Customer Reviews

The Chronicles of Riddick: Unrated Director's Cut (Widescreen)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I am a discriminating Sci-Fi fan, both literature and film, and I definitely do not agree with what professional critics had to say about this movie. I'm glad I didn't pay attention to the reviews and watched it for myself.

The story includes Dune-like intricacies (prophecy, conflicting character motives, foreshadow, plots within plots, weakness, multiple heroes, patience, questionable morality, rituals, inner challenges, sacrifice, etc.) but without the extended, drawn-out politics to slow the story. It is fast paced and entertaining along with the important issues and messages. The art in this film is breathtaking including the rocky fins and caves of the ice planet, the Necromonger ship; the sparkling seas, sands, and architecture of Helion Prime; and the brutal beauty of the jagged, glassy, and blistering Crematoria. The DVD version really showcases the artistic elements of this movie.

The film has a Conan flavor with the non-traditional and non-innocent hero doing the right thing instead of the easy thing, and getting involved though he doesn't have to. The superhero (and regular hero) qualities of the Riddick character are also a nice addition to the story: speed, protection of the weak, strength, ease of killing, frequent flying through the air during attacks/escapes, quick thinking, resistance to Necromonger mental intrusion, enhanced eyes for night vision (Achilles heel being light sensitivity), precision, gracefulness despite bulk, piloting skills, use of varied weaponry, respect for life, risk taking, etc. The combination of weaponry is also interesting - unique craftsmanship blades mixed with Sci-Fi technology weapons. However, the violence in this film is very tasteful, similar to the Zatoichi movies, where our hero is able to kill without a lot of blood and gore. There is also a similarity to Kurosawa stories as well, specifically Yojimbo and Sanjuro regarding the flawed hero and the motives of the characters.

The acting is first-rate. All of the actors did a fine job, but Vin Diesel's performance is truly exceptional. I had no idea he was so incredibly talented. (I always thought he was mainly an "eye candy" actor. Not so.) He is amazingly expressive throughout the movie without the use of his eyes at all. (They are surgically enhanced with no pupils and covered with goggles part of the time.) And his voice, diction, and inflection are obviously a product of natural talent, serious training, and careful attention to his craft. I now have a new appreciation for the quality of his work.

I would rank this film right up there with some of the greatest Sci-Fi movies of all time including Metropolis, Blade Runner, and Forbidden Planet; and the story itself merits comparison to classic Sci-Fi books such as the Robot novels, Dune, The Chronicles of Amber, and the Foundation series. I recommend people watch this film and judge its merits for themselves. I don't think the critics of this movie watched it very carefully.

J.H. Sweet, author of The Fairy Chronicles

If you're looking for a fresh take on the whole sci-fi space adventure epic genre, then this is the movie for you. I thoroughly enjoyed the theatrical version, but the unrated director's cut fleshes out the story even further, making it more engrossing. Some critics were fast to slam this movie, and I am glad I did not listen to them. Sometimes, I just think these critics think they are good only if they are harsh on movies such as this.I saw the movie in theatres and now own the director's cut DVD.

Twohy has introduced a remarkable universe and an intriguingly simple, yet complex character in Riddick. This is a character that you can see Vin Diesel really put his heart into. I cannot wait to see how this character evolves, as well as seeing more of this universe, not to mention the infamous Underverse, as well as more on the Furyans. I've heard that Universal will base their decision to continue with a sequel depending on the sales of the unrated director's cut. This movie, like its predecessor Pitch Black is destined to become a cult hit. I only hope the studio realizes this sooner rather than later. I would give this movie 5 stars, but I have to leave some leeway for them on the sequel (fingers crossed).

stand alone heros are what the world wants. riddick has a lot of personality that most stupid people don't get, he loves jack as a father-figure but has been used by too meny people to just let things go. as with imam, he had to get riddick to help them the only way he saw to do that was to get killed by the bad guys. if you are smart enough to reed between the lines you will see a lot of depth that some rewiewres don't see

I thought this movie was very good, despite being trashed by critics. It was a nice surprise, because I didn't expect much.
The special effects really captured the feel of these different worlds. I also thought that the acting was very good and convincing. Good entertainment all the way !

BUY this DVD!!! The fate of the second and third parts depends on it!! Universal, the director and all the marketing and sales people will be basing their decision to make the sequels to this film on the sales of the DVD!! Don't cut the director's dream short!!! I've heard mixed things about this film, but the bottom line is that it's an awesome 'popcorn' movie. The unrated director's cut gets about 4 stars in comparision t the 1-2 star theatrical version. Make the right choice... unless you're afraid of the dark.....

"Pitch Black" was a brilliant piece of sci-fi -- dark, brutal, eerie, bloody and full of moral quandaries.

But even when you don't compare "The Chronicles of Riddick" to "Pitch Black," the former comes out lacking. It's a ponderous, bloated expanse of special effects, with a plot that is stretched to the breaking limit. They're just hoping audiences don't notice.

After killing off some pursuing mercenaries, Riddick finds that someone has put a bounty on finding him -- it's Imam, the man he saved in "Pitch Black." When Riddick arrives on Helion Prime, Imam and the Elemental Aereon (Judi Dench) explain why: the death-worshiping Necromongers are sweeping through the galaxy, destroying whomever they don't convert.

And when the Necromongers invade Helion Prime, Riddick learns that he is a Furian -- and that it was prophesied that a Furian would kill the Necromonger Marshal (Colm Feore), the "Holy Half-Dead." He escapes the Necromongers, and has himself shipped to a brutal prison world where Jack/Kyra (Alexa Davalos) is being held captive. But even with her help, he may not be able to defeat an army of death-worshiping warriors.

Basically, "The Chronicles of Riddick" is an extension of the story in "Pitch Black," but grown much more bloated and self-important. In fact, there's a very basic, simplistic plot once you strip away the creepy visuals and CGI -- and an end that just feels like "To Be Continued."

It has to be admitted, there are some truly great creepy moments -- panoramic views of burning planets, high-octane chases, and the eerie use of half-dead corpses as communicators (although it gets silly when they start screeching "KILL THE RIDDICK!") and even kissing through them. Weird, freaky stuff.

Unfortunately, overdone CGI is spread as thickly as peanut butter on this movie, and much of it is less than convincing. The scriptwriters also got lazy in places, loading down the dialogue with excruciatingly lame dialogue ("I'll kill you with my teacup") and a distinct lack of plot for long stretches.

As usual, Vin Diesel can't act -- he basically smirks and growls his way through, just as he did in "Pitch Black." But he can't, can't, can't pull off some of those cheesy one-liners ("It's been a long time since I smelled beautiful").

The Necromongers aren't much better, although the idea of a death-worship religion is intriguingly original, but Feore is just a basic baddie, Thandie Newton is a 2-D vamp, and Karl Urban just seems totally confused by what's going on. At least there's Judi Dench, even if she seems as confused as Urban.

"Chronicles of Riddick" is both too much and too little -- too much action and CGI, too little plot and dialogue. Sister, they didn't know what to do with just one Riddick movie.

(...) Back then riddick
was cool mysterious. Now he just (...). Its the kind of movie you
watch to see what will happen next but you can't wait for it to end cause its so boring.This movie is plagued with cheesy story line terrible fight scenes you could fall a sleep to. The acting isnt that good either.

Sigh. Another stand-alone hero movie where the guy sounds like he has a bad cold, with one-dimensional villains, loads of FX ... need I say more? Highly visual story telling, and if you can appreciate good cinemaphotography then this film should impress you. If you prefer a human connection to the character, however, as well as a story that's believable, with memorable scenes and likable supporting characters, stay clear.