Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

xXx: Return of Xander Cage 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 10, 2017

Xander Cage jumps off an antenna tower, flips off law enforcement on his way down, and skis through the jungle (yes, the jungle, as in "no snow") to safety. Yup, it's definitely a xXx movie. The first xXx proved that extreme sports athletes make great Action heroes. They're natural fits: they already have an endless supply of testosterone, plenty of raw ability, and no fear. While dirt bikes and skateboards might not equate to knowing how to shoot a gun or run covet ops in enemy territory, that foundational go-get-'em attitude already has them halfway home. But even just a decade-and-a-half later, Vin Diesel's xXx (and State of the Union's Ice Cube, for that matter), almost seem like fossils. Today it's all about svelte millennials and parkour, not macho guys with bulging muscles and huge tattoos. Enter xXx: Return of Xander Cage, a lean, action-packed hybrid in which Xander Cage is sort of like the (still young and buff) fatherly relic whose skills still rule the day but who recognizes the need for a little more youth, agility, and know-how in his quest to fight the bad guys du jour.

xXx agent Xander Cage (Vin Diesel), who has been living off the grid for some time, is reluctantly called back into action when a new high-tech device known as "Pandora's Box" is unleashed on the world. In the wrong hands, it has the ability to bring down satellites and hack into any system on the planet. Cage is recruited back into the game by CIA Agent Jane Markey (Toni Collette) but he returns to the fold on his own terms and with his own handpicked personnel, which include Adele Wolff (Ruby Rose), Nicks Zhou (Kris Wu), Tennyson (Rory McCann), and Becky Clearidge (Nina Dobrev). Once the team is together, it's nonstop action in the pursuit of saving the world.

It's interesting to watch the movie play out in that hybrid style of the bald-headed, musclebound, sledgehammer-like Action hero paired with a collection of smaller, but still very skilled, and mostly younger pups at his side. The movie's focus is still on Cage, a stunt man, essentially, turned action hero. But he's evolved. He's still a master of externe sports. Age has yet to catch up with him, but he's still a changed man. He's been living off the grid, using his abilities for good, not taking it to whatever enemy the government decides needs his "particular set of skills" as it were. He's not willing to get back in the game, but when he does, he literally jettisons those assigned to him and puts together his own team, younger folks who bring their own skill set to the table and one of whom, a Q-type, idolizes him and maybe even fantasizes about him. Even in his new role as a quasi-father figure or, at the very least, minor mentor to his ragtag bunch of (mostly) millennials, the movie still favors its roots, showing Cage getting some laughs (a scene in which he taunts some armed men who commanded him not to move is particularly great) and, of course, shooting stuff, punching stuff, blowing stuff up, and performing a few daring stunts along the way, everything one expects from a xXx movie.

When it's all said and done, though, The Return of Xander Cage hardly qualifies as original filmmaking. Its plot is neither her nor there, serving as little more than a basic device to allow various action pieces to come to fruition. The fun comes from watching stuff blow up, the camaraderie between Cage and his band of merry millennials establishing and growing, watching more stuff blow up, and seeing bad guys get shot. The movie maintains an agreeable pacing and amping up the action throughout -- this might be the most action-packed xXx yet -- while still offering plenty of in-the-moment humor throughout. Diesel may be 15 years older since he last appeared in the role, but he's no less willing or able to pull off the character. He looks great, and even if he's hardly the best actor on the planet, the enthusiasm, the complete immersion into character, and ability to simultaneously sell the gags and the guns is, certainly, the movie's best asset. The film amounts to little more than Diesel's character, and those around him, engaging in a whole lot of action. It's as-advertised, a solid, thoroughly enjoyable action romp that plays to its strengths and leaves nothing on the table.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc. Watch for 4K screenshots at a later date.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage's 4K/2160p/HDR-enhanced presentation marks an incremental improvement over the excellent 1080p release. The movie was reportedly shot at 3.4K and finished at 2K, making this, presumably, an upscale from that source. The image looks fine, very good, in fact, and offers razor-sharp details and deeply saturated colors. Neither one is expressly improved by leaps and bounds over the Blu-ray, offering instead a very minor, but noticeable, improvement. In fact, it's in areas away from basic color punch and detail that the UHD sees its most obvious improvements. Take warmer, lower-light shots. A good example comes at a sequence that begins around the 47-minute mark. The UHD offers far better defined black levels and shadow details, a noticeable reduction in noise, and a more naturally progressive sense of color transition between the shades of orange, red, and yellow that dominate the scene. In those other general areas, though, the deeper saturation, firmer color foundations, and improved color depth and nuance improve most every scene. Details are finer, to a much lesser extent than some of the more extreme examples so far found on the UHD format, but the uptick in skin texturing, environmental sharpness, and the like, is appreciable. Still, the image isn't so much better that Blu-ray-only fans should lose any sleep over missing this one. It's a good UHD image, just one that's far from the top of the class.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

xXx: Return of Xander Cage features a booming Dolby Atmos soundtrack. This is one of the best Action soundtracks on the market and, by extension, one of the best, period. It's full-throttle, a perfect compliment to the movie, a track that never relents or fails to deliver anything but the finest, fiercest, most aggressive examples of sonic excellence. Score is huge, playing with effortlessly large front-side width and fully saturating, but still balanced, surround structure. A satellite enters the atmosphere at the beginning, and the big, high-speed, rattling sensation pushes through the listening area with incredible efficiency and detail. Action scenes are terrific. Every scene is distinct, but every one shares the same basic qualities: intense music, aggressive punches and crashes, deep explosions, heavy popping gunfire, plenty of bullet zip, and a general din of action madness engulfing the entire soundstage. Gunfire is a great strength, offering very lifelike depth, punch, and movement. It emanates from every speaker and it's literally hard to fight off the urge to duck. Just don't return fire. The track's overhead component is a strength and the top end engages regularly as the situation demands. Shattering glass, roaring overhead helicopters, skateboards sweeping down the street, and huge crashing ocean waves (which offer truly monstrous bass in addition) are amongst the glorious top-layer highlights. The track's only flaw comes during a brief moment when Xander's dialogue seems to go a little scratchy and tinny around the 19-minute mark, but dialogue is otherwise perfect in placement, prioritization, and clarity. This is an epic soundtrack.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

xXx: Return of Xander Cage contains four fairly in-depth featurettes and a gag reel, all included on the 1080p Blu-ray disc. No unique 4K bonus content is included. A voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy are included with purchase.

• Third Time's the Charm: Xander Returns (1080p, 8:13): A nuts-and-bolts supplement that examines Vin Diesel's return to the series, new characters and cast members, what sets the film apart from others in the "secret agent" genre, today's world of heroes and villains, maintaining the spirit of the original, and more.
• Rebels, Tyrants & Ghosts: The Cast (1080p, 20:18): Assembling the film's new, international cast. The piece looks at the actors as well as the characters they play.
• Opening Pandora's Box: On Location (1080p, 16:10): A closer look at the movie's various sets and shooting locations, fitting them into budget, and the role they play in several of the film's key sequences.
• I Live for This Sh#t!: Stunts (1080p, 15:17): As the title suggests, this piece takes viewers behind-the-scenes for a closer look at making some of the film's best stunts and action moments. It also explores how they fit the character and the movie's tone.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 2:12).

xXx: Return of Xander Cage 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Forget the plot. xXx: Return of Xander Cage works as a no-frills, comedy-laced Action flick that offers a nice balance between throwback and contemporary. It's hardly a great film in the traditional sense, but as a big, loud Action flick that just leaves a smile on the face, they don't come significantly better than this. Paramount's UHD delivers good, upscaled 4K video; reference Atmos audio; and a decent array of bonus content. This isn't a monster upgrade from the Blu-ray, but the differences are enough that 4K fans may as well splurge on this version. Recommended.