'XXX' pure PG-13 fun

By Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette-Journal

XXX (Rated PG-13 for violence, non-stop action sequences, sensuality, drug content and profanity.) Three Stars (Good). Vin Diesel X is a cocky, extreme sports guru turned secret agent in this shameless but fun attempt to update the James Bond character. Despite hackneyed dialogue and all too familiar plot points, Diesel's "X" is a definitive guilty pleasure. Also starring Samuel L. Jackson, Asia Argento. Directed by Rob Cohen. Sony, 120 minutes.

True, Diesel's onscreen persona owes more to Sylvester Stallone than James Bond, but we've seen his character — Xander Cage, X for short — in a half dozen other films. He's the archetypal bad-guy-turned-good, a role Kurt Russell perfected two decades ago as Snake Plissken in "Escape From New York."

And it's not just the characters that feel like retreads. The plot points and dialogue are hackneyed, which makes it all the more remarkable that "XXX" is pure, glorious fun.

X is a cocky, extreme sports guru, who's built an international reputation by videotaping his incredible — often illegal — stunts and broadcasting them over the Web. Among them is the scene we've all seen in the trailers, where Diesel launches a Corvette over the side of a bridge, then parachutes to safety.

These spectacular abilities call X to the attention of National Security Agent Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson), a storied spy who sees him as the ultimate secret agent. It doesn't take long for Gibbons to present him with the proposition that every film from "The Rock" to "Lilo and Stitch" has been built around: "Help us or do jail time."

For X, the choice is easy because the mission means more opportunities to drive fast cars, jump from planes and blow things up. There's a lot of that in "XXX," and it's a good thing because director Rob Cohen — who also brought us "The Fast and the Furious" — is far better with action sequences than storytelling.

To his credit, Cohen realizes that, and he basks in Rich Wilkes' laughable script, playing the ridiculous situations and terrible dialogue to the hilt. Label "XXX" a good, bad movie, a guilty pleasure or whatever you like, there's no getting away from the fun.

This is primarily because Cohen spends most of the movie's two hours showing us incredible people doing incredible things, like jumping motorbikes over the roofs of houses, snowboarding down avalanches or parachuting from insane locations. In some scenes, you notice the computer enhancement. But in most, you don't. And Diesel is a likable enough character that it's easy to root for him.

Also likable is X's obligatory love interest, Yelena (Asia Argento), a lovely Russian who oozes both sex and danger. Bond girl, anyone?

I'll be curious to see the reaction of Bond fans because I would expect the movie to either thrill or sicken them with its obvious nods to the MGM franchise. X gets everything from a 007-style farewell sequence to his own version of Q, Bond's gadget expert.

It's not unreasonable to look at X as an updated version of Bond. Today's youth can probably better identify with Diesel's muscled, tattooed torso than Bond's tux anyway.

As for the rest of the formula, it's all in place: the girls, the guns, the cars and the sex. What more could you ask for in a secret agent?

Rated PG-13 for violence, non-stop action sequences, sensuality, drug content and profanity.