Movie Review: XXX Return Of Xander Cage

First published in Follo.in

Few seconds into the film we see a lady in a body-hugging leather suit running towards a door that is about to shut. She leaps forward, does a clean split and gets her foot in just in time. The editor cuts to her face and we see Deepika Padukone. A theater full of people burst into claps and whistles.

For Indians, this is a special film. An A-list actress has made a very successful crossover to mainstream Hollywood.  Little before the shot, we also see Deepika Padukone’s name appearing third in the opening credits, after Vin Diesel and Donnie Yet. Needless to say, there were claps there too. These and a few more would be the high points of xXx: Return of Xander Cage – a movie that brings Vin Diesel back into a franchise that’s was in comatose.

Vin was last seen as Xander in the 2002 xXx. Known mostly for his work in the Chronicles of Riddick and Fast and Furious franchise, Return of Xander Cage is his attempt to create another franchise where he can be seen.

In this story, Gibbons (Samuel Jackson) is dead and the authorities seek out Xander hoping he could trace the people behind a disaster that is being unleashed. Our dude is chilling somewhere in the Dominican Republic, stealing cable TV connection to watch football matches. They track him and entice him to get back to the xXx program. He is sent out in the quest of the “pandora’s box”, a tiny box, which can control all the satellites hovering around the earth. A couple of satellites have already been sent crashing, killing people.

The plot is wafer-thin, almost borrowed from films like MI4: Ghost Protocol. The reasoning is low as well. The focus clearly was not on all of that. The pitch is simple – an action film that has it all – high adrenalin sequences, babes, and the locations. The action sequences are also created to make Xander look good. Apart from Diesel, the only other actors who get some chunk of the pie are Donnie and Deepika. Tony Jaa is near to inconsequential in the screenplay. The scene is even worse with Krish Wu. A fun appearance by Brazil footballer Neymar has more meat than Kris, who is throughout the film.

The film has been shot and edited on par with any A-list action thriller made in Hollywood. The minor glitches that you may find while watching it at Indian theaters due to the censoring of abuses do not spoil the fun.

The film is primarily aimed at making Vin Diesel look good. Funny hence, that the reason why you could give it a watch is the sizzling Deepika. Nothing else is as compelling.