X-Men (2000)

Being different can make you an outcast, but it can also give you the power to protect the very people who fear you. Bryan Singer's "X-Men" takes place in a world where a growing number of people are born with extraordinary and dangerous abilities, the result of genetic mutations, and are feared and shunned because of them. Under the guidance of Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart), a gifted telepath, a band of young mutants, including Cyclops (James Marsden), Storm (Halle Berry) and Jean Grey (Famke Janssen), learn to control their powers and use them for good. Joining them are Rogue (Anna Paquin), a runaway whose touch drains people's life force, and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman, in his breakout role), a gruff loner with razor-sharp claws and no memory of his past. Together, they must protect humanity from Xavier's old friend turned enemy, Magneto (Ian McKellen), who believes humans and mutants can never coexist and plots to turn world leaders into mutants at a summit on Ellis Island. The film helped launch the modern superhero movie boom.