Within
Xander Cage (Vin Diesel) has been in hiding for well over a decade, in exile, staying well clear of the xXx programme initiated by Augustus Gibbons (Jackson) – and yet the man who doesn’t wish to be found, is detected by the unwavering Jane Marke (Toni Collette), who will stop at nothing to secure an immensely dangerous weapon known as ‘Pandora’s Box’, which can control satellites. Reluctantly agreeing to lend a hand, Cage does it under one condition – he assembles his own team, calling in the assistance of a few old friends. Though the deeper they get into this murky set of affairs, the challenge in knowing who you can and can’t trust becomes something of an impossibility.
That being said, the set-pieces are enjoyable, particularly when involving Donnie Yen, who injects some class into proceedings with well-choreographed martial arts sequences that are exhilarating to indulge in at times. These entertaining moments, where explosions and car crashes make up the back-drop, do exist, but they are tied together by a thinly veiled thing you would imagine the filmmaker would probably describe as a plot.
But just how much slack you decide to cut this film is dependant on how self-aware the production is. It’s so inane, so absurd and completely and utterly irreverent. But does it know that? If the answer is yes, and the over-elaborate tone is purposefully adhering to such a notion, then you can let it off the hook somewhat. But if it’s vying to take itself seriously, and honestly believes it’s as cool as the eponymous protagonist is supposed to be, then it makes for a tragic cinematic experience. Alas, this film lies somewhere between the two; knowing it’s a bit crap (good), and yet doing nothing about it (not so good).