Riddick returns with this ambitious, yet much maligned sequel re-released by Arrow Video in a stacked 4K edition.

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.

The otherwise familiar sight of American cityscapes is marred by plumes of black smoke pouring upwards into the sky. On the streets below, tanks sit stationary at the traffic lights, the highways are choked with abandoned cars, the shells of burnt-out helicopters lie in the middle of the JC Penney’s parking lot and the Wi-Fi keeps dropping out. Welcome to Alex Garland’s vision of a war-torn America where what once was a fantastical conceit seems disturbingly plausible through the writer/directors’ English lens, with his tale of a band of journalists and photographers travelling across a war torn dis-united states.

Who doesn’t enjoy a good time loop movie? With the likes of Groundhog Day, Edge Of Tomorrow and Happy Death Day being notable examples, the dilemma of a character trying to break free from a set of pre-ordained events over and over has also in recent years become a field of interest for a number of genre directors. At the lower end of the budget scale films such as COHERENCE, TRIANGLE and TIMECRIMES helped make the name of their respective writers and directors, maybe some more than others, but the use of a limited set of events in a limited location can often prove fertile ground for the skills for a smart storyteller.

This science-fiction potboiler will no doubt capture the interest of the more discerning genre fan by the film’s geographical location alone. Those expecting something wholly original and with something more to chew on thematically than most recent sci-fi films and shows may find themselves a little short changed with what is on offer here.

Once again, the vast desert sands of Arrakis shimmers and shakes as if in preparation for the galaxy shaking events that are about to unfold courtesy of young Paul Atreides journey to messianic figurehead. Taking place immediately after the first film we follow Paul and his mother Jessica further into the desert after their alliance with the Fremen, both parties aligning to take the fight back to House Harkonnen. Meanwhile Emperor Shaddam IV and his daughter worry about their part to play in the massacre of House Atreides being uncovered while the scheming Bene Gesserit sisterhood prepare for the coming of the Kwisatz Haderach, a plot to install a galactic figurehead that has been centuries in the making.