Riddick: Into the Darkness

Riddick: scifi the way it should be

 

     Riddick is an iconic character played by Van Diesel in three movies:  Pitch Black, the Chronicles of Riddick and the newest installment Riddick- Into the Dark. Van Diesel recreates his version of Riddick 9 years after the last chapter was released. Left for dead on a planet with no name, the anti-hero of this film has two needs: vengeance and survival.  With an interesting array of alien creatures desiring to kill our protagonist in nearly every scene, you may not want to take a break to the candy stand. A wanted criminal in half the galaxy, bounty hunters seem to find him no matter where he is. Riddick is able to outwit the lowlife and the more advanced animals chasing him, to his own advantage. Small hints of nontraditional sexual roles are sprinkled throughout Riddick’s negotiations with his potential captors. Background sets flesh out the harsh reality Riddick must contend with to survive.  Into the Dark is more reminiscent of the first movie Pitch Black than its sequel. David Twohy wrote and directed this latest chapter of Riddick, allowing his imagine to move as far as the set designers would permit. In the event you are searching for pure scifi, such as a Star Wars adventure, this is not the movie for you.  Ingenuity is embedded in this well written script, loaded with twists and turns, to keep the audience on edge. Twohy  has the so-called good guys and gal desperately searching for our anti-hero, who is not very far away.  For hardcore science fiction addicts, who rebuff the dilute and worn out nature of the Star Trek series, this movie was created for you. Van Diesel, no stranger to sequels, would do himself and the audience an injustice if he did not develop this character any further. I suggest there may be several sequels to follow.  Running time is approximately 2 hours and worth the watch. Mark Davis MD, your intrepid reviewer at large. For comments: twitter.com/americassage or americassage@gmail.com