Chronicles of Riddick, The

Rating: ***/*****, or 7/10

Overly bombastic and grandiose sequel to the much smaller scale Sci-Fi horror flick Pitch Black (2000), revealing director Twohy had near Star Warsian aspirations with the Riddick character, which despite the ambitious undertaking of this epic attempt never really materialized any further. Set some years after the events of Pitch Black, Chronicles of Riddick picks up with the continuing hunt for the dangerous anti-hero Riddick (Vin Diesel doing the only type of character he can pull off successfully: the grumpy, violent bullyboy with a heart of gold), though this time not so much for the bounty on his head, but more for the purpose of having him combat a new threat to the galaxy in the shape of the massive world-conquering army of Necromongers, who seek to convert all life to their semi-religious cause or kill it instead. Riddick has little interest in abandoning his quiet lonely life in the wilds, but hesitantly accepts, resulting in a fair amount of high adrenaline fight and chase sequences in a movie that looks terrific but is ultimately yet another haphazard play on the age-old 'good versus evil' routine. Though Riddick continues to be a fun character for his total lack of subtlety and cynical attitude, the rest of his universe is just a bit too weird to fully run along with. Also features Karl Urban (always a blast in this type of action film) as a Necromonger commander caught in a MacBeth type web of intrigue with his wife (Thandie Newton) out to persuade him to kill his dark overlord and take his place, as well as a small role for Judi Dench as an elemental spirit seeking to convince Riddick to be a force for good. Star Wars this is not, but if you take the silly names and bizarre characters with a grain of salt there's quite a few things to enjoy in this action flick. A third Riddick movie has been in the works for years and as of 2012 seems to be finally picking up some steam.

Starring: Vin Diesel, Karl Urban, Judi Dench

Directed by David Twohy

USA: Universal Pictures, 2004