xXx: Return of Xander Cage

15 years since the release of the original xXx the franchise strikes again, with Vin Diesel as extreme athlete turned government operative Xander Cage rightly returned to the helm. For anyone with an itch for some immensely entertaining fast-paced action, well executed CGI and some truly ridiculous stunts this will surely scratch it.

Cage returns from a hiatus in order to save the world from Pandora’s Box, a deadly new weapon that is already responsible for the death of his good friend Agent Gibbons (Samuel L Jackson) and has fallen into the wrong hands. Unable to resist the challenge by the formidable Jane Marke (Toni Collette) to retrieve it, Cage gathers his dream team together. Somewhere in the South Pacific, he finds the group behind the heist to steal Pandora’s Box from the CIA, who are also part of the xXx programme, but have rebelled due to a corrupt government. The Russians then make a cursory appearance before being blown out of the water through the united effort of well-versed fighters, including martial arts extraordinaires Talon (Tony Jaa) and Xiang (Donnie Yen).

The feature travels to stunning locations all over the world and the cast are equally as cosmopolitan, with Bollywood sweetheart Deepika Padukone as Serena Unger, Australian LGBTQ icon Ruby Rose as Adele Wolf and Chinese-born Canadian rapper Kris Wu as Nicks. Of course, women are attracted to Vin Diesel like cats to catnip but the film mercifully avoids over-dwelling on this (don’t worry, he still gets plenty). Overall, the plot follows the expected trajectory – good guys, bad guys, problem, solution and crazy stunts – but the full tilt action holds some unexpected surprises along the way. Rose and Padukone make a kick-ass duo during the well-choreographed battle scenes and a cameo from Brazilian footballer Neymar as Gibbons’s newest recruit gives a tantalising, if unlikely, possibility for a new star in future movies.

It all ends on a reflective note as Cage is told that the world could in fact be wonderful “if we stop doing bad shit to it”, but the film wraps up with a reminder that all it’s really about is kicking some ass, getting the girl, and trying to look great at the same time – a “noble” aim that xXx succeeds in achieving.

Tarn Rodgers Johns

xXx: Return of Xander Cage is released nationwide on 20^th January 2017.

Watch the trailer for xXx: The return of Xander Cage here: