I have worked with the Canon XL1, Sony Vx2000, and the Panasonic DVX-100, a, and b. Hands down I pick the DVX-100b. I liked it so much I got one for myself. You can find a good deal on ebay for about $3k. I like it because it has every feature and option you could imagine. It also has an Advanced 24p mode which compresses 24p in a way that doesnt overlap frames. In my opinion, as far as MiniDV goes, it's the closest you can get to film at the moment. But it all comes down to lighting. If you flop on the lighting it will look like a home video, no matter what camera you use. Sorry if that's a repeat of previous replies. It's late im to lazy to read the responses.

I've used the GL2 a lot (I own one) as well as the VX2000 briefly and the DVX100a for quite some time.

My ten cents:

the GL2 has a great lens
pretty sharp picture, especially in bright sunlight
somewhat sterile looking
camera is light and compact

the VX2000 is solidly built, kind of heavy
somewhat noisy image

the DVX100a is well-built also
I like the real focal length markings on the lens
metal toggle switches for many functions - this is good
built in lens cover and hood are cool
footage looks maybe too warm/soft - more like soap opera video than film

I also own a VX2000. It did it's job nicely. I got very good results. Everything on Vppictures.com was shot on a VX-2000.

It's really all about how you use the camera. The DVX100b is going for around $3500 by AUTHORIZED dealers, which is the best way to go for a camera this expensive. At the moment you get a $400 mail in rebate, the DVX book written by Barry Green and Magic Bullet software which is a plugin to help acheive the film look more accuratley. That being said, you only get all these goodies if you purchase from an authorized dealer. Panasonic has a list of them on their website. Most commonly known are EVS and B&H.

Just another quick comment on the DVX. I can acheive really cold tones with the DVX. It's all in the scene files and how you adjust the different settings. That being said I've worked with the VX2100 and the XL2 (not very much with this camera) and find that the DVX was overall the best for the "film look".

-Kegan