Script Review of Triple X

Take James Bond, smack all of the refinement out of him, then make him an X-Games athlete and you've got the makings of something the producers are calling "007 for the 21st Century."
The film is Triple X. Sorry, porno fans, it has nothing to do with the adult film industry. Vin Diesel plays Xander Cage, the previously mentioned extreme athlete. He's your standard adrenaline junkie with no fear and a lousy attitude. When the US Government "recruits" (read: coerces) him to go on a mission, he's not exactly thrilled (it's never failed to amaze me how often our government seems to need civilians to do their job for them but that's the plot device du jour so we're going to have to go with it). His mission: to gather information on an organization that may just be planning the destruction of the world, led by the nihilistic Yorgi (a part which has reportedly been offered to Ewan McGregor).

This draft by screenwriter Rich Wilkes (Jerky Boys, Airheads) is from August, 2001, and moves at a great pace with some interesting twists on familiar Bond conceits. There are double and triple agents, a beautiful romantic interest that may or may not be one of the bad guys, a plot that could bring the planet to the brink of war and a killer ski chase which, if director Rob Cohen (The Fast & The Furious, Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story)) doesn't screw it up on the projected $50,000,000 budget, could become one of the highlights of the film. There is also a huge final battle as Xander faces off with the villain of the piece, as one might expect from a screenplay that as much pays homage to the Bond films that have come before as it does remake them into its own image. Considering Cohen's previous action work, there should be some exciting action sequences in the film.

The screenplay has settings all over Europe, contributing to the Bond-ish flair. But X (as he's referred to in the draft I was able to read) is far from a 007 wannabe. While the pride of Her Majesty's Secret Service indulges in good food, fine wines and finer women, our hero takes a little better care of himself. When Petra, the female of the piece, orders up a breakfast full of potato pancakes and sausages, X goes with the garden salad. "Hey, I'm from L.A.," he quips.

Everything is far from perfect with the script, however. There are a few too many cases of fortunate happenstance, especially in the final act where X just gets plain lucky. In my opinion, this is where the script could use some work, although I do like the slight twist on the standard "villain spills the beans" scene.

Another area where the script could use some work is Yorgi's motivation for organizing this plot to begin with. Its one thing to be nihilistic but most nihilists won't concentrate on plunging the world into total chaos just because it happens to fit their personal philosophy.
Still, reservations aside, this is a screenplay that really showcases Diesel's personality and abilities. Like the Riddick character in Pitch Black, X does something Bond never does – he changes. The character is not the same at the end of the film and you get the feeling that the change is permanent, which adds some much needed dimension to the standard two-dimensional action hero role.

While Bond was the epitome of the lifestyle men wanted to live in the '60s, Xander Cage is the perfect example of the "extreme" lifestyle that most Gen X-ers would like to have. Given the star and the vehicle, Triple X may be the Dr. No for a new generation. For distributor Columbia Pictures, this may be that spy franchise they lost out on when they bailed out of Kevin McLory's Bond lawsuit against MGM.