Chop-schlocky a go-go

Cradle 2 the Grave

Starring DMX, Jet Li

Directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak

…

Cradle 2 the Grave

Starring DMX, Jet Li

Directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak

1/2

“Cradle 2 the Grave” is an action-packed movie that’s pure entertainment. There are no morals here. No heavy-handed symbolism or petty character development. Just Jet Li and DMX defeating bad guy after bad guy, while driving fancy cars with rap music blaring in the background.

Tony Fait (DMX) leads a group of professional thieves whose latest mission is to steal black diamonds from a high security vault. However, the plan doesn’t work and they just barely escape the mission. Taiwanese Intelligence agent Su (Jet Li) put a stop to their plans. He has his own agenda for the black diamonds. Eventually, Fait and Su team up to stop the black diamonds from getting into the wrong hands.

The movie starts out with danger, action and suspense, as Fait and his crew attempt to pull off an ambitious heist. Rocket missiles are involved. From that point on, there are car cashes, numerous fist fights, shoot-outs with automatic weapons, military tanks, explosions, Mortal Kombat-style finishing moves … the list goes on. But that’s part of what makes this movie so entertaining. The outlandish and complicated action sequences and stunts are just what people expect from this type of film. It certainly doesn’t disappoint. But some of the bigger stunts happen quickly without any sort of lead-in, so it’s easy to miss them until they’re halfway over.

The film follows a group of characters very closely, but there’s no time to really get to know any of them. Even names are hard to remember, except for Su’s, because when he introduces himself, Fait replies that his name is Sally. Many different scenes happen at the same time, so the film cycles through them all. This can be confusing, because it’s disorientating and often hard to believe that these scenes really are happening at once. But when an action scene begins, the movie really has focus.

The dialogue is often choppy and forced. Jet Li rarely says more than one sentence at a time and DMX’s character likes to express his emotions – whether sad, mad or distressed – through the volume of his voice. The plot is advanced by one character knowing exactly where something is or what they need to do next, with little explanation needed; it’s just done by a feeling. Tom Arnold steals most scenes he’s in, with his understated and quirky humor and provides a little more depth to the movie.

Still, despite these pitfalls, or even because of them, “Cradle 2 the Grave” is funny and enjoyable. There is a lot of humor and almost nonstop action. Jet Li’s moves are impressive and everyone in the film gets a chance to shine. So don’t be afraid to go see it. Have a good time and feel free to make fun of it afterward.