State of the Union bombed, critically and commercially. But two decades later, it feels weirdly prescient. A rogue faction inside the military-industrial complex tries to overthrow the government, and only a street-smart outsider — who doesn’t play by the rules — can stop them. Sound familiar? That’s basically half of today’s streaming hits. It just didn’t have the budget for a CGI hovercraft.
Here’s a draft for an interesting, slightly irreverent blog post about xXx: State of the Union (2005) — the sequel to the 2002 action film, this time starring Ice Cube instead of Vin Diesel. xXx: State of the Union – The Strange, Forgotten Action Movie That Predicted Everything (Except Good Taste)
Is it a good movie? No. Is it a fun movie? Absolutely — if you enjoy chaos, car stunts that defy physics, and Samuel L. Jackson yelling “xXx” like it’s a magic spell. It’s the cinematic equivalent of a Monster Energy drink poured into a wine glass. Terrible taste, but you finish it anyway. xXx- State of the Union
The villains? A corrupt Secretary of Defense (Dafoe) who wants to stage a coup using a next-gen supertank named… the President’s Guardian ? Yes. And the only thing standing in his way is a former gang member from LA who can hotwire a submarine.
Let’s talk about xXx: State of the Union — the movie nobody asked for, but the one we secretly deserved. Released in 2005, this is the film where a former NSA agent turned extreme-sports-gone-wild operative (now played by Cube, because Vin Diesel had apparently discovered The Pacifier was a better career move) has to save the US government from a coup led by... Willem Dafoe. In a suit. State of the Union bombed, critically and commercially
Remember when "National Security" meant Ice Cube driving a tricked-out Battle Corvette into an aircraft carrier? No? That’s okay. Neither does Hollywood.
So next time you’re doomscrolling through 2000s action flicks, give xXx: State of the Union a spin. It won’t change your life. But for 101 minutes, you’ll believe a man can drive a tank through the Capitol — and that’s its own kind of beautiful. Would you like a shorter version for social media, or a rewrite with a more humorous or analytical angle? Sound familiar
Darius Stone (Cube) — a disgraced military badass rotting in a military prison — is broken out by Samuel L. Jackson’s Agent Gibbons, who is now inexplicably wheelchair-bound after the events of the first film. Gibbons’ new xXx program is basically: “Find the angriest man in the system, give him a fast car, and point him at the traitors in the Pentagon.”