The winds of political change are rumbling through the halls of the Capitol as a popular President is being targeted for assassination by a radical splinter group of dissenters deep within the United States government. Only two people stand between anarchy and freedom: One of them, Augustus Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson), has just survived a hit on the National Security Agency's top-secret headquarters and is on the run. The other, a decorated Special Ops soldier, Darius Stone (Ice Cube), sits under close guard in a military prison. Gibbons once again finds himself in need of an outsider and Stone is his man. The new XXX agent must uncover the insurgents from within. It is the nation's only hope to stop the first coup d'état in American history.

The movie can be described easily with just two words: cookie cutter. The movie is so formulaic it’s almost a crime, the movie strives to do nothing new or original rather just pushing out a very familiar and overdone formula. The movie does have great action sequences and can be quite exciting at times but the lulls between the action are almost antagonizing. I wonder when producers will learn that you cannot make a movie with no story and relying solely on the action to carry the movie, it leaves a very mediocre movie in the end. We know the story it was introduced to us in the first movie which in itself is kind of weak story wise all we have done is switch the characters and throw them into a new scenario, almost ala James Bond but at least with Bond the movie has a style it has a panache this movie lacks both. You could call this movie the poor mans version of a James Bond film marketing itself for the Gen X crowd

I actually liked Ice Cube more as xXx which is simply because I have come to hate Vin Diesel. Diesel has become this arrogant money grubbing super ego that just rubs me the wrong way. I understand that was character in the first movie but Ice Cube’s more down to earth approach was a lot more enjoyable. Because of Diesel’s departure from the films they have decided to cast a new xXx in each sequel which is a little bit of a shame as Ice Cube did a good job with the weak material he was given. The starring role isn’t the problem with the movie, the story is the problem and that is what they should be worrying about. I liked the movie for what it was a brain dead popcorn flick I just wish they could have done more with it.
3 stars out of 5