"Cradle
2 the Grave" is good, old-fashioned action
entertainment. Lots of action, lots of stunts,
half-naked babes, comic relief, OK acting and a thin but
barely interesting storyline--this is what action movies
are made of!
In
the start of the film, a jewel thief (played by rapper
DMX) and his accomplices pull off a heist in which they
make away with a large assortment of jewels, including a
series of black diamonds. A shrewd businessman on
the black market (Mark Dacascos) gets word that he has
the diamonds and kidnaps the thief's daughter, so
he'll hand over the stones in exchange for her return.
He gets assistance from a Taiwanese police officer (Jet
Li), who is a former acquaintance of this
businessman and helps track him down.
Jet
Li fans should be very impressed. Like always, he
shows off his fast-as-lightning martial arts skills.
And of course, like in every one of these movies,
there's a scene where he has to duke it out with someone
10 times his size. Yes, it's a cliché, but an
entertaining cliché and the scene made me
smile in recognition. And in that same scene, he
also battles a crowd of about 20 people--another fun cliché. Li's a brilliant martial artist, but I'm
pretty sure if he were battling those many people,
at least one of them would attack him from behind.
But hey, it's an action movie! Not a reality show.
Like
in "Exit Wounds" DMX shows that he has
enough acting talent to prevent me from bursting into
laughter, though he certainly can use some lessons.
He pretty much maintains the same pissed-off _expression
throughout the movie, yet you feel some of his sadness
when his daughter's taken away from him.
In
the comic relief department, we have Tom Arnold and
Anthony Anderson, both high-energy comic actors who
prove to be hilarious in supporting roles. Like in
"Exit Wounds" the two guys have another
humorous chat over the closing credits.
And
in the babe department, we have Gabrielle Union, who
some may remember from "Bring It On" and
"The Brothers." She is such a major
babe, and drifts through the whole film flashing her
beautiful smile and her beautiful cleavage.
Those in search for a spectacular, fun-filled,
action-packed popcorn flick should not be disappointed!
"Cradle 2 the Grave" is a wild, wild ride!
