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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Like action flicks? C2G does not disappoint!, October 5, 2003
Popular rapper DMX has teamed up in an earlier martial arts film with Steven Segal, and has stepped his role in action films up a notch with martial arts superstar Jet Li, who has (to my mind)established himself as one of the greatest martial arts stars of our time.DMX's role is Tony Fait, a smooth (but somewhat excitable)master thief. He and his crew (including the lovely Gabrielle Union and his partner-in- crime from the afore-referenced "Exit Wounds" Anthony Anderson) break into a diamond exchange, and steal a cache of black diamonds. They were created by the Taiwanese government, and when agitated (kinda like what we saw as the principal weapon in the fifth Bond flick "Diamonds Are Forever") unleash incredible energy. They were originally stolen by the real bad guy Ling (Mark Dacascos), who intends to auction them off to a room full of worldwide nogoodnicks. Ling then abducts DMX's baby girl to ransom them back. And as they say, it is ON. You cannot have these guys together without great fight scenes, and this movie does not disappoint. Li has an incredible nonchalance about himself, and actually fights (and easily handles, of course) his first few adversaries with one hand in his pocket! He has to use both hands, though, when he ends up in the middle of a brawl with a crew of Ultimate Fighters. Of course, he can, and does, without raising much of a sweat (but he does get around to tossing around a midget as a "weapon"). Just as he did in Exit Wounds, Tom Arnold provides some comic relief (among his best lines: "I cannot read Chinese, but I know cop in every language"). Forget about the folks who dog out this movie. The acting is just fine. This script does not call for Meryl Streep, and neither is it incredibly thought provoking screenplay. It does not need to be. It doesn't pretend to be anything other than what it is, a slammin', ultra-violent, retribution filled, sexy action film. While I thought at first that the one-handed fight scenes were a bit much, as another reviewer noted, it does show another side of the virtuosity of Jet Li. And I don't really care whether Kelly Hu (bad-guy Ling's equally ultra-fine sidekick) would have beat down Gabrielle Union in two seconds "in real life". The two of them on the screen is worth seeing, in my humble opinion. Like action movies? Then this one is for you. Enjoy it for what it is, and you will have spent a great ninety minutes.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Predictable, But Better Action Film Than You May Think, March 31, 2003
Jet Li's new film in Hollywood is produced by Joel Silver, and there are lots of HIS fingerprints all around. Slick action, comic relief, and [beautiful]women. Many critics may despise those things, but I just don't agree with them; for, in short, what's wrong with that?The plot is all about handful of some mysterious black diamonds and cruel gangsters, professional thiefs (with no gun policy) and a spy sent from Asia. Imagine actors like Mark Dacascos, Kelly Hu ("The Scorpion King"), DMX, Anthony Anderson ("Exit Wounds"), Gabrielle Union ("Bring It On")and Jei Li, and you get rightly the idea of who is going to be cast as who. Add them a comic relief Tom Arnold, and then you know the whole story. Sure, the cast look like "Exit Wounds" minus Steven, but "Cradle 2 the Grave" shows better actions than that, having Jet Li at hand. And fight scenes are instructed by Li's trusted long-time friend Corey Yuen (who also did a job behind "The Transporter"), so actions are competently done, if lacks any new element. At least, nimble Li can move as a spy should, and he even gives his original style here (he rarely uses his left hand). Though I am not still as much impressed by his Hollywood works as his Asian ones, "Cradle 2 the Grave" is better than his previous "The One" and perhaps the same director's "Romeo Must Die." DMX and other actors are all good, but I still think that director Andrzej Bartkowiak (who was the photographer of "Speed," and you can see a good parody of this hit film here) can better the entire film by speeding up the story a bit. With characters one or two less, the film is less confusing and slicker. The film is indeed predictable, but you should know that from the beginning. And ... well, if you know that from the beginning, you cannot complain about that. Plus, you get a very funny end credits, thanks to Tom Arnold and Anthony Anderson.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Needs Less EFX, More Jet Li, June 8, 2003
Fans were awed by the brilliance and creativity of Jet Li's moves in "Romeo Must Die" or "Lethal Weapon 4" (not to speak of his massive accomplishments in his Chinese films) because of the little things--binding people with plastic straps, fighting them with a fire hose, strangling with a rosary or disassembling a gun with one swipe. It seems as his American film career progresses, Li has chosen to go with big effects, and less of the smaller, cooler moves. Cradle 2 The Grave has all the basic action movie elements: a reluctant pairing (Li's Su character and DMX's Fait), a kidnapping, a weapon of mass destruction, comic relief (Tom Arnold) and the bad guy boss who can also fight. "Cradle" also adds cooler elements such as DMX's burglary squad, who operate quite efficiently in a very "Ocean's 11" way; a nice contrast with rough-n-tough DMX and his daddy-doting daughter; and Li in a semi-neutral role, neither fully a good guy or a bad guy. Su, a Taiwanese intelligence officer, spoils Fait's theft of some valuable gems that just happen to be able to produce nearly infinite amounts of destructive energy. Weapons dealers mistakenly believe Fait still has them and kidnap his daughter, forcing Su and Fait to work as a team. Other than an amazing stunt showing Li dropping from balcony to balcony using only his hands on a skyscraping hotel, the directors of "Cradle" seem to have gone away from Li's amazing athletic skills and toward gigantic fight scenes that show no creativity. There's even an extremely forced fight scene with Jet Li against several guys in a "Fight Club"-like scenario, that comes out of nowhere, and feels like an entirely different movie. The battle at the end is way too reminiscent of the final battle in "Romeo Must Die," and is almost a side issue by then. However, both Li and DMX come through with excellent performances, making even Tom Arnolds grinny comic act easier to swallow. The movie moves extremely well, and has no really slow parts. It's about 20 percent the chase, 40 percent fights, 20 percent comedy and 20 percent heists. Get it and watch it during a long weekend, but this film isn't a must-have, by any means, for your collection.
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