Cradle 2 The Grave: Review By Brian

Haven't we seen this movie about a hundred times before? The unlikely duo, up against some sort of threatening evil. One of the pair plays the "moral guy" the other of course, the "crazy-risk-taking-guy-that-will-stop-at-nothing-to-get-what-he-wants guy".

Well, it's no different with the recent Warner Bros. release of Cradle 2 The Grave, which stars Jet Li and DMX. The odd are couple doing time to get "the stones", as well as DMX's daughter back from a ruthless international arms dealer. What commences beyond that is a weak attempt at an action film, which wastes the martial art talents of the great Jet Li, and leaves you with an unsatisfied feeling.

Granted, I grew up in a time where super producer Joel Silver was creating the action film genre as we know it today. And in my early days you can guarantee I was a sucker for every single action crapfest that came out. But for some reason, these type of eye candy action blasts offer nothing to me anymore. I don't know if I'm jaded or not, but even when I look back upon the action films of the 80's (most of which star big Arnold Schwarzenegger) that most people probably scoffed at, I still find them more entertaining and involving then any explosion packed film of today.

I personally couldn't take Cradle 2 The Grave to seriously to begin with. Rapper DMX as the main star...buddying up with Jet Li who has a tough time constructing a full sentence in English as it is a second language to him? And the director, Andrzej Bartkowiak, his last movie, Exit Wounds, starring Steven Segal and DMX, being just about the worst action film to hit last year? With all those strikes already against the film, I wasn't expecting much, and it's a good thing I didn't.

DMX, although initially a successful rapper in the world of hip hop, is surprisingly convincing as the leading man in this movie. Not once did I find myself relating him back to the music world, that is, until they started playing one of his songs in certain scenes in the movie. Overall, his performance was good, and I wouldn't mind seeing him in a role which portrayed him as a villain.

Jet Li comes as a disappointment in this film. He's used as the butt of the joke too many times during the flick to be taken too seriously. And YES, Jet Li should be taken very seriously. His skills as a martial artist far surpass any acting ability he may possess.

Too many times in Cradle 2 The Grave Li was used as the pawn for DMX's character to make his next move. Plus, the excuses Jet Li had to use his martial arts were ridiculous as well as redundant, especially when it came time to take out the entire "Ultimate Fighting Championship" ring of fighters.

Cradle 2 The Grave wouldn't have survived without Anthony Anderson and Tom Arnold. The comedic pair made for many laughs through out the film. And the best part of the film, which the filmmakers HAD TO HAVE KNOWN was the best part of the film, was the end sequence which rolled during the credits. Anderson and Arnold yuck it up by talking about how the majority of the film was crap and the end was the best part...at least, that's what they alluded to. The rant also contains tons of other stomps on pop culture figures and icons which were most enjoyable.

This sort of mindless action might work for other people, but this is one movie goer that wants more out of his action films. And I'm not talking up to standards like The Matrix, but at least give me a level comparable to Rush Hour 2. OR, better yet....THINK OF SOMETHING ORGINAL...or at least intriguing! They did it with Commando. I have faith Hollywood can do it again.

Cradle 2 The Grave is an absolute waste of time. Don't pay money to see this one. Of course, everyone will probably sit down and watch this thing once it hits cable TV, even me, but that ain't saying much.