FLOATER. Vin Diesel is only able to make a limited impact in his third outing as Riddick.
For some or other reason action superstars (Bruce Willis, Schwarzenegger, Stallone) assume that monotone chainsaw-grumblings equal masculinity. Such mumblings, though, only give a superficial, tired slant to physical scenes – the backbone of any monster movie.
A boring character who can scarcely speak properly has to work extra hard to convince in his physical fights, and Diesel simply looks too bored to make them work. And Diesel as Riddick has special effect eyes or goggles that distance him even further from the audience and hide another acting assets.
Having said that: the special effects here are first-class. The cross between a hyena and a wild dog, which turns into Riddick’s best friend, has more facial expressions than his master and lifts the movie.
The first part of Riddick is the most effective: a lonely man reflects upon the desolate planet he’s on and its monstrous inhabitants. This part is gripping and the attacks by the creatures are almost as good as those in the Alien films. On the human side, it is only the feisty, sexy Kathee Sackhoff that manages to liven things up. The men with her are all too similar and bland to convince.
This latest instalment in a tired franchise is not in the same league as the original. Once the mercenaries explode on to the scene, the film takes a dip. There are long-winded conversations about nothing with only Diesel occasionally growling a macho one-liner in a threatening manner waking you from your slumber.
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