that this movie would be appropriate for kids aged 10-100. Those of you who are younger can just hop over to catch the trailing ends of the Pokemon craze. I highly recommend this movie, and I'll make three predictions. We'll see the sequel in two years, you'll see a lot more of Hugh Jackman in years to come, and I bet we even see a best actor nod in his direction (nomination, not award). Time will tell.

[ by Timothy Keene ]