Did a movie marathon on Wednesday and managed to catch xXx2 and Sahara. Since Sahara has been taken off from the cinema listing, I won't be doing a review on that movie. So, without further ado... here's my take on xXx2.

Somehow, I've nothing much to write about this movie. This is an example of a classic 'no brainer' action movie- style without substance. Practically, the movie starts off with a hit on NSA's secret headquaters by a technologically advance strike team. Barely made it out alive, Agent Gibbons (role reprised by Samuel L. Jackson) wants to find out the reason for the hit. Suspecting a secret faction within the government is involved, he needs to find someone he can trust, thus a new xXx. This lead to a prison break to obtain the service of Darius Stone (played by Ice Cube). After that, it's loud and mindless action all the way to the conclusion.

The plot IMHO is outlandish. It's like something you will only find out of a bad comic book. To make it worst, the dialogues are equally bad. While watching, I wish I had a remote control to fast forward to the end of the movie. Seriously, felt like torture. Furthermore, some actions scenes are so far-fetched that you'll actually laugh at the stupidness of it. :P

The one thing that probably made the movie hold together are the actors. Ice Cube, buffed up just enough to play a prison-hardened agent convincingly. Moreover, he has the right attitude and right expressions to go along with his character. Meanwhile, Jackson with his little on-screen time seem to be enjoying himself and once again Willem Dafoe plays the villain superbly with his no-nonsense attitude. However, I reckon that these two superb actors are under used... too bad, they could've done so much for the film with their talents.

One thing about this movie is the 'cartoonish' special effects. Somehow I feel like I am watching a cutscene from a video game... a bad video game. Nevertheless, good effort by the special effects team. Again, it could've been better.

I feel the best thing about the movie are the sound effects. You can actually feel the surround sound and the chaotic sound effects when things are being wrecked and destroyed. Surprisingly, the hip hop music compliments the scenes nicely. This could be due to excellent ppl from Skywalker Studios. Noticed this when the credits were rolling.

Overall, a forgettable movie with outlandish plot, mindless action and bad dialogues. If you're looking for action movies and want something that does not utilize your brain power, this movie is for you. If not, just give this a miss. Seriously.

Ratings (Scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the highest)

Cast : 3
Sound : 4
Picture : 2
Storyline: 2

OVERALL : 2.75