X2: X-Men United

The second instalment of this mutated superhero franchise is head-and-shoulders above its debut. What makes X2 a far more successful film is that all the long introductions have been taken care of and more focus is placed on the soul-searching, ass-kicking, triangle of love-laced script for our freaky friends to shine with. The action sequences have increased by major proportions, but it's not through larger and louder explosions, but more through what these mutants can pull off when in danger or combat. What makes X2 great also hurts the film: there are so many amazing characters in the X-Men series that there isn't enough screen time to give all of them the proper showcase they deserve. You could practically pick any one of these characters and make a full-length based on them. It seems the bigger the film, the bigger the DVD, which isn't always the best package to receive, unless you're actually very-much interested in Nightcrawler's stunt rehearsals. In which case you are a nerd and will probably relish in the 11 featurettes on this two-disc super-sized serving. Portions such as the history segment of Stan Lee's comic are completely welcomed, especially as the majority of its audience didn't grow up with these characters; as well there is the standard "making of" documentary. The problem with the big studio action flicks though is that you have to have a double-disc in order to fulfil your expectations of being a blockbuster on the shelves as well. Not that X2 is padded with filler, but when there's three segments on Nightcrawler alone, you can't help but wonder why weren't these extras streamlined rather than being broken down into several sub-sections? Though there's no denying they've made the most of a two-disc set and offer more footage than you can probably handle. Plus: commentaries, deleted scenes, photo gallery. (Fox)