Cradle 2 The Grave
In Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” the villagers gave the good doctor a lot of crap about digging up the dead and piecing them back together to create a new life form. The same could be said about the great Polish cinematographer Andrzej Bartkowiak (The Verdict, Prince of the City, Prizzi’s Honor), whose three films as a director feel like the opening lyrics to “The Patty Duke Show”: They look alike, they walk alike, at times they even talk alike. Unfortunately, “Cradle 2 The Grave,” like “Romeo Must Die” and “Exit Wounds,” really doesn’t have much to say.
Strictly for urban-action fans who don’t mind being served the same dish over and over, “Cradle 2 The Grave” plays like the opponent in the third round of a heavyweight prize fight who should have gone down in the first round.
To his credit, Bartkowiak’s film looks great, the byproduct of so many years behind the camera, and as the cinematographer of “Lethal Weapon 4” and “Q & A,” Bartkowiak has been a good study when it comes to framing action sequences that are as slick as John Travolta’s hair in “Grease.” He even uses his stock company of players, DMX, Anthony Anderson, Tom Arnold, to good effect, surrounding them with past-their-prime martial arts stars (Steven Seagal, Jet Li) to pump up the action.
What “Cradle 2 The Grave” lacks is an original thought, something to hold together the marginally invigorating set pieces. The script by Channing Gibson (Lethal Weapon 4) and John O’Brien is another hack job that obviously required more cut and pasting than brainstorming. The script, about an uneasy alliance forged between a Taiwan Intelligence Officer (Li) and a professional thief (DMX), is more about reaction than acting.
Not that Li or DMX will ever win an award for their acting abilities, but they have to be better than the material they are forced to deliver. Even the director unashamedly borrows from himself, repeating what sort of worked in the first two films, but with much less success. “Cradle 2 The Grave” not only requires that to check your brain at the door, but abandon all hope as well. Anyone expecting anything more than 100 minutes of glossy nonsense will be sadly disappointed.
DMX has presence, putting up a good front as one of a team of professional thieves whose elaborate attempt to rob a vault is thwarted by Su (Li). The team does manage to make off with some black diamonds, a valuable commodity that attracts the interest of several bad guys. When Tony’s (DMX) daughter is kidnapped by crime boss Ling (Mark Dacascos), he teams up with Su to retrieve both the girl and the diamonds, whose true value eventually becomes clear..
On the action front, Li does what he does best, but his best is getting old. Tom Arnold is the best thing about “Cradle 2 The Grave,” playing a funny fence. Behind the camera, Bartkowiak has turned to cinematographer Daryn Okada (Halloween: H20) for the film’s polished look, and he never disappoints.
Now that Bartkowiak has mined all he can from this specific urban-action genre, he needs to turn his attention to a film that is as smart as it is good looking.
GRAVE ROBBER
Director digs up familiar formula for latest film
CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE
Jet Li, DMX, Anthony Anderson, Tom Arnold, Kelly Hu, Mark Dacascos, Chi McBride. Directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak. Rated R. 100 Minutes.
LARSEN RATING: $3.00
