Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13304 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-09-19
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Box set, Director's Cut, PAL
• Original language: English, Hungarian
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 114 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Bigger isn't always better, but for anyone who enjoyed Pitch Black, a nominal sequel like The Chronicles of Riddick should prove adequately entertaining. Writer-director David Twohy returns with expansive sets, detailed costumes, an army of CGI effects artists, and the star he helped launch--Vin Diesel--bearing his franchise burden quite nicely as he reprises his title role. The Furian renegade Riddick has another bounty on his head, but when he escapes from his mercenary captors, he's plunged into an epic-scale war waged by the Necromongers. A fascist master race led by Lord Marshal (Colm Feore), they're determined to conquer all enemies in their quest for the Underverse, the appeal of which is largely unexplained (since Twohy is presumably reserving details for subsequent "chronicles"). With tissue-thin plotting, scant character development, and skimpy roles that waste the talents of Thandie Newton (as a Necromonger conspirator) and Judi Dench (as a wispy "Elemental" priestess), Twohy's back in the B-movie territory he started in (with The Arrival), brought to vivid life on a vast digital landscape with the conceptual allure of a lavish graphic novel. But does Riddick have leadership skills on his resumé? To get an answer to that question, sci-fi fans will welcome another sequel. --Jeff Shannon

Synopsis
The sequel to cult sci-fi hit Pitch Black sees Vin Diesel enthusiastically returning to his role as Richard B. Riddick. Director-writer David Twohy is on board again, building on themes established in the first movie, and expanding his vision with some incredible special effects work. Twohy opens the movie with Riddick on the run from a group of bounty hunters. He escapes them with ease, then seeks information from an old friend named Inam (Keith David). Inam informs Riddick that he has been singled out by an Air Elemental, Aereon (Judi Dench), as the one man who can stop the evil Necromongers from taking over the Universe. Suddenly, the Necromongers arrive on the planet, causing mayhem and destruction. They capture Riddick. He soon escapes, only to fall into the hands of the bounty hunters he so deftly eluded at the start of the movie. They take Riddick to a rogue prison planet where he is met by scorching heat, an underground penitentiary, and his female companion from Pitch Black, Jack (who is now called Kyra, and played by a different actress, Alexa Davalos). They plan their escape from the planet, and vow to bring down the Necromongers. Things don't go according to plan however, leading to a suspense-filled climax to the film, and an eyebrow-raising ending that suggests Twohy may have plans for further instalments in the story.

Customer Reviews

worth getting for the extra 15 minutes
The Chronicles of Riddick is a sequel to Pitch Black.

Vin Diesel (xXx) returns as Riddick, who has gone into a self-imposed exile. While hiding on the snow planet he encounters a bounty hunter called Toombs (Nick Chinlund) who tries to capture him and return him to Helion for the 1.5 million bounty. Riddick, however, turns the tables on him and goes to Helion to confront the person who he believes sent the bounty hunters after him. On confronting Iman (Keith David) he meets the person who set the bounty, an elemental called Aereon (Dame Judi Dench) who starts to tell Riddick about a race called Necromongers when she is interrupted by Guards looking for Riddick. Riddick, trying to get away, discovers that the child Jack (from Pitch Black) has been sent to the prison planet Crematoria.

The Necromongers attack the planet, just as Aereon had predicted.

Riddick escapes from the Necromongers (there's more to it than that but I want to try to avoid spoilers) and is captured by Toombs and his new crew. He manages to manipulate Toombs into taking him to Crematoria. The Lord Marshal of the Necromongers (Colm Feore), having found that Riddick is of the Furian race sends Lord Vaako (Karl Urban) after him. Vaakos scheming wife (Thandie Newton) decides to find out what is so special about Riddick and the Elemental Aereon.

Riddick meets Jack again, but Jack is now called Kyra (and played by Alexa Davalos). Riddick and the other prisoners must try to escape the prison and the chasing Negromongers.

This version has an additional 15 minutes of footage that was not in the original theatrical version (this version being 119 minutes).

There is an interesting commentary with Director David Twohy, Karl Urban and Alexa Davalos.

The second disc is all extras, include a number of featurettes.

This version is well worth getting, especially, if like me, you haven't got the film in the original theatrical version. It fills in some of the gaps and explains some bits I didn't get when I watched the edited version.

A third film in the series is due to start filming soon, but there is no word on who will be in it - other than Vin Diesel.

Better than theatrical release
I've been dying to see this directors cut of The Chronicles Of Riddick for some time, in the U.S, it came out at the same time as the normal version, so i thought we'd never end up getting it. But, i am pleased to say that i was wrong.

While being a big fan of the theatrical cut, i always had the feeling that an extended cut would be better recieved by the common movie goer, and would help the movie flow. This is true, as in the directors cut we get more of a history for Riddick, and we get more information on his Furyan origins and on why his race is almost extinct, making Riddick seem a lot more important to the universe than he seemed in the other cut. We also get a new character in the movie, a woman (presumably Furyan, maybe his mother) who comes to Riddick in his dreams to remind him of the terrible tragedy that happened on the planet. We also get a few tantalising glimpses of Furya itself, whetting the appetite even further for the sequels. Also, supporting characters like Jack/Kyra, the mercs who catch Riddick, Lord and Dame Vaako and the Norwegian prisoner leader are more fleshed out, giving us extra oppurtunity to identify with them.

The action scenes on Crematoria are also extended including a spectacular new part were Riddick comes to truly realise he is Furyan and who it was who destroyed his race's world. Other action scenes in the movie are either the same or only extended by a few seconds of extra footage.

The new footage also serves to make some scenes of the movie more emotionally charged and just that little bit more exciting. For example, when Riddick is looking at the devastation when the Necromonger invade Helion Prime, we see flashback of Furya, and also the final 30 mins in necropolis. So if you didnt like the theatrical cut, give this a try, if you liked the theatrical cut, definately buy this, anyone who has not seen either, i would recommend both, but the directors cut is the better movie.

I've heard that in the planned sequels they will go to the underverse in number 2 and then back to Furya in number 3, i sure hope these get made as i love the character and the movies, and this could turn out to be a great sci-fi saga in the years to come, and the more people who buy the DVD the more chance we have of the sequels getting made.

Most underrated film ever
This film has been overlooked by the masses,because film critics called it Chronicles Of ridiculous,and gave it 1 star ratings.But if you check the scores of people on amazon who have seen it,most love it,I do too.Im so glad i bought both versions,as they both have a very different feel to them,So dont wait buy it,you will be very glad you did.The film draws you in right at the start and the only downsides to this film are,that it has to end,and that there probably wont be a sequel,due to the bad taste of you average highly paid film critic.
Well seems my last comment might be wrong,as Vin Diesel has commented in a recent interview,that there might be another film,so fingers crossed riddick fans.