CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK
**
Directed by David Twohy.
Starring Vin Diesel, Judi Dench, Colm Feore, Karl Urban, Linus Roache, Thandiwe Newton.
Sci-Fi/Action, USA, 119 mins, Cert 15.
Released in the UK on Limited Edition 4K UHD & Blu-ray via Arrow Video on 16th September 2024.
Having released 2000s PITCH BLACK on 4K UHD a few years back, it was inevitable that Arrow Video would put out its sequel at some point. Well, wait no more, Richard B. Riddick fans, as 2004s more ambitious THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK has arrived on the format and makes superb use of the UHD upgrade, but is this a case of the visuals being more impressive than the movie? Um… yes.
Whereas PITCH BLACK was the B-movie offspring of ALIENS and ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK by offering up some dark horror/sci-fi action with a simple premise, THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK is a much more polished offering, bigger in scope and opening up the world(s) that the character of Riddick (Vin Diesel) inhabits. However, in opening up this universe and its many inhabitants, the filmmakers forgot to actually include any characters that we should invest in – Riddick himself excluded – and any semblance of an intelligible plot, resulting in a lot of action scenes played out over several planets as we jump from world to world, not really getting a grasp of who is who and why they’re fighting.
At the centre of all the choppy editing and different coloured landscapes are the Necromongers, beings of fanatical religious beliefs who wish to convert all human life into believing what they do and will kill anyone who does not convert, and their attempts to take over the planet of Helion Prime, which just happens to be where escaped convict Riddick is, and when one of the Necromongers kills a holy man connected to Riddick then the battle is on. Add to that some details about Riddick trying to discover his origins and learn about his race of people and you have an opportunity to make some sort of commentary about race, nationalism, religion and the nature of choice, right?
Well, in other hands maybe, but here what you get is a confused and bloated mess with Riddick fighting everyone he encounters whilst the sub-STAR TREK ‘villains’ – or, as the question went with PITCH BLACK, is Riddick really the villain and not the invading monsters? – sort of just appear and monologue a lot before an explosion inevitably cuts them off. This happens a lot in the Theatrical Cut, which runs at just under two hours, but for the Director’s Cut – which adds another fifteen minutes – you get… hmm… nearly an extra fifteen minutes of it.
Just as well, then, that the visuals are pretty impressive, as the 4K upgrade makes great use of the various lurid colours contrasting against black backgrounds, and this being a movie from 2004 it all looks squeaky clean with a digital gloss that George Lucas would surely approve of. Granted, certain scenes look a little bit too much like a PlayStation game, but those were the limits of the technology of the time. Nevertheless, as a visual spectacle this 4K UHD disc is certainly something to show off on a decent home cinema setup.
As with PITCH BLACK, this 3-disc set comes loaded with special features, including three cuts (Theatrical, Director’s and Theatrical in an alternate 1.78:1 aspect ratio) and various new and archive interviews, making-of featurettes, deleted scenes and trailers, so as a package it is bursting with material that fans of the series will likely find essential. It’s just a shame, however, that said material is probably more interesting and coherent than the main attraction.
Chris Ward
