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Plot Summary
When the government finds out that a group of terrorists has infiltrated its ranks, and the group is being trained by high-ranking official George Deckert (Willem Dafoe), NSA Agent Augustus Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson) hires an ex-con to bring down the nefarious plot. Thinking he can trust no one in the government, Augustus springs Darius Stone (Ice Cube), who once trained under him, from prison. Although Darius is a loose cannon, Augustus is convinced he is the only man for the job. (1)
Review
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Hello, Movie Buffs!
I enjoyed the 2002 xXx movie and I was looking forward to the 2005 sequel xXx: State of the Union. State of the Union is a fair addition to the xXx franchise and while the plot is as ridiculous as its predecessor, it is obvious that no one ever watches this kind of genre for the plot. It’s not as complex as the James Bond films but that was never the point of the films. The action was pretty good but it did lack some excitement like the first film had. The film does have some merit in regards to the technical quality, which looks pretty great. There are some interesting gadgets, the humor is a bunch of cheesy one-liners, and the pace of this film is substantially faster. However, things start to go downhill with acting.
Now the first film was not a masterpiece but it did have merit in the form of Vin Diesel as the main protagonist, Xander Cage. This time we have Ice Cube (Boyz in the Hood, Straight Outta Compton) playing Darius Stone, who is another XXX agent. I found nothing wrong with Ice Cube’s in this film and I enjoyed him in some of his other movies as well, however, it does get a bit tiring to see him play very similar roles. For example, his role in Are We There Yet is almost similar to his role in the Ride Along. Albeit one was a little softer than the other but it was kind of the same character. The character of Darius Stone is not much different from his previous roles, I am not sure if that is just how he is as an actor or that’s just the kind of characters he gets stuck with; probably a bit of both. He more so sneers his way throughout the movie and he lacks a personality which doesn’t make for a very well developed character. Diesel did things differently in the first film, and I know the characters are supposed to be different but at least make the experience enjoyable. Stone needs to have a swagger that is arrogant and a bit mysterious; you want to draw people in and still maintain a sense of “devil may care this way,” otherwise, it gets boring really quickly. Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man) was okay, I’ve seen him play better bad guys so I was a little let down in his portrayal here. Samuel L. Jackson was good because he was the same from the first film. The rest of the cast was either good or okay.
Overall, xXx: State of the Union. State of the Union is a decent film. I have nothing against this film but I do wish it lived up the success of the first film. It desperately needs some better acting and overall development. If you’re looking for a film with secondary characters, an uncomplicated plot, and little excitement or development then this movie is for you. But if you enjoy a good plot then I recommend that you stay away.
"Welcome to the first tank-jacking in history."
- Darius Stone
Final Vote
Worth Seeing: 2.2 of 5 star
Worth Buying: 2.2 of 5 stars
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Movies Similar
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The Expendables (2010)
The Expendables 2 (2012)
The Expendables 3 (2014)
Fast and the Furious (2001)
Fast 2 Furious (2003)
Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)
Fast & Furious (2009)
Fast Five (2011)
Fast and Furious 6 (2013)
Furious 7 (2015)
The Fate of the Furious (2017)
The Man From U.N.C.L.E (2015)
Salt (2010)
Transporter 1 (2002)
Transporter 2 (2005)
Transporter 3 (2008)
Transporter 4: Refueled (2015)
xXx (2002)
xXx: State of the Union (2005)
xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017)
Cast & Crew
Directed by Lee Tamahori
Writing Credits Rich Wilkes and Simon Kinberg
Produced by
Rob Cohen --- executive producer
Derek Dauchy --- executive producer
Todd Garner --- executive producer
Neal H. Moritz --- producer
Arne Schmidt --- producer
Music by Marco Beltrami
Cinematography by David Tattersall
Film Editing by Mark Goldblatt, Todd E. Miller, and Steven Rosenblum
Casting By Margery Simkin
Production Design by Gavin Bocquet
Art Direction by Stella Vaccaro
Set Decoration by Hilton Rosemarin
Costume Design by Sanja Milkovic Hays
Cast:
Willem Dafoe --- General George Deckert
Samuel L. Jackson --- Agent Augustus Eugene Gibbons
Ice Cube --- Darius Stone / XXX
Scott Speedman --- Agent Kyle Christopher Steele
Xzibit --- Zeke
Peter Strauss --- President James Sanford
Michael Roof --- Agent Toby Lee Shavers
Sunny Mabrey --- Charlie Mayweather
Nona Gaye --- Lola Jackson
John Gleeson Connolly --- Lt. Alabama 'Bama' Cobb
Ramon De Ocampo --- Agent Meadows
Barry Sigismondi --- Bull
Michael Don Evans --- Conductor
David Rountree --- Agent
Ned Schmidtke --- General Jack Pettibone
Scott Michael Morgan --- Farmhand
Chris Johnson --- Young Agent
Thom Gossom Jr. --- Baptist Preacher
Stan Sellers --- Uptight Businessman
Paul Collins --- NSA Director Bill Brody
Lisa Joyner --- Field Reporter at Fire
Bruce Kirkpatrick --- Police Captain Davis
Lance Baldwin --- Sharpshooter
J. Anthony Brown --- Webster
Bruce Bruce --- Maurice
Matt Gerald --- Liebo
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