'xXx: Return of Xander Cage': Movie Review

Vin Diesel and Deepika PadukonexXx Return of Xander CageUA Action Adventure Thriller Director DJ CarusoCast Vin Diesel Donnie Yen Deepika Padukone Tony Jaa Deepika Padukone Samuel L Jackson Toni Colette Ice Cube Kris Wu Ruby Rose Rory McCann Nina Dobrev Michael BispingRatingVin Dieselrsquos 2002 release lsquoXXXrsquo got resurrected into a franchise outing in 2005 with lsquoXXXState of the Unionrsquo and Ice Cube in the pivotal role Xander Cage was of course presumed to be dead because the first issue had him die in the end Those days Diesel wasnrsquot too comfortable spamming franchises as he was already in the thick of things with lsquoFast amp Furiousrsquo Now that lsquoFampFrsquo has almost run itrsquos course sotospeak Diesel needs visibility and what better way than to add some original fuel back into yet another adrenaline gusher So we have David Caruso return as Director with Vin Diesel as Xander Cage and our own Deepika Padukone gunning for action as his beauteous side kick But it doesnrsquot start out that wayhellipThose who heaved a sigh of relief at CageVin Dieselrsquos death in lsquoXXXrsquo may now have to accept that it was in vain As they say lsquoItrsquos never over until itrsquos overrsquo and this holds true for the extreme athlete who supposedly faked his death and lived in selfimposed exile until he got this recall back into the cinemareal world MarkeToni Colette the badass XXX controller has ferretted him out to prevent the bad guys from stealing the lsquoPandorarsquos Boxrsquo a sort of signaling device that can lure satellites orbiting earth to their doom One such incident reportedly killed off Agent Augustus GibbonsSamuel L Jackson and a promising new recruit Neymar Jr the footballer playing himselfCage is called back into action following the death of his former handler NSA Agent Augustus GibbonsSamuel L Jackson when deadly alpha warriors Xiang Donnie Yen SerenaDeepika Padukone HawkeMichael Bisping amp TalonTony Jaa steal the Pandorarsquos Box right from under the nose of the best assemblage of counter intelligence staffers the world has on offer Meanwhile Xander Cage has assembled his own team consisting of NicksKris Wu Tennyson TorchRory McCann and Adele WolfeRuby Rose with technical support from piss scared of guns but expert at weapons function Becky ClearidgeNina DobrevThe narrative is segmented and even the action is cut and joined together in a million places So therersquos no smooth progressive transition happening in the action setpieces Itrsquos all pieced together to coverup flaws of which there are many The action is totally unreal From the opening sequence where Xander Cage makes his getaway from a hightension electric tower on skis that land on uneven hardened snowless mountains to the sequence where Cage and his team make a getaway through water on mobikes fitted with skis skimming the surface it all looks so unbelievable that yoursquod be thinking you are in a world devoid of science Gravity has no role to play here and time lapses are not meant to be measured here Vehicles are overturned at will Satellites crash into earth and are aimed to kill and the teammates have special skills which donrsquot look too special when viewed closely Diesel has the charisma but his innate slow burning lethargy doesnrsquot quite fit in well with the persona of an extreme athlete with abilities beyond belief The furious editing speed allows for some suspension of disbelief but it doesnrsquot last through the entire run 3D effects are not quite up there with the best eitherlsquoReturn of Xander Cagersquo as the name suggests returns to stuntCGIaction to provide itrsquos adrenaline rush It borrows liberally from the lsquoF amp Frsquo formula and like the successful franchise aims for a broader audience by accumulating itrsquos cast from across continents In India the interest is largely for Bollywood Diva Deepika Padukonersquos first major foray into Hollywood and everyone is basically eager to know how well she has done That she had to decline the lsquoF amp F7rsquo offer that came her way a few years back is now history Though she has a meaty enough role here and does kick some ass her silly looking costumes make it clear shersquos there for the eye candy effect Deepika strives to look convincing as an action star but therersquos not much she is expected to do other than look slinky and sexy Therersquos hardly any drama in it for her In the preinterval half she appears to be muddling her way through but postinterval she seems more assured and collected Ice Cubersquos entry towards the fading end suggests therersquos going to be a bigger team plying their wares in the next outingThis is basically Dieselrsquos show and he is well aided by the stunt choreography CGI action and editing speed And the innumerable scantily clad women that flit in and out of the frame at regular intervals add to the cultivated persona of Cage being a ladies man through and through Given the technological support Diesel manages a donrsquot care kindof suavity that appears suitably imposing and indestructible Donrsquot go by looks though Therersquos not much energy in the telling here and the confused narrative totally sidelines logic