In sci-fi spectacular The Chronicles Of Riddick, Vin Diesel reprises the role that defined him as the next big action hero in Pitch Black. Sadly this second (more expensive) outing for the moody alien ass-kicker flopped at the box office. It recouped less than $60m of its $110m budget leaving director David Twohy with only one option: flog a Director's Cut.
Filling Up Space
Fifteen minutes of extra footage is clumsily edited into the theatrical version but does little to iron out the plot wrinkles. Instead we're offered more background on existing characters (eg, Kyra played by Alexa Davalos) and introduced to new blood Shirah (Kristin Lehman) - although she does little except float around in ethereal fashion.
There are eight minutes more of deleted footage presented separately and with optional commentary by Twohy. It's mostly just explanatory stuff involving the Necromongers and the Furyans and Riddick's history with Toombs (Chinlund). An alternative opening is also included, but even Twohy admits that, "It lacked drama and, even worse, it lacked excitement."
Chronicling The Chronicles
The second disc of this two-disc edition hosts a batch of throwaway extras like Toomb's Chase Log and Riddick's Worlds, which featured on the initial DVD release and are reviewed here. The good news is that these are accompanied by much more substantial behind-the-scenes featurettes like the Creation Of New Mecca examining the design of Helion Prime - even down to the costumes and props. Riddick Rises is a similar exploration of the planet Crematoria while Vin Diesel and David Twohy have a bash at demystifying the mythology surrounding Riddick and the many worlds he inhabits.
Keep What You Kill goes into more depth about the history of the Necromongers and the "Underverse", while an Interactive Production Calendar takes a more mundane look at the creation of this fantasy universe. Sadly the diary is incomplete, but the days that are covered open a rare window into production (in case you've ever wondered what a focus puller does, check it out). On the main menu of disc two, you'll also find an Easter egg where Colm Feore gives a master-class on getting kicked in the face...
If you didn't like the original film, this new version will do little to sway you and compared with the first DVD release, the extras package is still quite patchy. On the upside, the second disc does offer much more behind-the-scenes footage and decent contributions from Diesel and co, which should be enough to satisfy fans.
EXTRA FEATURES
