New Blockbuster “Riddick” Disappoints Action Lovers
Action star Vin Diesel plays Richard B. Riddick in the third installment of the Chronicles of Riddick series.
By Mila Whiteley, Contributing Writer
Vin Diesel returns to his titular role in the third movie of the “Chronicles of Riddick” series.
The story resumes with Riddick stuck on an isolated arid planet, fighting to survive the harsh conditions and the even harsher monsters. Hoping to escape the planet, Riddick uses himself as bait to attract mercenaries and by extension, their ships. Luckily for him, two mercenaries ships arrive to collect his bounty, one led by the coarse and despicable Santana (Jordi Mollá) and another led by the more upstanding and sympathetic Johns (Matt Nable), a name that might sound familiar to fans of the previous two movies. Unfortunately for the mercenaries, once they arrive on the planet, they discover that Riddick is not the only enemy they need to worry about.
Vin Diesel’s Riddick is as much of an appealing antihero as he has always been, by turns sympathetic and yet unapologetically savage. However, the movie i t self lacks the same appeal, due to its gratuitous violence, bloodshed, and an overplayed horror movie plot where the main characters attempt to escape from horrific monsters.
There is no problem with violence when it has a point, but for much of this movie the only point seems to be to prove to the audience that Riddick is an impressive killing machine. At one point in the movie Riddick ponders how he became stranded on the planet in the first place, finally deciding that he has committed the crime of being too “civilized”. The creators of the movie seemed to have reached the same conclusion, paring down the political drama that was essential to the second movie of the series, The Chronicles of Riddick, and going back to the basic survival plot of its introductory movie Pitch Black. Unfortunately, so much of the movie is taken up with a man vs. beast struggle, that there is not much time left for character development or subplots. This lack makes it hard to become fully invested in any of the action that takes place.
Verdict: A nice easy action movie for people who love Riddick and his brooding ways. If, however, you are looking for something more than your standard easy action movie, look somewhere else.
Duration: 1 hour 58 minutes
