"xXx" must rank among the most insultingly stupid scripts of the
year, ineptly directed in terms of actor/character direction, and
mindnumbingly dumbed down for its presumably intended audience. I almost walked out of "xXx" at least five times but it was
just so unfathomably bad that I was glued to the screen out of pure
shock.
Aside from probably the least-sexy screen kiss ever, Vin Diesel
does little to distinguish himself as an actor in this vehicle. His
lines are delivered as though being read off cue cards. The plot is
insipid, predictable and, surprisingly, even dated (aside from the
notion of biological weapons -- no, wait, that's been done before
and better, too).
Not a single element in this movie aside from the inclusion of
every imaginable "extreme" sport is anything that hasn't already
been included in a Bond film. Ironically, the first scene in "xXx" is
designed to let the audience know they are NOT watching a Bond
movie. It's a tongue-in-cheek (if mean-spirited, like much of the
rest of the film) nod at the Bond franchise that suggests this movie
is going to go places Bond would never dare. Well, if going
somewhere completely lacking in class and wit is where they
intended, that is just about the only fresh ground covered. So
intent were the producers on out-Bonding Bond that they ended up
creating only a pale, inexplicably illogical, dull imitation. If all a
viewer wants is to see some cool extreme sports stunts, renting a
specialized video ought to be a much more fulfilling experience,
especially since the stunts will be real and not riddled with editing
gimmicks and digital enhancements.
year, ineptly directed in terms of actor/character direction, and
mindnumbingly dumbed down for its presumably intended audience. I almost walked out of "xXx" at least five times but it was
just so unfathomably bad that I was glued to the screen out of pure
shock.
Aside from probably the least-sexy screen kiss ever, Vin Diesel
does little to distinguish himself as an actor in this vehicle. His
lines are delivered as though being read off cue cards. The plot is
insipid, predictable and, surprisingly, even dated (aside from the
notion of biological weapons -- no, wait, that's been done before
and better, too).
Not a single element in this movie aside from the inclusion of
every imaginable "extreme" sport is anything that hasn't already
been included in a Bond film. Ironically, the first scene in "xXx" is
designed to let the audience know they are NOT watching a Bond
movie. It's a tongue-in-cheek (if mean-spirited, like much of the
rest of the film) nod at the Bond franchise that suggests this movie
is going to go places Bond would never dare. Well, if going
somewhere completely lacking in class and wit is where they
intended, that is just about the only fresh ground covered. So
intent were the producers on out-Bonding Bond that they ended up
creating only a pale, inexplicably illogical, dull imitation. If all a
viewer wants is to see some cool extreme sports stunts, renting a
specialized video ought to be a much more fulfilling experience,
especially since the stunts will be real and not riddled with editing
gimmicks and digital enhancements.