‘X-Men’ a metaphor for human discrimination
■The summer flick pits
humans against mutants
in a supernatural struggle
for Marvel-ous survival
By Rebecca Newell
Oregon Daily Emerald
They are the next link in the
chain of evolution, born with a
genetic mutation evident through
extraordinary powers. They are -
— drumroll please — The X
Men!
Directed by Bryan Singer —
known for smaller films includ
ing “Usual Suspects” and “Apt
Pupil” — the Twentieth Century
Fox film is based on the 1960’s
comic strip by Stan Lee, Marvel
Comics editor.
On account of the comic strip
originating in the 60s during the
Civil Rights movement, it was no
surprise that the “X-Men” movie
was a political one, proclaimed
by producer Tom DeSanto as “an
allegory for prejudice.”
And somehow the movie pulls
it off — establishing a message
about discrimination while mix
ing superhuman powers and fan
tastic stunts — without trying to
get too deep.
The plot is centered around the
conflict between the X-Men —
mutants who have learned to con
trol their powers for the greater
good of mankind — and a group
of evil mutants, fighting each oth
er and the world that fears them.
The political background in the
movie consisted of the govern
ment pushing to enforce “mutant
registration,” which would label
mutants and strip them of the
right to attend public schools or
lead normal lives. According to
the movie’s circumstances, it
wouldn’t be a far stretch to re
place the label mutant with that
of any other group discriminated
r
against during the history of
mankind.
The moral message, though im
portant in the plot, is as much a
backbone to the movie as the ar
ray of characters and incredible
special effects.
Unlike the often unrealistic
fighting scenes in many movies,
“X-Men” is supposed to be unre
alistic because its characters pos
sess super powers ranging from
Jean Grey’s telekinesis to Storm’s
ability to command the weather.
Needless to say, those powers
make for some pretty great com
bat scenes.
The casting for the movie was a
success in itself. Patrick Stewart
from Star Trek plays Professor
Charles Xavier, the world’s most
powerful mutant telepath and
mentor to the X-Men troop.
The X-Men troop, of course,
contains women, including Halle
Berry as Storm, Famke Janssen —
from “GoldenEye” and “House on
Haunted Hill” — costarring as
Jean Grey, and Anna Paquin as
Rogue, who won an Academy
Award for her role in “The Pi
ano.”
The men in the X-Men include
James Marsden as Cyclops,
known for his role in “Disturbing
Behavior,” and Australian actor
Hugh Jackman as Wolverine in
his first major U.S. film role.
Ian McKellan stars opposite
Stewart as the villain Magneto,
the most powerful mutant ever.
Magneto’s purpose is to destroy
humans, to turn them into mu
tants, so they can experience the
discrimination and suspicion that
he feels mutants are subjected to.
Magneto’s backup includes
several mutants, most notably su
permodel Rebecca Romijn-Sta
mos, who plays Mystique, an ag
ile blue metamorph who can take
on any form. Former pro-wrestler
,, . , . „ , Attila Dory courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
Mystique (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos) can take on any form and is one of the evil mutants with superhuman powers in ‘X-Men.’
Tyler Mane takes on the role of
Sabretooth, providing the brute
force and predictably animalistic
grunts every action movie needs.
While “X-Men” is no “Sixth
Sense,” it does the job of enter
taining well. And if you’re lucky,
you might even leave the theater
pondering the message of the
movie. But don’t focus on it too
hard, or you might miss the great
special effects.
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