Film Review: RIDDICK
A very cool film, a thrilling ride, I loved every minute of it... Naomi
The latest in the RIDDICK Chronicles is exciting from start to finish, you don't have to see the first two films to understand and enjoy this movie, although it will probably inspire you to seek out the DVD's. I love the sci-fi world created here, the great cast and the rush of this intriguing story.
I read sci-fi like a madman locked in a dungeon with only a book and a torch and the visual style and tone of Riddick is just how I see those books in my mind.
Riddick on Throne
In 1999, when filmmaker David Twohy cast a relatively unknown actor named Vin Diesel to play escaped convict Richard B. Riddick in 2000's intimately terrifying sci-fi film PITCH BLACK, neither the director nor the performer had any idea that the small movie would garner the astonishing following it has.
In response to that success, Diesel and Twohy again joined forces in 2004. In the visually stunning second installment, THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK.
The third film in the series, RIDDICK, is directed by writer/director David Twohy, produced by Diesel and Ted Field of Radar Pictures and executive produced by Samantha Vincent of One Race Films, Mike Drake and George Zakk, in Association with Universal Pictures.
Diesel reprises his role as the antihero Riddick, a dangerous escaped convict wanted by every bounty hunter in the known galaxy. Marooned on a dangerous planet Riddick activates an emergency beacon and alerts violent mercenaries who rapidly descend on the planet in search of their bounty.
Vin Diesel is RiddickYeah, that's what a sci-fi film should look like! I like that the film takes place on one world where the action hits you from the start but is peppered with humour.
There's no prize for guessing the target audience is blokes, but I loved this film and I'm not blokey at all. I highly recommend RIDDICK for the thrilling story, stunning cinematography and sets, and the intense performances by a stellar cast.
Katee Sackhoff as Dahl in Riddick
Sci-fi followers will know Katee Sackhoff from "Battlestar Galactica" and more recently seen in "Longmire" on Australian TV. Here she plays a tough, beautiful & more than capable sniper.
RIDDICK is based on characters created by Jim & Ken Wheat (The Chronicles of Riddick, Pitch Black), and the hugely talented behind-the-scenes team includes director of photography David Eggby, production designer Joseph Nemec III, editor Tracy Adams, visual effects supervisor Gunnar Hansen, costume designer Simonetta Mariano and composer Graeme Revell.
Diesel admits that the stoic, misunderstood felon has long been one of his favorite characters: "I fell in love with the role on paper because Riddick is such a well-executed character and a true antihero." The actor believes that much of the popularity is due to the connection that fans have with Riddick. "People identify with his plight, and that's why they gravitate toward him. They identify with being prejudged, ruled out, given up on and underestimated; those are feelings we all have at some point. The fact that Riddick is able to overcome that through action is something people welcome."
I wonder how Vin Diesel sounded when he was 5 or even 15, he has the most amazing cinema voice I've heard. Although saying that, I enjoyed the way the first act was told with limited dialogue.
I'm a huge fan of this genre and would love to see more, but the clever and captivating sci-fi films come along rarely. Maybe there's a safe-room stuffed full of fabulous sci-fi scripts that for some reason don't get made. There are a whole lot of films, of various genre's, I wish I hadn't wasted my time and money on, films that have fight scenes so long and repetitive my mind goes numb and story lines that are so predictable my grandfather could have come up with them while fishing and characters so cleanly one dimensional they make you yawn... something needs to change. Whoever has the key to the hidden sci-fi safe-room, come on and get the great stuff into production... I believe the RIDDICK series is from the great stuff.