A few years after Richard B. Riddick was introduced in the sci-fi thriller Pitch Black, the titular killer returned in this bigger, more expensive, more action-packed follow-up. The Chronicles of Riddick ditches all the horror aspects of its predecessor and focuses much more on otherworldly fantasy and sci-fi action; it finds itself more at home among films like Dune or Star Wars than it does with Pitch Black. This film's style is extravagant, but loaded with high-impact fights, big-scale battle scenes, and highly-imaginative planetscapes. Fans of Pitch Black might be disappointed that the horror has been stripped away from the franchise.
I, on the other hand, find the deviation most refreshing. TCoR expands its horizons far and wide, filling up Riddick's universe with entire planets full of warring societies, exotic cultures, grungy rogue factions, and loads of fascinating technology. There is a massive plethora of cool spaceships, weird weaponry, imaginative worlds, and unique ideas crammed in this film. It makes for a vivid, entertaining, and imaginative piece of sci-fi.
The story is a little derivative. The plot hops around from one act to another, carrying the characters from one fight to another, along a path that's well-worn from plenty of other sci-fi stories. What matters the most, however, is the return of Riddick as a character, who continues to steal the show as the main antihero, once again relied upon as the monster to fight other monsters for the greater good. Other characters are generally flat, but fans may recognize returning characters from the first film, who evolve in interesting new ways. Villains are generally one-dimensional, but while Pitch Black was filled with characters I found unlikable, TCoR has characters I found genuinely endearing.
This film is loaded with style, using quality photography. Editing can get very fast and hectic during the action scenes, although I believe the action scenes in Pitch Black were worse yet. Acting is generally good: Vin Diesel plays it tough and cool as the title character, while Colm Feore, Karl Urban, Thandie Newton, and Judi Dench all do the same. Writing is generally okay. This production uses loads of great-looking sets, props, costumes, and special effects. Music is okay.
This film has a director's cut available on DVD and Blu-Ray, which offers fifteen minutes of new footage. A lot of it is devoted to detailing Riddick's background and heritage, which can be a hit or a miss with audiences.
If you like horror more than action, maybe you'll like Pitch Black. If you like action over horror (like me), maybe you'll like this one better. If you like sci-fi in general, you might like them both (also like me). Altogether, these two Riddick films constitute a unique and entertaining duology that should be worth renting.
4/5 (Entertainment: Very Good | Story: Pretty Good | Film: Good)
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