Riddick

Riddick is left for dead on an unknown planet with hostel indigenous predators. With a bounty on his head he calls upon the very people who want to have him killed in order to escape.

Director/writer David Twohy certainly delivers a fan pleasing sequel that fittingly harks back to the first instalment's roots in both story linkage and tone. While not as grand, fans of Chronicles will also be pleased with the stripped continuation back story and a cameo from Karl Urban's Vaako.

It's a good piece of science fiction action entertainment with decapitations, shootings, spaceships, a hostile planet, yes it's familiar and debatably derivative as the characters get picked off one by one, but as with Pitch Black Twohy effortlessly manages to create a convincing environment with new memorable biological creatures which is no easy task, to his credit it's no often lighting strikes twice given how many forgettable alien creatures have been put on screen. Yet, even though reminiscent Alien (1979) he manages to recreate what he did with the photosensitive, reptilians in his breakout 2000 film.

Vin Diesel returns as the character created by Jim Wheat & Ken Wheat- Riddick, this time he rekindles his previous edginess but the 'one Riddick and his dog' aspect expands the character, sneakily retaining some likability (especially for animal fans).

Given the way the production was funded the special effects are a mixed bag but serve their purpose. The first act is a special effect survival piece with sparse dialogue and smart action, with the second act taking place after an (unstated) amount of time when Riddick finds a small base. From then on its full of action setups, space motorcycles, conflicts and one-liners as the mercenaries and bounty hunters have to make an alliance with Riddick to survive an impending alien onslaught.

The supporting characters are developed just enough to be both identifiable, memorable and you almost care just enough to invest your time. Spanish actor Jordi Mollà gives a standout performance as the head hunting, unsavoury Santana, Total Recall (remake) actor Brokeem Woodbine gives some weight with his limited dialogue. Katee Sackhoff while feeling a little typecast still delivers the goods, even the remaining groups stereo-types are more fleshed out than they should be of the genre which adds to the enjoyment. Matt Nable is a good lead as Boss Johns whose character gives the story a (satisfying) little twist that those familiar with the original will see coming a mile off.

The closing is arguably abrupt but is possibly intentional as it leaves you wanting more. The critiques maybe a little hard on Riddick but considering it is a third in a film series spurred from such humble beginnings, an inviolate first (small comparison to is sequel) Riddick is entertaining viewing.

Riddick - RULE THE DARK I've been a fan of this film series since its inception. Pitch Black was, by all accounts, an interesting and different film. What otherwise should have been a modern cult classic in the making (on its own); turned out to gain a sequel in Chronicles Of Riddick. I wasn't completely fond of Chronicles, it seemed to me like an over the top expansion of a universe that we were seemingly interested in, and ended up not really wanting.

THE BAD - The beginning of the film dragged on for a very long time. The writing was tenuous at various points of the film. To some degree, nonsensical dialogue tied to continuation of the story that had almost no purpose.

THE GOOD - I was extremely interested in seeing Dave Bautista (Batista) in this film, because I wanted to see his acting ability prior to Guardians of the Galaxy. Bautista handled himself well overall,the few lines he had were relatively memorable & funny.

Once the movie (actually) gets started, which is about 25-30 minutes in, you get immersed in what feels like a proper Pitch Black sequel, and that part of the film is fun, action packed, anxious, and filled with randomly interesting characters that help you understand Riddick out of context. And Vin Diesel was GREAT like always.

IN ALL, A DECENT WATCH .

Unsurprisingly reactions to this, the third outing for Vin Diesel's sci-fi based anti-hero, has been very mixed. In truth it's hardly a great film of the "must see" kind, and it does in fact cleave very close to Pitch Black, the first and most superior of the Riddick trilogy. However, there's a whole bunch of science fiction fun to be had here.

Plot has Riddick left for dead on a inhospitable planet, where he finds himself up against some alien creatures. His only hope of getting off the planet is to bring notice of his whereabouts, which brings two ships to where he is. Both with crews who have differing reasons for wanting to capture the enigmatic convict...

And thus we get a beautifully filmed sci-fier that features beasties of both the human and alien kind. Action and moody histrionics are never far away, and Diesel is wonderfully muscular, macho, course and scary. Some of the CGI is weak, and naturally much of the film's coincidences and contrivances have to be forgiven if one wants a popcorn and beer good time of it. So the requisite here is to chill out and enjoy me thinks! 7/10

I wasn't expecting much. When I heard of the sequel I assumed it'd be a bigger and "better" chapter in the Richard D. Riddick series. Then I saw the trailer and thought that going back to the basics of Pitch Black felt like Twohy didn't know how to go bigger and was reverting into his safe bubble. I was wrong. This is by far Twohy's strongest script with a surprising range of fleshed-out characters. The first ten minutes of the movie has no dialogue and right from the get-go I was pleasantly surprised. It begins to feel like an appropriate direction to take the character. There are jokes that don't work but most do. While Riddick's monologue is a little... quaint (and a cgi dog companion that feels a tad out of place; but i get why it's there) i really think it's important that 'Riddick' is a success at the box office -- to help open the way for genuinely fun, inventive sci-fi narratives with a budget.

Back to real action movie and R rating.

The film is exactly as it should be, brutal, bloody and with a dose of humor. Again it's action on a desert planet, fighting monsters and surviving, but this time without some of the irritating characters we saw in the first part of the saga (Pitch Black).

The film is well directed, the cinematography is good, the cast is not bad, the action scenes are great.

The cinematography is good, the film is visually interesting, and some of the scenes are spectacular. The atmosphere is tense, and yet with a dose of dark humor.

The extended version of the film is more complete than the theatrical version, contains more action and fills in some gaps. Vin Diesel is good in the role of Riddick, but the other characters are just as fun and interesting.

A film that wants to entertain the viewer and definitely succeeds at it.

Brutal, dark and entertaining.