Movie Review: Riddick

The third installment of Riddick goes back to what we had seen Riddick doing best in the first movie. Generally being a badass with his ultra survival strategies and kicking some alien ass.

It does seem a bit hollow when it comes to plot, emotions and character development but we never really care about that in a Vin Diesel film anyways. Being a graduate from the 100 ways of breaking concrete academy, Diesel brings his usual to this role.

The sun scorched planet and the various alien creatures are a treat to watch though and the scene where Riddick emerges, after being buried alive is amazing.

There is also some attempts at humour. I wouldn't go as far as saying they didn't work, but they could have been far better. Rapey jokes do seem to belong to a movie like this but they make you flinch before you do the Vin Diesel grin.

Bounty hunters hunt Riddick (as always) and even though Riddick appears to be able to dodge them for quite a while, he ends up getting caught and is taunted and tortured before 'time's up.' Alien creatures come and attack the camp in which he is captured and once again Riddick joins hands with his captors. Well, he does behead Santana (the leader of the bounty hunters) but he had shot his beloved alien jackal so he totally deserved it.

The first half of the movie seems to be elemental and a wierd mix of futuristic, grunge and steampunk. It is only in the second half that the film turns out to be the same predictable metal and monster stew that makes Vin Diesel enough money to act in his 'real' films: the Fast and Furious series.

For those who are coming in to the series for the first time, beware, Riddick neither plans to explain nor waits for you to gain a descent understanding of why is the titular character able to see in the dark or why does he wear a strange sunglass cum binocular like thingie. It is all about living in the now and killing in the now. That said, the movie doesn't really require you to think too much just like the earlier ones.

The first movie in the Riddick series, Pitch Black, all the way back in 2000, had turned out to be a sleeper hit and grew a cult following. The Chronicles of Riddick too developed a cult following. David Twohy who had directed both of them directs this one as well. Will it be a sleeper hit like its predecessors or will it be engulfed in its own pile of dust and grime it kicks up? Only time will tell and Riddick certainly has plenty of it...