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Martial-arts star Jet Li joins forces with hip-hopper turned actor DMX in this eye-popping thriller, a supercharged action juggernaut that starts accelerating with the first reel and never lets up. DMX plays a brash but technically sophisticated thief who boosts some extremely rare black diamonds from a supposedly impenetrable vault in Los Angeles. Unbeknownst to him, the diamonds are coveted by terrorists who plan on using them in a futuristic nuke; and when the bad guys kidnap his nine-year-old daughter, he finds himself on the same side as Li -- a Taiwanese policeman sworn to protect the jewels. Producer Joel Silver, an old hand at over-the-top action movies, spares no expense in bringing mind-boggling stunt sequences to the screen. Director Andrzej Bartkowiak, given more-than-ample resources, stages some of the most exciting and inventive action set pieces we’ve seen in many moons. But the costly, elaborate stunts are no more exciting than those performed by Li, who once again proves himself a worthy heir to Jackie Chan. In a dazzling display of strength and agility, he descends the side of a high-rise building by dropping in free-fall from one terrace to the next, catching hold of each concrete projection on the way down. The other performers contribute a great deal to Cradle’s success: gorgeous Gabrielle Union lights up the screen as DMX’s main squeeze; seductive Kelly Hu makes a sinister villainess; and Tom Arnold provides goofball comic relief as a scatterbrained black-marketeer. You won’t see much in Cradle 2 the Grave that you haven’t seen in other action movies -- but you’ll see lots more of it. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

A thief and a lawman join forces to hunt down a common enemy in this action thriller. Tony Fait (DMX) is a master thief who, along with his crew (Gabrielle Union, Anthony Anderson, and Drag-On), pulls off a major score when they steal a cache of highly valuable black diamonds. However, the hard-as-nails Tony has a soft spot for his young daughter Vanessa (Paige Hurd), and Ling (Mark Dacascos), a former detective turned ruthless criminal, kidnaps Vanessa, demanding a ransom from Tony for her return -- the stash of black diamonds. The jewels have already been stolen, however, from Tony's fence Archie (Tom Arnold), and are now in the hands of a powerful underworld boss (Chi McBride). Determined to get back his daughter whatever the cost, Tony and his gang set out to find both Ling and the diamonds, but he soon gets some invaluable help from an unlikely corner -- Su (Jet Li), a government agent from Taiwan who was once Ling's partner, and has an old score to settle with him. Cradle 2 the Grave also features Kelly Hu and Roxana Brusso. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 085392341122
• Source: WARNER HOME VIDEO
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English
• Subtitles: Español, Français
• Time: 1:41:00
• Sales Rank: 39,340

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Romeo Must Die/Cradle 2: the Grave

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