Slick ‘XXX’ gets by on fireworks, attitude

In theaters

“XXX”

Directed by Rob Cohen. Written by Rich Wilkes. 111 minutes. Rated PG-13

The new cartoon action fantasy, “XXX,” stars Vin Diesel as Xander Cage, a bald-headed, beefed-up bruiser in a sheepskin pimp coat whose intellect runs as deep as the tattoos crisscrossing his chest.

Nicknamed “Triple-X” by Augustus Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson), a member of the National Security Agency determined to have Xander as his next spy, Xander is an extreme sports superstar famous for posting a videotaped series of law-breaking stunts on his popular Web site, the Xander Zone.

But when Xander goes too far, stealing a senator’s Corvette, crashing it over a bridge and parachuting to safety in the film’s first big set piece, Gibbons hunts him down and pins him with an ultimatum: Either become a spy and help save the world from a crazy bunch of Czech hooligans or spend the next several years getting cheap tattoos in prison.

Reluctantly, Xander jets off to Prague – and “XXX” jets into the stratosphere.

As directed by Rob Cohen, who scored big with Diesel in last year’s “The Fast and the Furious,” “XXX” is slick entertainment without a brain in its head. It’s dumb fun slapped silly, a new franchise inspired by the Bond films that’s not far from the porn its title promises – the film is a veritable orgy of outrageous stunts, most of which are kicked so high into the heavens, the film threatens to pass out as Cohen hammers away at the screen in an all-out effort to outdo himself.

The result? A film that occasionally feels like a right hook to the jaw.

After a shaky start, there’s a lot to admire here. Fueled by its thundering soundtrack, the film finds itself in Prague, where Xander must infiltrate a nightclub called Anarchy 99, charm the grease off the chief bad guy, Yorgi (Marton Csokas), and make nice with his girl, Yelena (Asia Argento), a brooding Uma Thurman-wannabe who smolders like a snuffed stogie – and who has her own ideas about Yorgi’s plans to use chemical weapons on the world.

Mirroring “The Fast and the Furious,” “XXX” works because it knows what it is – a flashy B movie streamlined to be a guilty pleasure. There are no pretensions here, just fireworks and attitude, attitude and fireworks.

Diesel got $10 million to star in the movie – watch him get $20 million to star in its sequel.

Grade: B

On video and DVD

“In the Bedroom”

Directed by Todd Field. Written by Robert Fetsinger and Field. 130 minutes. Rated R.

Ron Howard’s “A Beautiful Mind” may have won last year’s Academy Award for Best Picture, but Todd Field’s “In the Bedroom” was the best movie – and not because it was shot in Rockland, Camden and Belfast.

Based on a short story by the late Andre Dubus, the film is a haunting plunge into one family’s nightmare, a gripping examination of rage, guilt and grief as realized in the sudden face of tragedy.

The film stars Nick Stahl as Frank Fowler, a 21-year-old architecture student spending the summer lobstering in his hometown of Camden under the protective gaze of his parents, Matt and Ruth.

As played by Tom Wilkinson and Sissy Spacek, who deliver the best performances of their careers, Matt and Ruth have their own ideas about Frank’s relationship with Natalie (Marisa Tomei), a married woman 10 years Frank’s senior whose abusive husband (William Mapother) dislikes being estranged.

While Ruth is clear in her disapproval of Frank’s relationship, Matt favors it, secretly enjoying the idea that his son has attracted the attention of an older woman. But as this excellent film moves toward its stunning turning point, Matt and Ruth are forced to face the ramifications of their differences in opinion and all that has cost them as their once stable marriage threatens to fall apart.

There is so much to enjoy and appreciate in “In the Bedroom,” it deserves to be seen twice. Filled with dozens of local extras, including Corinna Skall from the popular Chuck and Cori morning show on Z-107, the film isn’t just a triumph for Field, but one for the people of Maine.

With the exception of the film’s opening, which features Natalie resting in a meadow straight out of Andrew Wyeth’s painting “Christina’s World,” Field resists the urge to romanticize Maine’s landscape with cliched, picturesque images of shimmering ocean vistas and pretty wooden docks.

Instead, he uses those images as backdrops to frame the reality of coastal life – canneries crowding the waterways, fish bait stinking up the docks.

It’s an insider’s view that gets the small details right, respecting the complexity and beauty of Maine without once sacrificing the truth.

Grade: A

Christopher Smith’s reviews appear Mondays and Fridays in Style, occasionally on E! Entertainment’s “E! News Weekend,” Tuesdays on “NEWS CENTER at 5” and Thursdays on “NEWS CENTER at 5:30” on WLBZ 2 and WCSH 6. He can be reached at BDNFilm1@aol.com.