PREMIER MOVIE REVIEWS - XXX (2002)

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XXX   (12's)

Plot Summary:

The National Security Agency in America is trying to infiltrate the Eastern European terrorist group, Anarchy 99, but their “James Bond” type agents stick out like sore thumbs and have been killed. Special agent Augustus Gibbons (Samuel L Jackson) wants to recruit someone who will fit in with the terrorist group and who will be able to get close to the leader, Yorgi (Marton Csokas), so he starts to consider tough muscle bound Xander Cage (Vin Diesel) for the job…

Review:

So what or who is xXx? Think James Bond but remove the finesse, lose the tuxedo and forget about the shaken-not-stirred-martini! Now, add muscles, tattoos, loads of attitude and crank up the volume for roaring engines, explosions and heavy rock. What you have is the new breed of special agent - Xander “xXx” Cage.

Director Rob Cohen and Vin Diesel team up again after The Fast And The Furious. There are a lot of similarities between the two movies; lame clichéd characters, desperate dialogue, silly plot, engines roaring and music blaring but somehow this time around none of that matters because XXX is a roller coaster ride of stunts and special effects, noise and action. There are loads of ridiculous, improbable action scenes but at the same time spectacular. Where some movies have a few big action scenes XXX is virtually none stop.

The film has a strange kind of computer-game feel to it and is obviously targeting the teenage “extreme sports” fan. Stunts with powerful bikes, fast cars, boats and snowboarding are so improbable that they could only happen in the fantasy world of computer/video games.

Vin Diesel doesn’t fit the Secret Agent image and this makes the idea of getting him to be an unwilling agent work very well. I don’t think he will be doing any character roles for a while but as far as action hero is concerned he does it well.

Asis Argento plays Yelena the beautiful Ice Queen who is the girlfriend of Yorgi (Marton Csokas) the leader of the terrorist gang based in Prague.

Leave your brain at home and enjoy the spectacular nonsense of XXX!

Reviewed by Niall Quinn, Premier Movie Reviews 2002

RATING

3 Stars

WORTH A WATCH

Main Cast

Vin Diesel is Xander "xXx" Cage

Samuel L Jackson is Augustus Gibbons

Asia Argento is Yelena

Marton Csokas is Yorgi

 

Director

Rob Cohen

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