X-Men Trilogy [Blu-ray]

When I first saw X-Men I was pretty impressed and held off buying the DVD of it because I was aware a sequel would be made. The thing is thou I was always under the impression that X-Men wasn't a trilogy. It's true that the sequel were only made because the first film was a success right?

So if like me your fairly convinced that the box only says 'Trilogy' on as a sort of vague marketing campaign, you might be pleased to find out that the movies are closer connected than previously thought (at least by me).

'SLIGHT SPOILERS'

For people who've enjoyed the first XMEN movie, its good to hear the DVD version included is an uncut version... well sort of. Actually the truth is you can watch the film with deleted scenes cut back in. This means that unlike famous re-cuts such as Apocalypse Now REDUX or Blade Runner, the film isn't a new version. Its the same, except frequently a short scene will play through. Needless to say it isn't seamless, the added clips often mean you'll have to watch parts of the film twice not a lot of the film, but its noticeable), also the new scenes are darker than the rest of the film and some special effects don't look quite up to standard.
This is all fine, you can still view the film without these scenes, but by doing to you find out so interesting stuff, that had it been left in, would have made the three films more of a Trilogy (!) rather than just a set of films. For example, in one deleted scene Rouge (a mutant character who can't touch other people's skin without harming them) asks if the professor can cure her. This scene is cut, however, it's interesting to keep in mind that Rouge does eventually opt to be cured in the 3rd film. Its a real shame that this scene and other examples like it aren't left in the film.

As special features go, its really the deleted scenes on all three DVDs that makes them. Each film comes with a 2nd disk (making 6 in total) telling you more about the film's production. I was fairly disappointed with the first features disk with XMEN, as I knew the film inside out from renting and seeing it on TV I was a little annoyed that the special features are pretty 'bear bones' mostly filmed on bog standard hand held cameras with not great sound, inter-cut with interviews with the actors that pop up again on part of the special features of XMEN2 and 3.

The features get hugely better with the 2nd film, telling you more about the comic book that the films are based on as well as deleted scenes and much more in-depth documentaries on production. There is a certain honesty about the interviews, but its not with out its shameless promotion: 'this movie is great'. The features don't offer much on the films other than how they were made. YES, these films are all widely well received, but its also well known that actress Hallie Berry and director of the first 2 movies Bryan Singer are not good friends. Their rocky relationship about the structure of Berry's character 'Storm' is undocumented, and you can see where the argument stems from as XMEN's (XMEN One) deleted scene are majority scene with Storm in.
Another character left on the floor in a large way is Cyclopes, whose relationship with Wolverine is much stronger when uncut.

But this is the big cribbed with XMEN, especially the third film, there are piles of characters, and the truth is you really need to be involved with the story by the time you get the 3rd, and to a lesser extent to 2nd, film.

CONCLUSION
This set is perfect for fans who've been holding off buying the DVDs until now, the films are great and the special features are above par for the most part excluding the rather dull first disk. However, and this is important! The audio commentary of XMEN3 has writers and director both mentioning an upcoming director's cut 'in five years'.

To be honest with you the manor this is mentioned in isn't entirely serious, and I wouldn't be surprised if I were a mean joke. But it is true that two more XMEN movies are planned, so if your a purest you may want to stay away. But for under £20 (or £12 at HMV >_>) its a bargain for any movie fan.

I bought the X-Men trilogy on Blu-Ray after reading a review which gave it one star. The reviewer stated that a good upscaled DVD would be about the same quality. Not true. I also have the trilogy on DVD.
I have watched all three films and the transfers are nothing short of X-cellent (forgive me ;-). The pictures are pin sharp and the DTS Master Audio soundtrack is top notch.
My favourite of the three films is X-Men 2. The opening action scene looks the business, the best of all of the super hero genre of films in my humble opinion.
I have yet to watch the bonus features discs. The box set i purchased has 3 of them.
I consider this box set to be great value for money and a must for all action hero fans.

Firstly, the films. The first X-Men has often been credited with reviving the superhero genre which hadn't been seen properly since the 80s and early 90s, courtesy of the Richard Donner/Richard Lester 'Superman' films and Tim Burton's 'Batman' films. Some say Blade is the reason we now see at least one superhero film released each year, but really Blade wasn't mainstream enough due to its higher rating (despite being an extremely entertaining film). No, if you trace it back, the first of the mainstream superhero films of this generation was probably X-Men. And it's definitely a quality film, focusing largely on character and setting up the motivations, relationships and tensions of the main characters, with a decent (but not great) collection of action sequences. As a story it works very well, and as an intro to the series it's one of the better ones around, but you get the distinct feeling something more is coming.

X-Men 2 (or X2 as it was marketed) delivers on the promise of the original. Without sacrificing story or character development, it adds stunning action and some great twists into what was at the time one of the best superhero films ever made. In fact, until The Dark Knight was released, it was difficult for me to decide which was the best superhero film: Spider-Man 2 or X-Men 2. Really, this film does have it all.

X-Men: The Last Stand is generally regarded as disappointing by many of the fans, but I think the criticism is a bit exaggerated. I agree, it's certainly not as good as what came before it. However, there's enough action and comedy on show to engage, even if The Dark Phoenix Saga isn't given enough time to be developed properly. That really is the main problem with the film; action is successful at the expense of the story. What you get is a genuinely entertaining film, but by comparison with the first two it's simply not as rewarding an experience.

Now the Blu-ray treatment. First, I watch my blu-ray films on a 42" Sony Bravia full HD 1080p TV, and use an extremely hefty surround sound kit. Both get a good workout from these films! The video quality is stunning (despite what the releases from other regions might look like), and the sound is just amazing, particularly in the sequence in X2 with Storm vs. the jet fighters.

Also, unlike some other hi-def releases, the extras aren't just direct copies from the old special edition dvds. Even though the extras on the previous 6-disc special edition box set were impressive, these go a step further by containing a good load of blu-ray exclusive special features, such as picture-in-picture features, which are particularly entertaining.

If you don't own the films at all, this is definitely the version to buy. If you own them on DVD as I did, this is definitely worth the upgrade. At £34.99 from most retailers and probably cheaper if you shop around, it's one of the best blu-ray deals around in terms of value for money.

Great entertainment in great quality. Highly recommended.