Product: xXx (2002)
Rating: 4.0
Vin Diesel is one bad.. *Shut Yo' Mouth!*
It's undeniable. Vin Diesel IS the next big action star. He has the required elements of being big and strong and looking like he's big and strong... and, unlike muscle-brained knuckleheads like Stallone, Schwarzenneger, and Seagal, Vin Diesel has undeniable charisma. He showed potential signs of being a star in "Saving Private Ryan" and "Boiler Room", but his first really star-making effort was as the escaped killer, Riddick, in the sci-fi/horror flick "Pitch Black". His presence helped elevate the movie from a forgettable popcorn flick to a memorable, cult film that really hit it big when it made it to video. Diesel got an even meatier part the following summer as one of the leads in the box office hit "The Fast and Furious". After that movie, Hollywood was buzzing about Diesel.Now, it comes time for the ultimate test of Hollywood bank-ability... can Diesel open an action film on his own and achieve box office success while also make a positive impression with critics and fans alike? In "XXX", the answer is a most resounding YES!!!! "XXX" is derivate of James Bond films in many ways, but it comes across as more of a tribute to those films as opposed to a rip-off. This movie comes complete with everything the Bond formula requires: the spectacular opening scene, the evil European arch-villain, the breathtaking scenery, the bevy high-tech gadgets, and, of course, the sexy women. The opening scene involves the stealing of a fancy car to embarrass a stuck-up congressman, and then driving the car off a very high bridge and having Diesel character, Xander Cage, parachute out of the car and record everything while the car smashes upon impact. His buddies then pick him up and beat a hasty retreat before the police can get him. This is right on par with any number of spectacular stunts performed in the opening scene of a Bond film. Unlike Bond films, though, "XXX" offers something slightly different from the suave, tuxedo-wearing, martini-drinking super agent. It gives the audience a rebellious, hell-raising, tattoo-mottled anti-hero who is bane of authority everywhere.Xander Cage is a man who likes to thumb his nose at the law and make his name via death-defying stunts and pointed messages that are shown via an underground web site. Alas, that last stunt involving the fancy car attracted a little too much attention and he was quickly busted. However, it wasn't local police that got him; it was the National Security Agency (NSA). The NSA, and lead agent Augustus Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson), want him as he is the 'best of the best of the bottom of the barrel'. It seems that standard secret agents keep getting compromised and killed in the Czech Republic trying to infiltrate a fringe terrorist group called Anarchy 99. Getting wordlier, sleazier, and more expendable person to get inside seems to be the better option. Xander is that man. He shows Gibbons all the characteristics and abilities of a person he would feel comfortable sending on a mission of this nature. In return, all of Xander's recent transgressions will be wiped from the record. This type of setup gives "XXX" a fresh feel to the already crowded spy genre. Given Xander's background, there is always a little sense of concern over who he will side with when push comes to shove. The action scenes and drama are quite well crafted (One in particular involves Xander intentionally starting an avalanche to wipe out a communication station and snowboarding down hill to try and stay ahead of the snow).How the movie ends isn't terribly important. Knowledge that the studio intends to make a franchise out of "XXX" tells the audience enough already. Its journey to that ending that is particularly enthralling. If "XXX" is the way of the future for action films, audiences should be quite pleased for years to come.