Cradle 2 the Grave [Region 2] |  | Director: Andrzej Bartkowiak
Actors: Jet Li, Dmx, Mark Dacascos, Kelly Hu, Anthony Anderson
Category: DVD
Buy New: $7.98
New (2) Used (1) from $7.98
Rating:  89 reviews
Sales Rank: 263433
Format: Pal
Languages: English (Original Language), Korean (Original Language), German (Subtitles For The Hearing Impaired), English (Subtitles For The Hearing Impaired), English (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), Italian (Subtitled), German (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), Portuguese (Subtitled), Danish (Subtitled), Finnish (Subtitled), Icelandic (Subtitled), Norwegian (Subtitled), Swedish (Subtitled), Greek (Subtitled)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 2
Discs: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1
Running Time: 101 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 7321900234115
ASIN: B0000AISJV
Theatrical Release Date: February 28, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com
The intriguing cross-pollination of rap and kung-fu continues with Cradle 2 the Grave, co-starring high-profile rapper DMX and Hong Kong superstar Jet Li. Master thief Fait (DMX) hits a diamond exhange but comes away with a bag of black gems of mysterious origin. When a crime kingpin steals the gems from Fait, an international arms dealer kidnaps Fait's beloved daughter--and Fait can only get her back with the help of Su (Li), a Taiwanese intelligence agent tracking the gems himself. A summary of the plot doesn't do Cradle 2 the Grave justice; while the basic story elements suggest a dozen generic action flicks, the cast (including Anthony Anderson, Gabrielle Union, and Kelly Hu) has genuine charisma and the movie layers action on top of action to strong effect. All in all, a much more engaging thrill ride than you'd expect. --Bret Fetzer
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| Customer Reviews: Read 84 more reviews...
 OK June 26, 2009
Reviewer
A fairly high budget action flick. Not entirely unwatchable. The problem is Jet Li and DMX. I don't see why Jet Li is popular. He's not attractive, he's tiny, his English is horrible, and he probably could not jump 2 feet off the ground without wires! He's the king of wires!! At least Jackie Chan did his own stunts. But Jet Li would not look impressive at all without wires. And even with them, he's just average. So I don't get his appeal at all. As for DMX, he's also a little guy. Under 5'7". Some sites online say he's 5'11". Rubbish. Just ask Kat Williams, who says DMX is about his height. And Kat Williams must be all of 5'3" tall. DMX has a tough voice... that's about it. Anyway, I just don't get the appeal of little guys who act tough. Vin, Stallone, Chan, Eastwood, you got the feeling they could really do damage if they wanted to. But Jet LI and DMX? Please, unless they are fighting an Oompa-Loompa, I'm just not buying it.
Li's Disappointment, DMX's Blunder, Bartkowiak's Failure April 3, 2009
Mike Schorn (APO, AE United States)
Too much hip-hop and not enough action - that's my consensus when it comes to the third installment of director Andrej Bartkowiak's martial arts trilogy. What began as Jet Li's first American solo vehicle and spawned a remarkably good Steven Seagal adventure has turned into a film where DMX is supposed to be the top star but needs constant rescuing from a man who's lucky to have a dozen lines throughout the script (Li). With the exception of the soundtrack, everywhere you look - the action department, the humor section, and even the poorly-anticipated acting level - the film falls short, and leaves me unsurprised that Bartkowiak's following couple of films were the flops that they were.
The storyline follows a quartet of thieves - played by DMX, Gabrielle Union ("Bad Boys II"), Anthony Anderson ("The Departed"), and Drag-On ("Exit Wounds") - who come to realize that their recent jewel heist was not the easy money-maker that they thought it was: when Anthony Fait's (DMX) daughter is kidnapped by a vicious arms-dealer (Mark Dacascos, "Brotherhood of the Wolf") seeking the return of his stolen black diamonds, the group is approached by a Taiwanese intelligence officer (Li) who's more than aware of how dangerous both the dealer and his jewels really are.
For starters, the significance of the diamonds is complete and utter nonsense, even from an action fan who thought the heroin-soaked t-shirts of "Exit Wounds" were cool. In addition, the comic relief of the returning Tom Arnold ("Exit Wounds") is overdone to an excruciating extent: what began as a white man acting silly in a black man's world has turned into me wondering who the heck would even talk the way he does, much less pull some of his idiotic physical stunts. Seriously, he's starting to come across as mentally challenged.
Then again, alongside DMX, most anybody looks passable: I really do not see the rapper as an actor, and this push to the top of the cast list came way too early for him. His younger co-star Drag-On has already passed him on the dramatic scale, and he looks positively bland next to Gabrielle Union and Anthony Anderson. Li has next to nothing to do as far as acting goes - a shame, considering his character in "Romeo Must Die" - but even he does a better job than better than Mark Dacascos, who is one of my favorite martial artists but should not have been made a villain - at least not a starring one.
The action ought to be good in the layman's book, but comes across as deficient when considering the content of "Romeo" and "Exit Wounds". There are approximately two chase scenes and five hand-to-hand showdowns. One of the chases is old-hat, but the other features DMX on a quad and ends up in a stairwell, so that's cool. The martial arts showdowns can be grouped into the good Jet Li vs. cage fighters scene (featuring Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, and Chuck Liddell), the halfway-decent Li & DMX vs. two henchmen (featuring Johnny Nguyen, "The Protector") and Li vs. Dacascos showdowns, and the rather silly Gabrielle Union vs. Kelly Hu ("X2") and DMX vs. Woon Young Park ("Dragon Storm") encounters. Largely the only reason I bought the movie was to watch Li and Dacascos go at it, but all their fight is is a one-sided beat-up-the-Hawaiian that's much slower than what I've come to expect from a Jet Li brawl. As a whole, the fighting scenes feature less (or less-apparent) wirework than Bartkowiak's previous installments, but are far from choreographer Corey Yuen's best work.
I'm not sure if this is the result of Bartkowiak taking his work too seriously or him just losing his nerve for the whole kung fu/hip-hop thing, but in the end, all that matters is that "Cradle 2 the Grave" is not up to par when it comes to the director's previous two films. Fans of them, however, probably won't be able to help themselves from giving this a watch, but folks who are just curious for good action need to look somewhere else.
 Better than I expected May 15, 2008
Nuisance (Miami)
I didnt have high expectations for this movie because the trailer made it seem like your run-of-the-mill action flick. I was able to see it a couple days ago and was pleasantly surprised.
Premise: Fait(DMX), a diamond thief plans an elaborate heist and steal what seems like black diamonds. A former CIA agent kidnaps Fait's daughter in exchange for the diamonds which are really plutonium devices used for war weapons. Fait teams up with Su(Jet Li), a hard-nosed Taiwanese intelligence agent to get his daughter back.
Opinion: The script is decent but I had to penalize it for a couple of things. The movie could do without Anthony Henderson playing a sissy to distract a front desk security officer(doesnt anybody get sick and tired of these black comics playing effeminate roles in movies?),DMX doing stunts on a quad is unbelievable and does Drag-On have to be in very movie involving DMX? Other than that this movie is not that bad. The action scenes are plentiful and contrary to popular belief DMX's acting is better here than he was in Belly. Jet Li is splendid as Su, the Taiwanees agent. Tom Arnold is kind of funny as the go-to-man for weapons and such. The brutally georgeous Gabrielle Union is okay in this movie but she can do much better. All in all the movie is worth a look
Excllent movie going experience take for what it is March 26, 2008
Derrick Dunn (Woodbridge,VA)
A lot of the critics have been complaining about Cradle 2 The Grave they even as far to say it's trash. The main thing the critics are all complaining about is the acting but who is acutally going to this movie for the acting you're going for the action. Jet Li, Anthony Anderson, DMX and director Andrzej Bartkowiak all worked together on Romeo Must Die while DMX,Drag-On Anthony Anderson , Tom Arnold and director Andrzej Bartkowiak all worked on Exit Wounds together.Andrzej Bartkowiak brings together his regulars and adds Gabirelle Union, Kelly Hu and Mark Dacoassas to the mix. The film has cool action sequences, a hot soundtrack and limtied wire work which is common for these types of films.
JET LI TURNS VIOLENCE INTO BALLET March 13, 2008
Mark Turner
With the passing of Bruce Lee so long ago, martial arts fans have been begging for a replacement. Many have tried to take his place from Chuck Norris to Jean Claude Van Damme. But none has had that fluid style, that grace that Lee had. The closest we had for a while was Jackie Chan, but he played things more for laughs than anything else. And then came Jet Li.
Jet Li provides that fast paced, frenetic style that Lee had, making his fight sequences look almost like a ballet of violence than a simple fight. He also has a knack for making it look so easy and a screen presence that few in this genre have. So I was pleased to find his newest on video up to par with his best.
CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE features rapper DMX as Fait, a high tech thief who spends the beginning of the movie with his crew pulling off a heist in a diamond exchange. Not only do they end up with a load of regular diamonds, they pick up a bag of black diamonds that they were hired for. As they attempt to escape, they split in two groups. One loses a bag of gems while riding the top of a subway car. The other loses the second bag to Li. But the bag with the black gems is safe in Fait's hand.
The gang returns home and Fait puts his little girl to bed for the night. A doting father, he makes time for her, even helping her say her prayers before bed. Then he gets to work, taking the gems to his fence (Tom Arnold). Knowing something is up, he wants to know who is looking for the gems and what he can get for them.
The gems end up stolen from Arnold and Fait gets a call from the real bad guy, Ling (Mark DaCascos). Ling lets Fait know that he has kidnapped his daughter and that he wants the diamonds...now. By now, Li has joined forces with Fait, letting him know that he is Taiwan secret police. The pair check in with a local gang lord who they know robbed Arnold. Getting no help from him, they do realize where he has hidden the gems.
When they aren't where expected, they split once more in two groups to find them or someone who knows their location. Both pairs end up in some spectacular fight sequences and one in a thrilling car chase involving a four wheel ATV, a motorcycle and tons of police cars.
With little hope in sight, they get a call from Fait's daughter on a cell phone she finds in the van the bad guys have locked her in. Putting together clues she has given them along with the truth about the stones, they set out on a rescue mission. And when that begins, we end up with a set of three fight sequences running simultaneously that are some of the best seen in recent years.
I missed this one at the theater thinking it would be just another chop socky flick. I was wrong. What we have are some dynamite action stars making an action film that a number of directors should study. Why? Because far too many directors these days think that a fight sequence is about close ups of fists connecting or the hero's face. The truth is, as we see here, backing off with the camera gives us a chance to see the whole fight and not just bits and pieces of it.
The final main fight between Li and DaCascos is fantastic. Both are extremely skilled in martial arts and choreographing a fight sequence. Both make it look as fluid as a splattered tray of mercury. The only thing as fluid and slick as this scene is a quart of Pennzoil.
If you love action movies, then this is one not to miss. It delivers on all counts.
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