Today’s quick review: xXx. Xander Cage (Vin Diesel), a daredevil with a criminal streak, is foricbly recruited by NSA agent Augustus Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson) to handle a mission too dangerous for the NSA. Xander must infiltrate an anarchic terrorist group led by a man named Yorgi (Marton Csokas) and acquire the information the NSA needs to move against them.
xXx is an action movie with a spy movie’s plot and extreme sports sensibilities. The blend of genres sounds perfect for an action film, but xXx has a hard time getting out of the gate. Xander Cage is one of Vin Diesel’s weaker roles. Too much of his image is wrapped up in early-2000s extreme sports culture, and even the parts of his character that should be timeless are undermined by the film’s lack of realism and mediocre writing.
The story is a paint-by-the-numbers spy affair, right down to the gadgets Xander is given for his mission. The film thumbs its nose at spy conventions along the way, portraying Xander as the tough, cool antidote to the ineffectual, tuxedoed heroes of the spy genre, but none of these jabs really hit their mark. The spy elements exaggerate an already cartoonish film, further damaging Xander’s credibility as a protagonist.
The film finds its rhythm about halfway through when it stops posturing and focuses on action. The stunts are transparent excuses for Xander to put his extreme sports skills to use on his mission, but they are imaginative and handled reasonably well. These moments give xXx a reasonable amount of payoff for action fans and are the main reason to watch the film.
Check out xXx if you are an action fan looking for an easy watch with a bit of creativity. The plot, the acting, and most of the action are nothing special, but a couple of big stunts set it apart. Skip it if you dislike the excesses of the action genre or are looking for a better take on the spy genre.
5.8 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.5 for some fun action held back by cut-rate writing and dated style.