"X-Men" for dummies
PUSSS...@aol.com
Women and comic books have not, historically, been the best of friends.
That could have something to do with the fact that most mainstream
female comics characters are relegated to the dual role of faithful
girlfriend and kidnapping victim.
Not so with the "X-Men" movies, which have always come out about even
in the male-female mutant superhero ratio.
But the trilogy's final chapter, "X-Men: The Last Stand" goes even
further, buffing up its existing female characters and throwing in a
handful of new bad-ass babes.
And the actresses behind the mutant makeup couldn't be happier about
that.
"It's so exceptional to have an equal amount of strong, interesting
women's parts," says Famke Janssen, who plays the telepathic Dr. Jean
Gray in all three films. "In Hollywood in general, but especially in
the genre of comic-book movies."
Janssen's character leaps to the top of the superhero power structure
in this film, surpassing even her mentor, Professor Charles Xavier
(Patrick Stewart) and his nemesis, the metal-melding Magneto (Ian
McKellan).
Making a major comeback from the last film (considering that at the end
of that one, she died), Jean Gray is resurrected as the Phoenix, an
incomprehensibly powerful mutant who is guided not by her human
impulses but by her deity-like will to dominate.
"In terms of powerful women, I guess you can't get more powerful than
that!" says Janssen, who shares a long-awaited steamy scene with
Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) when she first arrives back at Xavier's School
for Gifted Children.
"He loves her, he has a little bit of a weakness for her," says
Jackman, whose character is forcefully seduced by Jean's dark side.
"It's a little too freaky for him, ultimately - but my guess is
Wolverine kind of likes the backscratching."
Wolverine may have his hands full with the Phoenix, but she's only one
of many wildly dangerous women in "X3."
Halle Berry - whose starring role in "Catwoman," though critically
shredded, makes her the only actress to play two female superheroes in
recent memory - reprises her role as Storm, the white-haired mutant who
can control the weather.
This time around, Berry twice takes on another slinky female mutant,
Callisto (Dania Ramirez) in knock-down, drag-out street fights. And
getting physical, says the actress, may be her favorite part of the
job.
"I love that part of making the movies - the action, the combat, the
fighting," she says. "I was a gymnast when I was younger, so it allows
me to do all those things I loved as a kid."
Berry even did her own stunt work on a shot that sees her character
spinning into the air like a top, doing 25 revolutions in only a few
seconds. Though Berry had to pop Dramamine to pull it off, she stuck to
her guns: "Nobody's going to believe Halle did it," says director Brett
Ratner, "but she did."
Reprising her role as Rogue, the mutant with the toxic touch, Anna
Paquin says her character is faced with the toughest choice of her
life: whether or not to take the "cure," a shot that purports to change
mutants into regular humans.
"It might be ideal to say 'No, stay strong, be yourself,' but it's so
easy for someone who's not suffering to say that," she observes. "And I
think that's something that happens a lot - someone who's not affected
preaching their ideals to someone else."
"I think the idea of the cure crystallizes what ["X3"] is all about,"
adds Jackman. "If you had the chance to change whatever it is about you
that makes life difficult, would you take it?"
But Rogue doesn't just sit in the corner agonizing over her decision,
Paquin is quick to point out - she's out on the battlefield alongside
Wolverine, Storm and co.
"I think it's really awesome to show women in that light, fighting
alongside the men and being just as tough; being able to take a good
beating and deliver one," she says.
Anyone who's seen "Hard Candy" will know that actress Ellen Page has no
problem playing tough (in that film, her teenage character feigns
innocence to trap and torture a pedophile). As mutant Kitty Pryde, Page
has the power to walk through walls - as well as to distract Rogue's
boyfriend, Iceman (Shawn Ashmore).
Then there's Mystique (Rebecca Romijn), the vengeful shape-shifter held
captive by the government, which foolishly believes it can build
prisons strong enough to keep her and her leader, Magneto, apart.
Joining Magneto's band of rebel mutants are several streetwise women
(all wear head-to-toe black leather). They include Arclight (Omahyra),
who has the power to create a shockwave with a clap of her hands, and
Storm's adversary Callisto, who possesses superhuman senses and speed.
The charms of the X-Women were not lost on newcomer Ben Foster; the
"Six Feet Under" actor joins the cast as Warren Worthington III, a
tormented young man who becomes the flying mutant Angel.
Surrounded by so many beautiful, ferocious female characters, his
reaction was a simple one, he says:
"Girls kick ass!"
* * *
NY POST/By MAXINE SHEN
"X-Men: The Last Stand," naturally, has video-game tie-in: Activision's
"X-Men: The Official Game."
With an original narrative by "X2" and "X3" screenwriter Zak Penn and
"X-Men" comic scribe Chris Claremont, gamers are privy to plot points
and back stories that "X3" doesn't cover. Play it and find out:
Why the beloved Nightcrawler of "X2" isn't in "X3."
The origins of Multiple Man: He first appeared in movies as a prison,
but the game explains his relationship with the Brotherhood.
In "X3," the Beast is the Secretary of Mutant Affairs; learn how he
landed this gig.
Cylops has gone a bit mental: After the "death" of girlfriend Jean Grey
at the end of "X2," the game delves into a new plot about his emotional
health.
Pyro's move to the dark side: At the end of "X2," Pyro leaves the X-Men
under Magneto's wing; the game gives you the firestarter's first battle
as one of the Brotherhood.
* * *
NY POST/SARA STEWART
When is a mutant not just a mutant? Pretty much since the beginning of
the X-Men comics series, back in 1963.
"The original comic books were a corollary of Malcolm X and Martin
Luther King Jr.," says Hugh Jackman, who plays Logan/Wolverine in the
film trilogy.
In early "X-Men" comics, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, Professor Charles
Xavier's idealism bore similarities to King's, while Magneto's militant
mutant-power vision was akin to that of Malcolm X, the black-power
activist.
Since then, there have been countless social metaphors attributed to
the comic series that depicts mutants discriminated against by humans.
Anti-mutant prejudice has been interpreted as racism, homophobia,
anti-Semitism, even McCarthy-era anti-communism.
In "X-Men: The Last Stand," most of those comparisons hold up,
underscored by the introduction of a government-sponsored vaccine that
saps mutants of their powers - the point being to make them "normal"
members of society.
"There's nothing to cure," says Halle Berry's character, Storm, in the
film. "There's nothing wrong with any of us."
The relevance to real-world issues is not lost on the "X-Men" actors,
who've all spent time considering the various interpretations of the
mutant struggle.
"I think it's never been more necessary," says Patrick Stewart, who
plays Xavier. "We seem to be going through a period in which
intolerance - often cleverly disguised as something else - is becoming
once more very prevalent.
"And it's terrific," he continues, "to see a big blockbuster studio
movie that isn't just sidelining these issues, but that they lie at the
center of every major scene in this movie."
"We all think about it," says Berry. "Ian McKellan is very vocal about
his homosexuality. I'm African-American, so I'm the voice of that
position. Hugh, coming from Australia, is a foreigner. We all have
things that are our 'mutations' in life, that make us not as accepted."
"What if you had a child who was born deaf, and you had the technology
to cure it - would you give it to your child?" says Jackman. "I
probably would. But many deaf people would say, 'We're proud to be
deaf.'"
"I'm sure everyone has a different take on it," Famke Janssen (Jean
Gray) says. "I would hope we could all celebrate our differences. But
obviously that's much easier for me to say than someone who might have
a . . ."
"Might not be so hot," James Marsden (Cyclops) interjects, with a
laugh.
* * *
Halle Berry takes a stand for 'X-Men,' true love and getting what she
wants
NY DAILY NEWS/BY JOHN CLARK
This August, Halle Berry is going to hit the big 4-0, but you'd never
know it from the way the Oscar-winning actress looks or the way she
feels - especially about her work. Times have changed, she says.
"Ten years ago, that [age] would have meant your career is over," says
Berry, whose sweetly modest manner is often combined with a plunging
neckline - sending out mesmerizingly mixed signals. "But I don't feel
like my career is waning one bit. It's all a state of mind.
"And when I won't be able to play whatever that is," she continues,
referring, perhaps, to sexy superheroes, "then I'm comfortable playing
age-appropriate roles. I just love acting, so I have no problem when
the day comes to play the grandma or the mother of 10!"
Berry's male fans don't have to worry about that just yet. For "X-Men:
The Last Stand," opening Friday, Berry slips back into her black
leather outfit and punky blond hairstyle to play Storm, a mutant who
can control the weather. This time, she and her fellow mutants,
including Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), Prof. Xavier (Patrick Stewart),
Rogue (Anna Paquin), Cyclops (James Marsden), Iceman (Shawn Ashmore),
and a new character, Beast (Kelsey Grammer), confront a drug that will
"cure" them of their mutancy.
The question, of course, is whether they want to be cured, or if they
should be cured, especially when they can do things like throw
fireballs or run through walls.
Complicating this dilemma - as in the first two "X-Men" films, from
2000 and 2003 - is the evil Magneto (Ian McKellen), who wants to
destroy the cure and all who get in his way. On his side are Mystique
(Rebecca Romijn), Pyro (Aaron Stanford), and Jean Grey (Famke Janssen),
who in "X2" died and is here resurrected as Dark Phoenix, a
bad-tempered, all-powerful telepath.
Because it's a "last stand," not all the mutants survive, and those who
do are changed, some more than others.
It was because of these plot twists that Berry decided to make the film
- that and the fact that, unlike the previous movies, she does more
than just fly a plane and look worried.
"I had to make a tough choice," Berry says, referring to a competing
project that she wanted to film at the same time as this new "X-Men"
adventure. "I had a real sense of obligation to these movies, and I
didn't feel right in my soul about walking away before I finished it.
But I read the script and realized it would be okay, because I had more
to do this time."
Money was probably an incentive, too: She and the other principal "X"
actors renegotiated their deals for this movie, and Berry - whose
beauty also represents Revlon and Versace - is not shy about defending
her right to make a buck.
"'X-Men' pays the bills!" she says, laughing. "'X-Men' is my retirement
fund! You'd be stupid not consider that and take the opportunities that
come your way. But it's also important...to mix in other work as well,
those great movies that don't offer much in the way of a paycheck."
SMART BOMBSHELL
Very few actors, let alone actresses - and especially actresses of
color - do this mixing as well as Berry does. But she's been an
overachiever all her life: As a high schooler in Ohio, she was a
cheerleader, an honor-society member, editor of the school paper, class
president and the prom queen. Later, she was a beauty queen, winning
the Miss Ohio title, earning a runnerup spot at the Miss USA pageant,
and entering the Miss World contest.
Turning to acting, she made her mark playing a junkie ("Jungle Fever"),
a black icon ("Introducing Dorothy Dandridge," which won her an Emmy
and a Golden Globe), a devastated widow ("Monster's Ball"), and a Bond
girl ("Die Another Day"). But instead of running away from her sexual
assets after winning the Oscar for Best Actress for 2001's "Monster's
Ball," Berry has embraced them.
And that tactic has worked - she's seemingly bulletproof, surviving
box-office bombs like "Catwoman" and "Gothika." She doesn't mind giving
the audience what it wants, but she does it on her terms.
"I'm not pigeonholed to any one part," she says. "I'm all over the
place, from dramas to action movies. I'll always get the sexy parts;
playing someone who is in touch with her sexuality is a wonderful
thing. [But] would I play a sexy part just to play a sexy part?
Probably not. It wouldn't interest me.
"As I'm growing as an actress, I want to do different things and
challenge myself in different ways."
She cites as an example "a really sexy movie" she recently did with
Bruce Willis called "Perfect Strangers," in which the sex is conducted
over the Internet. She's also producing more realistic dramas through
her company, Bella Films. (One of them will star Alicia Keys as a piano
prodigy, while another will feature Berry as a schoolteacher who runs
for Congress.) And she's signed up to star opposite Benicio Del Toro in
"Things We Lost in the Fire," as a woman who loses her husband and
befriends his drug-addled best friend.
"I've managed to [find] a way out of 'no way,' as a woman of color
producing projects I really care about," she says. "That's become
normal for me. If it's not out there, then I try to create it for
myself....That's where I get the charge, making things like that
happen."
As gratifying as all of this is, Berry is reaching an age where such
successes don't mean as much as they used to. She is eager to start a
family, and has said she would consider adopting. She's been married
twice, to baseball player David Justice and musician Eric Benet. Both
those unions ended in divorce.
"Certainly, as I'm approaching 40, I'm looking for a better reason to
get up in the morning than to go make a movie," she says without a
trace of self-pity. "I need that - I needed it at 30, and for a decade
I've dealt with not having it, but I convinced myself that it was okay.
But at 40, I need that deeper meaning to my life."
It would be easy for Berry to blame the business she's in - filled with
travel and temptations and celebrity - for what happened to her
marriages. But she doesn't. "It takes two people willing to do the
work, that's what I've learned. And I haven't found that combo yet.
"But I know it's coming," she continues. "I'm putting out those vibes
really strong right now, so I know it's manifesting and it's going to
come to me very soon. I can feel it."
* * *
The joys of 'X'
NY DAILY NEWS/BY JOHN CLARK
Hugh Jackman: Jackman loves playing Wolverine so much he wants to do a
film just about him. "He's a great character, like Mad Max or Dirty
Harry," says the Australian screen and stage star. "As good a go as
I've had in the 'X-Men' movies, there's still a movie to be made about
this one character. He knows nothing about his past, not a lot goes
right for him. He's a pretty badass dude." In addition to the attitude,
Wolverine sports retractable "adamantium" claws and the ability to heal
himself. These powers go only so far in the new film, though, as the
pain inflicted on him by his secret love Jean Grey (Famke Janssen)
happens inside. Maybe Jackman likes Wolverine so much because he's so
unlike him: In real life, Jackman has an easy, open manner, which has
carried him through such fizzy fare as "Kate & Leopold" and earned him
a Tony Award for Broadway's "The Boy From Oz." Also unlike Wolverine,
Jackman likes cities - or at least New York. He and his wife have been
looking for three years for an apartment to buy for when they're not in
his native Sydney. One reason it has taken so long is that they've
revised how much they can spend because of the money he made on "X-Men:
The Last Stand." But he says Wolverine's extra scratch will add only a
balcony or another bathroom. "It doesn't get you a lot in this town,"
Jackman jokes.
Kelsey Grammer: Grammer knows he's the last person anyone would choose
to play a super-hero. But while his mutant alter-ego, Beast, is big,
blue and hairy, he's also a soft-spoken diplomat named Dr. Hank McCoy.
Still, the fact that Beast is, well, beastly made Grammer think the
"X-Men" team were barking up the wrong tree. "It was a total surprise
to me," Grammer says of his casting. "Came out of the blue." Dr.
Frasier Crane, the character he played on TV for 20 years (on "Cheers"
and then "Frasier"), was a smug, effete yuppie. In "X-Men: The Last
Stand," Beast, on the other paw, beats his enemies' brains out after
diplomacy fails. Undergoing his transformation was one way around the
issue of being forever Frasier, though Grammer had to spend three hours
a day in a makeup chair to achieve it. "In Europe, they're very
comfortable with actors going from television to stage to film,"
Grammer says. "But America wants to keep you in one place. It's not a
negative; it's, 'We love him as that.' I look like Frasier, so I'll
never be able to get away from that. ... There are not a lot of faces
that I can come up with." Besides the blue furry one, that is.
Famke Janssen: Of all the 'X' actors playing superheroes, Janssen seems
the most like one in real life. No, she can't levitate cars, but she's
"different." She's 6-feet tall, with sci-fi-ready coloring (very white
skin, very red hair). She's Dutch and speaks with a sexy, vague accent.
And everywhere she goes, she's accompanied by her dog, Licorice. She
can speak French and German, but is most outspoken in English: "I feel
this film [is] glossier, versus the previous 'X' films, which had a
more indie feel ... if you can imagine such a thing in a big comic-book
film," Janssen says, though she quickly adds that's not a knock on
"Last Stand." Certainly, she's always played her character, Jean Grey,
as edgy, troubled, and uncertain of her powers. In this latest one,
those powers have increased to the point where Jean is consumed by
them. Janssen's other credits include the James Bond movie "GoldenEye"
(as a villainess who killed people with her thighs), Woody Allen's
"Celebrity," "Hide & Seek" and TV's "Nip/Tuck." While Jean's "Dark
Phoenix" story line is popular in the "X-Men" comic world, Janssen, of
course, stands firm for individuality, saying: "You want [to be] true
to that, but you're entitled to interpret characters as you please."
* * *
X-Men's magnificent mutants spring into action in 'Last Stand'
NY DAILY NEWS/By ELIZABETH WEITZMAN
'X-Men: The Last Stand' In the third film in the series, the followers
of two mutant leaders face off in a showdown sparked by human
intervention. Though the movie lacks emotional intensity, its explosive
final clash between mutants and humans is adrenaline-fueled fun. With
Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Famke Janssen. Directed by Brett Ratner
(1:44). PG-13: Violence, language. At area theaters.
"The whole world's gone to hell," understates Hugh Jackman's Wolverine
in the finale of the "X-Men"trilogy, directed with blunt efficiency by
"Rush Hour's" Brett Ratner. Taking over from the more cerebral Bryan
Singer, Ratner is unable to maintain the emotional intensity that has
made this series so deeply epic. But he sure knows how to put on a
show.
In the first two "X-Men" films, Singer raised devastating, increasingly
timely questions for his audience to consider: Is morality truly
absolute? If so, who has the right to define it? Ratner has his own
queries, and they follow along these lines: How many special effects
experts will it take to lift the Golden Gate Bridge and redirect it
toward Alcatraz? And do we have the budget to blow up the entire
planet?
Though he makes a good-faith effort, the answer is no, since every
major player in the series has returned, no doubt putting a crimp on
finances. Facing off for one last time are mutant leaders Magneto (Ian
McKellen) and Xavier (Patrick Stewart), enemies united only in their
horror at a new antidote that has been developed to eliminate genetic
mutation.
Xavier, who advocates peace among species, is also concerned about
another threat: the recently resurrected telepath Jean Grey (Famke
Janssen), whose powers have become too great for her to control. If
Magneto can harness her cosmic energy, mutants will retain their
superiority over humans forever. But before he can rule Earth, he'll
have to conquer Xavier's heroic X-Men.
Which, as it turns out, is no small feat, though their numbers have
dwindled. With Jean on the wrong side, Wolverine and Storm (Halle
Berry) are in charge, leading a younger generation that includes Iceman
(Shawn Ashmore), Kitty Pryde (Ellen Page) and an increasingly reluctant
Rogue (Anna Paquin), who finds herself tempted to accept the "cure" for
her mutation.
Also on board for the first time are Kelsey Grammer's blue-haired Beast
and Ben Foster's white-winged Angel.
Few of the characters are given much in the way of development, and the
new additions get particularly short shrift. (Foster, usually an
incorrigible scene-stealer, barely registers - though his wings do look
pretty cool.) The only real standout is an impossibly charismatic
Jackman, who manages to keep his dignity even when rattling off a
stream of ridiculous action-movie quips.
As always, little time is wasted on exposition, so it's a good idea to
watch the first two films before you see this one.
But see it you should: Explosive, adrenaline-fueled fun, "The Last
Stand" is likely to be the best popcorn movie of the summer - unless
it's unseated next month by Singer's "Superman Returns."
* * *
'X'-ing out a failed 'Mission'
NY DAILY NEWS/DAVID HINCKLEY...
With "Poseidon" sunk and "Mission: Impossible III" quickly sinking, the
summer box office race turns to the second sequel in the "X-Men"
series, opening Friday.
According to industry sources, "X-Men: The Last Stand" trailed only
"The Da Vinci Code" in preseason surveys of audience interest.
In the case of "Da Vinci," those surveys accurately predicted the
movie's opening weekend business.
Despite reviews that ranged from lukewarm to downright frigid, "Da
Vinci" took in $77 million in its first three days and seems headed for
a $200 million season.
If the latest "X-Men" movie comes close to matching the $85.6 million
opening of the first sequel in 2003, it's another contender for the
$200 million Blockbuster Club.
One thing's certain: "Mission: Impossible III" won't get over that bar.
With a relatively weak opening weekend of $48 million, subsequent
weekend drops of 49% and 56% in ticket sales and just $106 million in
the till, the Tom Cruise action film will be lucky to gross $140
million.
While Cruise's management team assesses how much of the"M:i:III"
disappointment is due to his bizarre behavior, analysts can reasonably
wonder if the preseason box office favorite will even finish among the
summer's top five.
Besides "The Da Vinci Code" and "X-Men: The Last Stand," here are the
coming summer movies that may whiz past "M:i:III":
"Cars" (June 9). Pixar's last two computer-animated features - "Finding
Nemo" and "The Incredibles" - grossed more than $600 million between
them, and the latest, about a cocky race car, will play all summer.
"Superman Returns" (June 30). A new generation of moviegoers will
decide whether the comic book world's most enduring superhero can
launch another franchise of summer blockbusters.
"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" (July 7). The first
"Pirates" was the word-of-mouth smash hit of 2003, finishing with a
$305 million gross. Star Johnny Depp is more popular now than then, and
first sequels to blockbusters tend to do even better.
"Miami Vice" (July 28). The summer's only urban thriller has great name
recognition, a strong cast (Colin Farrell, Jamie Foxx) and the TV
series' creator Michael Mann, who does this stuff better than almost
anyone.
For a long shot to make the top five, consider "Click," an Adam Sandler
comedy about a man who takes possession of a remote control that turns
off people. Now, if only Oprah had had one.
* * *
X-Men: Who's who
NY DAILY NEWS....
Between the subway flashers and the bird ladies, the street-corner
proselytizers and "stress test" missionaries, New Yorkers have always
had an affinity with oddball outsiders.
That means the eclectic cast of characters appearing in Friday's
"X-Men: The Last Stand" is right at home in a city boasting every
possible demographic (and stereotype) under the sun.
Based on the characters from Marvel's hit comic-book series, the
mutants fight for acceptance amidst a population hellbent on shunning
the very beings that have repeatedly saved society.
Now, we're not about to call the Naked Cowboy a savior just yet - but
no doubt New Yorkers will find a little bit of themselves in at least
one of the X-Men. Read on to find the mutant fitting your ideal
X-ographic.
The Good Guys:
THE DUDE YOU DON'T CROSS:
Wolverine (Hugh Jackman)
Actor known for: Winning a Tony ("Boy From Oz") but being a better Tony
host.
Character's powers: Quick-tempered, mutton-chopped bundle of attitude
has retractable, rapier-sharp claws on both hands.
X-ographic: Remember that muttering, switchblade-wielding loner you saw
on the subway this morning?
THE AGING ACADEMIC:
Professor X (Patrick Stewart)
Actor known for: Helming the Starship Enterprise as Captain Picard; a
booming English accent.
Character's powers: Screws with the minds of others, almost like a
Jedi.
X-ographic: Scholars at Columbia and NYU like to nod knowingly at
anything the old man says onscreen.
THE GENTLE GIANT:
Colossus (Daniel Cudmore)
Actor known for: Being 6-foot-8.
Character's powers: Possesses the ability to turn himself into "organic
steel," a strong, durable substance.
X-ographic: The Knicks could have used him this year. In fact, they
could have used him for the last decade.
THE TEASE:
Rogue (Anna Paquin)
Actress known for: Winning Oscar for "The Piano," her childhood debut.
Character's powers: Sucks the life force out of those she comes in
contact with - including Iceman, whom she's stringing along.
X-ographic: Horny middle-aged men, especially those with a penchant for
S&M, will be drooling in their popcorn.
THE CLOSETED FRIEND:
Angel (Ben Foster)
Actor known for: Playing obnoxious, promiscuous art student Russell
Corwin on "Six Feet Under."
Character's powers: Flying, courtesy of massive white wings sprouting
from his back.
X-ographic: What with the nickname, bleached hair and "Angels in
America" costume, it's unsure which team he's playing for - er, Prof.
X's or Magneto's, that is.
THE DIFFICULT WOMAN:
Storm (Halle Berry)
Actress known for: Winning an Oscar ("Monster's Ball"), then spraying
on it ("Catwoman").
Character's powers: Controls weather and blasts enemies with lightning.
X-ographic: TV meteorologists now have someone else to blame for a
faulty forecast. Sign her up alongside Pat Kiernan for "Weather on the
1s"!
THE FRAT GUY:
Cyclops (James Marsden)
Actor known for: Deft cameo as John Wilkes Booth in "Zoolander."
Character's powers: Sends a concussive blast of energy from his eyes;
must wear special glasses to keep from doing so all the time.
X-ographic: Looks like every overly fit Hudson River Park blader - the
ones you wish would fall on their faces and break their expensive
shades.
THE JAILBAIT:
Kitty Pryde (Ellen Page)
Actress known for: Portraying a tiny teen terror who castrates an
Internet predator ("Hard Candy").
Character's powers: Evades enemies twice her size by passing through
solid objects like walls and floors.
X-ographic: A sure hit among wanna-bes who can't get past the velvet
rope.
THE WHIPPED WIMP:
Iceman (Shawn Ashmore)
Actor known for: Spending inordinate amount of time with twin brother
and fellow actor Aaron Ashmore.
Character's powers: Freezes liquid or vapor in a matter of seconds.
X-ographic: Don't let the "Top Gun" moniker fool you - he's that guy
who always goes after the girl he can't have (in this case, Rogue).
THE INTELLECTUAL:
Beast (Kelsey Grammer)
Actor known for: Playing effete shrink Dr. Frasier Crane on two hit
sitcoms ("Cheers" and "Frasier").
Character's powers: A scientist who has superhuman strength and
agility.
X-ographic: Cerebral, upper-crust epicureans with a dark side; think
"American Psycho" with body-hair issues.
The Bad Guys:
THE ARM CANDY:
Mystique (Rebecca Romijn)
Actress known for: Object of male desire as a model for the Sports
Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and Victoria's Secret.
Character's powers: A shape-shifter who can take the voice and form of
anyone.
X-ographic: The perfect dinner date - she'll be whomever you want her
to be (for most guys, the blue paint and lack of clothes will suffice).
THE MAD SCIENTIST:
Magneto (Ian McKellen)
Actor known for: Being outed and outspoken about it, and nailing roles
like Gandalf in "Lord of the Rings" and Sir Leigh Teabing in "The Da
Vinci Code."
Character's powers: Manipulates magnetic fields and all things metal.
X-ographic: Cunning politicians and ticket-dodging UN diplomats dig his
initial willingness to compromise, then go for the jugular.
THE BRAINY BEAUTY:
Jean Grey (Famke Janssen)
Actress known for: Turning down lead in "Terminator 3: Rise of the
Machines"; former frisky James Bond foe.
Character's powers: Reads minds, projects thoughts and moves objects
telekinetically.
X-ographic: Sure to be a hit among NYPD detectives and 1010 WINS
traffic reporters.
THE HOOLIGAN:
Juggernaut (Vinny Jones)
Actor known for: Being a big, tough enforcer in Guy Ritchie films
("Snatch," "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels")
Character's powers: This convict has superhuman strength, unstoppable
inertia and hulking size.
X-ographic: Channels a Jets fan on a three-day beer binge.
THE REBELLIOUS TEEN:
Pyro (Aaron Stanford)
Actor known for: His epic role in "Equus"... at the Roudenbush
Community Center in Connecticut.
Character's powers: Manipulates fire, natch.
X-ographic: He's the angst-ridden adolescent who loses his love
interest to his best friend, then starts bullying the rest of the
class.
THE SAUCY LATINO:
Callisto (Dania Ramirez)
Actress known for: Being the big man's love interest in "Fat Albert"
Character's powers: Has the ability to move quickly and detect changes
in energy levels.
X-ographic: Where was she during the blackout? Tattoos and tight
leather make her a fave among heavily inked bikers and Con Edison
workers.
* * *
Paquin takes her 'Stand' as a lust action hero
NY DAILY NEWS/By JOHN CLARK
Anna Paquin didn't have a wardrobe malfunction filming "X Men: The Last
Stand," opening today - though that doesn't mean she slipped seamlessly
into her superhero costume.
"The suits are actually not designed to move," says Paquin of the
shrink-wrapped quality of the leather cat suit she wears as Rogue, the
sexy young mutant who can suck the life force from anyone who touches
her.
"The problem is ... you have ladies who look like sex symbols, but are
also supposed to kick ass. It's tough to accommodate both."
So the actress, 23, who won an Oscar at age 11 for her first film,
1993's "The Piano," took matters into her own hands. "They were
constantly replacing things [on the costume] with elastic," she says
with a laugh.
Fortunately for Paquin, Rogue doesn't do much ass-kicking in this
latest "X-Men" adventure: She has to decide whether to take "the cure,"
an antibody that will suppress her powers, as well as those of fellow
mutants like Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), Storm (Halle Berry) and Angel
(Ben Foster).
But Paquin, born in Canada and raised in New Zealand, has tackled a lot
of challenges since winning the Oscar. Her roles after "The Piano"
included a girl who wants to save geese ("Fly Away Home"), a Hollywood
tart ("Hurlyburly"), a groupie ("Almost Famous") and an English-class
temptress ("25th Hour"). Last year she appeared in the critical fave
"The Squid and the Whale," and coming up is a co-starring role with
Matt Damon in the drama "Margaret."
Paquin enrolled at Columbia University in 2000, and soon after appeared
Off-Broadway in a number of plays, including "Roulette," "The Distance
>From Here" and "The Glory of Living." In "Living," she played a
homicidal Alabama teen, and her grit - and wicked sense of humor -
shined. As a New Zealander, she says she's comfortable with such quirky
fare.
"There's an our-part-of-the-world [mentality] we have, which can be
very funny," she told the Daily News. "It has a very particular feel to
it, which is cool when you put it in an American context."
"X-Men" fans sure have an appreciation for Paquin, despite her
character's touch-me-and-die power. At a recent appearance at a
comic-book store, Foster says the young guys who turned up for
autographs and photos didn't mind Rogue's mutant drawback.
"They'd all want to die getting it on with Rogue," says Foster. "That's
the way to go."