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Review: Riddick

By Christine Petralia

Image courtesy of Universal Pictures

September 8, 2013

 

*Spoiler Alert*

 

A lot of fun CG and fight scenes, plus a sexy Vin Diesel is about all you’ll get from this third installment in the Chronicle of Riddick series.

 

The film picks up five years after Chronicle with a stranded Riddick (Diesel) left for dead on a desolate planet. After resetting a broken leg and managing to fend off wolf-like creatures, he goes into hibernation, where we learn how he was left on the planet. Essentially, he asked to go to his home planet of Furya, but the group of Necromongers betray him.

 

After emerging from his hibernation, Riddick relearns how to defend himself and gets ‘re-acquainted’ with himself. He raises a ‘puppy’ wolf as his own pet, while making his body immune to the venom of the scorpion creatures that seem to have it out for him.

 

As he explores the planet, he realizes a storm is coming with more scorpion creatures, so he must figure out a way to get off the planet. He stumbles upon an empty mercenary station, so he activates the emergency beacon to make people aware of his location. He leaves a threatening note to just leave a ship so no one will get hurt.

 

Two groups show up, bounty hunters willing to kill Riddick for more money and mercenaries, led by a man who wants to find out how his son died. After a bit of non-sense and several people getting killed trying to capture Riddick, he reveals himself only to alert both groups that danger is coming in the form of the scorpions.

 

After more people die at the hands of the scorpions, the remaining members strike a deal with Riddick, he gets one ship, they get the other as long as he brings them to the power cells he stole. Of course, more fighting between Riddick and one of the bounty hunters ensues and then after that bounty hunter is killed, more fighting with the scorpions. And just when we think that the mercenary Johns (Matt Nable) leaves Riddick for dead, the remaining mercenaries rescue him and give him his ship.

 

The film leaves it open-ended as Riddick goes in search of his home planet.

 

Not the best film I’ve seen this year, but not the worst (that honor goes to After Earth). It was fun to watch and had a touch of that Vin Diesel humor, but lacked an in depth plot. The one storyline they tried to put in about Johns and his dead son didn’t real bring enough conflict to make me care. You also don’t really need to see the previous films to know what is going on either. All you need to know is Riddick is stranded and needs to go home. I don’t know if a fourth installment is planned, but the ending left that option on the table.

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All works created by Christine McGrath; Centereach, New York  All Rights Reserved 2024

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