xXx: Return of Xander Cage Review

The Return of Xander Cage is absolutely ridiculous with so many hilariously cliché moments, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't fun. It's not exactly a movie that features a strong story so if you're fine with a narrative being thrown out the window for action then this is a blast.

The previous comments might come across more negative than how I feel about it though this really is just an adrenaline blast with some outrageous action scenes. Some time has passed since Xander Cage (Vin Diesel) went into hiding for whatever reason and is now thrown back into the fold as his original handler Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson) is killed by a downed satellite.

This crash was caused by a device lazily called Pandora's box and everyone is after it since it can cause untold damage. Once Xander is recruited he decides to collect a rather odd team to back him up on the mission to find it including a sniper (Ruby Rose), a stunt guy (Rory McCann) and a DJ (Kris Wu). I know, it sounds absolutely hilarious and I suppose style matters more than substance when it comes to Cage's team.

This sends them on somewhat of an adventure as they track the device down filled with crazy moments of action and some exciting gun sequences. There were memorable moments such as water skiing on motorcycles, mid-air no gravity combat and skiing down a rocky dirt hill.

As you can tell things are just wild and there are many cheesy moments throughout the entire film that give a great laugh. Vin Diesel however just charms right through all of these moments and really owning up to these aspects. It also aimed to quickly grow the scope of the franchise while not forgetting the past movies.

This was nice as some series just neglect past entries or try to move past them and XXX carries forward all of the fun. I found the action scenes to be well shot with some big moments and there was never any glaring CGI. They also weren't afraid to go wild with certain sections and the level of creativity in scenes was interesting.

The Conclusion

xXx: Return of Xander Cage certainly doesn't feature a strong story or a plot device that really matters, but it does take you along for a fun ride. It was definitely enjoyable and I left the theater having viewed exactly what I expected. Most moments are insane and high on the level of ridiculous insanity, but those that like this type of action movie will love it.

The film is also fairly funny as well gathering many laughs from the audience and never takes itself too seriously which fits the movie's theme well. It's interesting to see the movie being developed so quickly in terms of a crew and the wide range of actors will certainly make this a globally appealing film.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage Review at Theater with Standard Viewing
Screening Provided by Paramount

Rating Overall: 6.5