XXX (2002) / * 1/2
Directed by Rob Cohen. Screenplay by Rich Wilkes. Starring Vin Diesel, Asia Argento, Samuel L Jackson. Running time: 127 minutes. Rated AA for mature subject matter and violent scenes by the MFCB. Reviewed on August 21st, 2002.
By SHANNON PATRICK SULLIVAN
Synopsis: Extreme games athlete and auto thief Xander Cage (Diesel) is despatched on an espionage mission to Prague by Agent Gibbons (Jackson), in return for which his criminal record will be expunged. Cage must infiltrate Anarchy 99, a terrorist cell run by Yorgi (Marton Csokas) and his enigmatic companion Yelena (Argento). Gibbons believes that Anarchy 99 plans to use Russian scientific secrets, lost following the Cold War, to wreak havoc in the free world.
Review: It's easy to imagine Wilkes sitting down with an X-Games schedule, ticking off each event while structuring his script for "XXX" around them. Certainly, such a list supplanted more traditional filmmaking concerns -- characterisation, say, or dialogue. In a way, "XXX" is an action flick in the purest sense, where the high-flying (and disbelief-straining) stunts are not just the movie's main attraction, but virtually its only one. On this level, "XXX" works, displaying enough fast cars and big explosions to entertain even the most bored of teenagers. But those who want something -- anything -- more will be sorely disappointed. The plot is typical spy fare, not dire but hardly distinguished. Far worse is Wilkes' dialogue, which ranges between cliched and embarrassing. This is disastrous for Diesel, who is charismatic enough to play a latter-day James Bond, but is stuck spouting hackneyed lines which would make even the stoic 007 cringe. The only interesting character is an overeager agent played by Michael Roof who behaves like a cousin of the Hardy Boys. Jackson phones it in, Argento feels distinctly awkward, and Csokas is a dull stereotype. "XXX" is so relentlessly -- almost farcically -- hip that it's virtually fated to age appallingly. Teens may lap it up now, but in just a few years it's going to seem as dated as Gidjit hair and acid-wash jeans. Word.
Copyright © 2002 Shannon Patrick Sullivan. Archived at The Popcorn Gallery, http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sps/movies.html
| Shannon Patrick Sullivan | shannon@mun.ca | +---------------------------------+---------------------------------+ / Doctor Who: A Brief History of Time (Travel) go.to/drwho-history \ \__ We are all in the gutter but some of us are looking at the stars __/
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