XXX [HD]

Ultimate Popcorn Movie, and As Such It Works Well
[Actually, my rating is 3.5 though I liked it pretty much.]

Contrary to many reviewers, I went to see "XXX" just to see Asia Argento, daughter of famous horror maestro Dario. Of course, I knew Vin Diesel and Sam Jackson, and a greta fan of the latter. Also, I have seen Vin's great sci-fi thriller "Pitch Black," but to me, she is the one to see.

Anyway, "XXX" proved two following things; Vin Diesel is the action star of the next generation (another candidate is, probably, the Rock), and his name will be much more famous than he is now. (Actually while I was watching Serie A games, Italian football games on cable TV, his name was shown extensively in the ads on the ground.) He deserves much attention from us, and his metoric rise of career surely comes from his charisma, which can be easily seen in this otherwise OK action film.

The plot of "XXX" about the instant-made spy with 'I-am-BAAAAAD' attitude is not new. Sam Jackson's role as a reluctant boss handling the most...

"xXx" the review and why I loved it
Let me first tell ya why I loved this movie. I really enjoy Vin's other movies. I liked him in "The Iron Giant" (HE WAS THE ROBOT!!), "Pitch Black" (supposed to be filming the sequel right now), "The Fast and the Furious" (must I explain?!?) and his dramatic role in "Boiler Room" totally made him an actor to watch. I enjoyed his really sharp witted, sarcastic humor. This is a movie that I will be owning on the day it comes out on DVD (hopefully a 2-disc DVD is in the works with 5.1 EX surround and hours of bonus footage). There's enough action to make any Arnold fan happy, but guess what, VIN IS WAY BETTER! Now for my short review:

Xander "xXx" Cage is a daring, extreme athlete who is chosen by the NSA to go to Russia and find out information about some people. But what he finds out is very dangerous.

I also loved Asia Argento's (she needs to be in more American movies, she is already a hit in her native Italy) performance in this movie. She added a kinda Lara Croft-type girl...

Best of the summer blockbusters, to date.
XXX (Rob Cohen, 2002)

Here's a surprise: Rob Cohen, whose The Fast and the Furious was not only one of the biggest surprise hits of 2001 but also by far the biggest of Cohen's career, teams up again with Vin Diesel. The major lineup change here is the addition of screenwriter Rich Wilkes. Anyone familiar with the name should be ready to crawl under their seats right about now; Wilkes has been responsible in the past for such deathless cinematic fare as The Jerky Boys and The Stoned Age.

Whatever Cohen did to Wilkes, though, he did it right. XXX is absolutely typical run-of-the-mill shut-your-brain-off spy movie fare, so cut from the cloth of James Bond that the opening scene of the film features a nameless tuxedoed secret agent getting shot in the middle of a Rammstein concert. Cohen and Diesel threw down the gauntlet from the get-go to Albert Broccoli and Co. (and if the trailers for the new Bond film are anything to go by, "Bond"'s death at the beginning of this film is...

Click to Editorial Reviews