The character of Richard B. Riddick first appeared on our screens way back in 2000 in the still very effective creature thriller Pitch Black. The movie was a moderate success and a sequel, entitled The Chronicles of Riddick, was born, stripping away all that made the character so fun to watch in the first place for a more watered down and mechanical version designed to appeal to as many people as possible.
The man who fills the ass-kicking boots of the eponymous character, Vin Diesel, fought hard to get him back on the big-screen and even harder for it to get back some of that R-rated Pitch Black edge. And while it’s not exactly a rousing success, the plainly titled Riddick still manages to be a very decent sci-fi actioner with plenty of bloody violence, impressive creature design and Diesel growling away lines like only he can.
The plot catches up to Riddick who has been left for dead on an unknown sun-scorched planet filled with dangerous creatures and uncompromising terrain. After much time trying to find a way to survive with injury slowing him down, he happens across a supply centre wherein he activates an emergency beacon.
Soon thereafter two ships descend on the planet: one carrying a group of mercenaries looking to collect a bounty that pays double if they bring Riddick back dead, and the other carrying a more professionally equipped crew headed by a man interested in Riddick’s past.
There’s something to be said for the level of design found in Riddick. Writer/director David Twohy, who also made the first two instalments in the franchise, has created a visually striking world filled with peculiar, vicious creatures that create an enjoyable “danger around every corner” atmosphere. While they are maybe a little too easily dispatched when it comes to the inevitable big set-pieces involving them, it nevertheless makes for some interesting action visuals just as a summer of more grand scale spectacle has come to an end.
This is clearly a passion project for Diesel and it shows, at least in his performance of the character if not in the way he’s helped shaped the story as a producer. It seems more interested in leaving it open ended for the franchise to continue than giving a satisfying conclusion to this particular instalment. Diesel is not exactly the actor with the widest range in the world but he makes for entertaining no-nonsense viewing once again as the best character he’s ever played.
It’s lucky that Diesel is the centre of attention as the supporting cast play characters that are plot functional and nothing more. We never really get to know any of them – even the leader of one of the groups who seems to have ties to Riddick’s past – and they are merely fodder for being picked off either by Riddick or the plethora of other-worldly creatures. The cast (mostly) serve their purpose just fine – although Jordi Mollá as one of the more trigger-happy bounty hunters is way too hysterical and over-the-top even by blockbuster standards – but a bit more depth to them wouldn’t have hurt.
The film starts very well as we encounter Riddick buried in rubble, seemingly dead but soon springing to life as he chokes a skeletal bird to death. For quite a while it plays out as a one-man survivalist show as he adapts to his new surroundings. It then shifts into team-based survival mode as the two groups try their best to find Riddick before he finds them. It’s only in the last act that things really begin to falter as it descends into far more generic blockbuster territory, with action scenes barely lit (we only get to see Riddick’s “night vision” a handful of times) and pouring with rain. It seems rather pointless to have all that great design bringing action to life and then keep it under cover of darkness.
The whole thing is laden with cheesy dialogue in the form of punchlines and one-liners, some of which work and others that are either unnecessarily sexist and/or misogynistic – it was disappointing to see Katee Sackhoff (who some may know as Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica) in the only female role be the target of body image and rape jokes – or just plain cringe-worthy. If it weren’t so well designed and straight-faced you might think Twohy was having a go at parody at times.
It would have been hard for the franchise to hit any lower than The Chronicles of Riddick but thankfully this one is a major step up. It’s far from flawless – it’s overlong, frequently silly, relies on a rather heavy-handed voice-over and it might as well have a disclaimer at the end saying “tune in next time for the further adventures of Riddick” – but its effective back to basics approach makes for an enjoyably straightforward sci-fi flick.
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