Feature: The X-Men on DVD

The super re-release that puts the X in eXtras!

The Movie
Bryan Singer’s well conceived take on the mutant superhero combo returns in time to whet our appetites for the coming sequel. Featuring an eXtraordinary cast in a story that deals with the very poignant themes of intolerance and prejudice, this is as intelligent, entertaining and enjoyable as comic book movies get.

The Extras
It would be easy to come to this re-release with a jaded view afforded by the plethora of sub-standard cash-ins that now regularly precede box office sequels. But X-Men 1.5 is far from that. As with David O Russell (Three Kings) and Guillermo DelToro (Blade 2), Bryan Singer is the embodiment of a young, fresh independent director who delights in recording every moment of the production – and much of this archive is held on this release’s second disc.

Disc 1 contains the film, and indeed the familiar, non-anamorphic Deleted Scenes, again seen through branching. The only difference here is that the they are complemented by Audio Commentary from director Singer and buddy Brian Peck, whose function throughout appears to be that of question master. And it’s a cracking Commentary too, with insights ranging from accidents on set to our discovery of why James Marsden required high-heeled boots.

The movie also comes with an interactive ‘Follow the X’ symbol feature, which dips behind the scenes during key moments (at the push of a button) revealing Singer in directorial action, Davison’s talent for singing old pirate songs and Jackman and Stamos’s dancing on set, to name but a few. There are some great touches, but having to whiz through the movie to see them can be a chore.

Onto Disc 2, and the real delight of this exceptional release. Aside from the X2 preview material, you are presented with Evolution X, an interactive documentary which runs for around two hours and 15 minutes, and that’s not including the running time of the branching segments which reveal even more.

The Uncanny Suspects (24 mins) is the closest thing to a standard Featurette, featuring soundbites from the cast and crew, inter-cut with B-roll and behind-the-scenes footage. Branched extras include the Hugh Jackman/Anna Paquin Screen Test (as seen on the first DVD release) as well as an earlier, more informal, script reading with Jackman that lasts for a staggering 11 minutes.

X-Factor (23 mins) mainly discusses the look of the movie, with branching leading to Storm and Cyclops’s costume tests, and the creative process that went into Toad and Stamos’s gruelling make-up routine.

by Grant Kempster

Read more on the DVD release, and the upcoming movie sequel, in
Ultimate DVD #39

Image © Visual Imagination Ltd, X-Men © 20th Century Fox
Feature © Visual Imagination 2003. Not for reproduction

Taken from

Ultimate DVD #39
February (X-Men) 2003
ships from Jan 30 2003
News-stand Price
UK £3.99 / US $7.99

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