XXX (PG-13)

Vin Diesel, every teen's fantasy action hero.

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About Our Ratings
Common Sense rates it
4
Seen the movie? Review it
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Movie details
  • Studio: Columbia Tristar
  • Directed By: Rob Cohen
  • Cast: Vin Diesel, Samuel L. Jackson
  • Running Time: 124 minutes
  • Release Date: 09/09/2002
  • Video/DVD Release Date: 05/13/2003
  • Genre: Action/adventure
  • MPAA Rating: PG-13
  • MPAA Explanation: violence, language, drug use, and sexual situations

Parents need to know

Parents need to know that this movie has lots of intense action sequences and strong language for a PG-13 rating. Characters use drugs, drink, and smoke. In one scene, a number of people are killed in a particularly heartless fashion, while others watch and make fun of them. There are implied sexual situations, including a character telling his girlfriend to have sex with someone else and a woman given to X as a sexual favor, but nothing explicit is shown. A character explains his plans for world anarchy in a manner that is worth discussing with teenagers who see the film.

Families can talk about the different definitions of "freedom" that bad guy Yorgi, X, and Gibbons mean when they use the term. What is your own definition? Why? How does X decide who deserves his loyalty? How does Yorgi? How does Gibbons? Parents might also discuss the sexual innuendos with their younger kids to put some of the pole dancing favors into perspective. As for the rest, you might ask your kids what makes a bad guy a bad guy? The hero has good and bad in him. What do they admire? What do they think the rewards are for the hero?

Message

Social Behavior:

Good versus evil

Consumerism:

Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:

Drinking, smoking, and drug use; hero does not do any

Violence

Chase scenes and big explosions, not too graphic

Sex

A pole dance and suggested sex

Language

Some strong language

Common Sense says

What's the story?

Reviewed by Nell Minow

Always on the verge of being arrested for his over-the-top stunts, extreme sportsman Triple X (Vin Diesel) turns spy when spy chief Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson) offers him the chance to work for the good guys instead of going to jail. The CIA assigns Triple X to a case involving a group in Prague that seems to be involved in more than the usual nastiness of drugs, stolen cars, and very loud music. X incorporates every extreme sport into his efforts to stop the bad guys from sending out a lethal biological agent to random cities.

Is it any good?

4
XXX is not a movie about plot or character. It is a movie about gadgets, girls, explosions, and "golly, did you see that?" They have taken the essence of 14-year-old boy fantasy and put it up on the screen. This is The Dirty Dozen with one guy playing all twelve parts.

There are some great stunts, especially a snowboard race with an avalanche that would be scarier if it didn't recall the similar scene with Scrat at the beginning of Ice Age. It is too bad that the bad guy is not as interesting as X -- he's just a generic post-communist era guy with an evil plan, a big mouth, a remote control, a girlfriend who is too smart and pretty for him, and a getaway speedboat. But this movie is clearly designed as the first of a series, and it is all about X. Diesel is just the guy for the part, delivering the lines, the kisses, and the action scenes with attitude to spare.

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Parents and kids say

All Reviews

There are 6 reviews.

5


Posted on 04/30/06 by soccer girl7 Kid contributor, age 12

Awesome Awesome Awesome!!!!!!!!

Great movie lots of action and some humor. A must see, especially if you like explosions!
Age 11+
4

Posted on 08/30/04 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Great fun but not for protective parents

This movie was great fun but everything gets blown up at a certain point. The language is dicey, the role model heavily tatooed and there's one scene where a scantily clad woman does a pole dance on her bed. That said, the main character is a bad guy gone good and for parents who can't bear one more Disney movie, this is probably going to be a savior.
5


Posted on 07/22/03 by calfan Kid contributor, age 13

great movie

definitely worth the money Funny plus amazing special effects The snowboarding scene was amazing. Also the movie was very creative and imaginative
5


Posted on 07/22/03 by tjt Kid contributor, age 13

worth what you payed for it

1


Posted on 05/21/03 by Gordan Freeman Kid contributor, age 16

this is garbage

This is a pale ripoff on the James Bond formula which seems to have been desieghned in the name of profit.
Age 13+
3

Posted on 05/14/03 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Went with our kids and had lots to discuss

Enter Review Here We went to this with a nine and twelve year old. We had read enough to know that the drugs would go over the younger one's head and the old one was used to these discussions from every day television. There was one really sexual scene where a woman does a pole dance on a bed. She is clothed but it's really inappropriate. So why bring the kids? Because they are the kind of kids you can discuss this stuff with and they really enjoyed the fast paced energy of it all. Every once in a great while it's okay for my family to see these kind of movies. We all had a great time and they felt very grown up for a night.

Adult Reviews

There are 2 reviews.

Age 11+
4

Posted on 08/30/04 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Great fun but not for protective parents

This movie was great fun but everything gets blown up at a certain point. The language is dicey, the role model heavily tatooed and there's one scene where a scantily clad woman does a pole dance on her bed. That said, the main character is a bad guy gone good and for parents who can't bear one more Disney movie, this is probably going to be a savior.
Age 13+
3

Posted on 05/14/03 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Went with our kids and had lots to discuss

Enter Review Here We went to this with a nine and twelve year old. We had read enough to know that the drugs would go over the younger one's head and the old one was used to these discussions from every day television. There was one really sexual scene where a woman does a pole dance on a bed. She is clothed but it's really inappropriate. So why bring the kids? Because they are the kind of kids you can discuss this stuff with and they really enjoyed the fast paced energy of it all. Every once in a great while it's okay for my family to see these kind of movies. We all had a great time and they felt very grown up for a night.

Kids Reviews

There are 4 reviews.

5


Posted on 04/30/06 by soccer girl7 Kid contributor, age 12

Awesome Awesome Awesome!!!!!!!!

Great movie lots of action and some humor. A must see, especially if you like explosions!
5


Posted on 07/22/03 by calfan Kid contributor, age 13

great movie

definitely worth the money Funny plus amazing special effects The snowboarding scene was amazing. Also the movie was very creative and imaginative
5


Posted on 07/22/03 by tjt Kid contributor, age 13

worth what you payed for it

1


Posted on 05/21/03 by Gordan Freeman Kid contributor, age 16

this is garbage

This is a pale ripoff on the James Bond formula which seems to have been desieghned in the name of profit.
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132 votes