xXx now going on 15 years later still is as dumb and ridiculous as ever… and entertaining as all hell. The stunt work is rather impressive and while Vin Diesel may not be some thespian actor, movies like this and Fast and the Furious is right in his wheelhouse.
xXx
— 15th Anniversary Edition —
(2002)
Genre(s): Action
Sony | PG13 – 124 min. – $19.99 | January 10, 2017
Date Published: 01/17/2017 | Author: The Movieman
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THE MOVIE — 3.5/5 |
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Plot Synopsis: Xander Cage (VIN DIESEL) is a notorious underground thrill-seeker who, until now, has been deemed untouchable by the law. But when crack NSA Agent Gibbons (SAMUEL L. JACKSON) convinces Cage to infiltrate a ruthless Russian crime ring headed by Yorgi (MARTON CSOKAS), this new breed of secret agent (codename: xXx) takes down the enemies of justice with a vengeance in this high-octane, turbo-charged thrill-ride. When xXx was released back in 2002, the spy genre under the Brosnan Administration had grown stale and admired the film for bringing a different vibe, more in terms of character, into the mix and yes, this movie is dumb but it was entertaining as hell and if not for the questionable performances, though Vin Diesel has charisma in spades, the plot and villain are straight from the James Bond playbook.
Yes, this is a dumb movie but with Vin Diesel, and a laughably scar-faced Samuel L. Jackson, and some fine action sequences, even with some relatively poor CGI (even by 2002 standards), xXx still holds up very well all these years later and being my fourth viewing dating back to when it was in theaters, I still had a hell of a good time, ignoring some of the glaring issues (the acting in particular). |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.0/5 |
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This release comes with a redemption code for the Digital HD copy. No surprise that Final Chapter: The Death of Xander Cage was not included… Audio Commentary – Director Rob Cohen goes into a decent amount of detail about the cast and crew (with the standard butt kissing included). It’s on the dry side and could’ve used additional commentators to liven things up. Origins of a Renegade (6:27; HD) – This is a new featurette that includes interviews with Vin Diesel, Toni Collette, Nina Dobrev and others and a sneak peek at xXx: The Return of Xander Cage. xXx: A Filmmakers Diary:
Featurettes:
Visual Effects How-To’s (3:04; SD):
Music Videos:
Deleted Scenes (15:51; SD) — There are 10 scenes here including some that were put into the Extended Cut which unfortunately we’ll have to live with on DVD. One scene, with nude girls, still has the breasts blurred out. Theatrical Trailer (2:34; HD) |
VIDEO – 4.0/5 |
| There is some good news with this release, the video has been upgraded from the old MPEG-2 codec to MPEG-4 AVC so at least Sony didn’t do a direct port. As this is, the film presented in its original 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio has been given a fine 1080p high-definition transfer showcasing many of the bright and vivid colors which usually ranged from orange to teal; detail looks sharp and nicely defined throughout and although there is a heavy presence of grain, it’s still an okay transfer. |
AUDIO – 4.0/5 |
| Not only did the video get a slight upgrade, the disc includes a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (whereas the original was merely PCM 5.1). This isn’t exactly a robust track but it does show signs of life during the many action sequences, particularly the barn explosion early on and the avalanche near the end. In between, dialogue levels did sound clean and the rear channels were mainly used for Randy Edelman’s bombastic score and some ambient noises. |
OVERALL – 3.5/5 |
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Overall, xXx now going on 15 years later still is as dumb and ridiculous as ever… and entertaining as all hell. The stunt work is rather impressive and while Vin Diesel may not be some thespian actor, movies like this and Fast and the Furious is right in his wheelhouse; also doesn’t hurt Asia Argento makes for a, ahem, lovely love interest. This 15th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray release includes some decent features and solid video/audio transfers. |
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.