Review for The Chronicles of Riddick Limited Edition

Introduction

Not too long ago, I took a look at Daredevil on Blu-ray, one of those few films from that era when Director’s Cuts, or Extended Versions were actually such improvements over the Theatrical releases, that those films found a new lease of life on home video. The Chronicles of Riddick is another one of those films, one which I reviewed both versions of when they were released on DVD. It’s also had a previous Blu-ray release, but now Arrow Video are giving the film a 4k UHD release, and a brand new Blu-ray presentation as well, with plenty of new extra features too. This film has always been something of a guilty pleasure of mine, and I took the chance to request a review copy. Imagine my surprise when three discs turned up. I briefly rubbed my hands at the prospect of a Riddick marathon, with the thought that Arrow would be packaging the film with Pitch Black and Riddick too (although with Furya in pre-production, it’s not quite the complete saga). But in actuality, this is all The Chronicles of Riddick, with no seamless branching in sight; three versions of the film, although I suspect I will only be watching it twice for this review.

Disc 1: The Chronicles Of Riddick: Theatrical Version (119:07)
Disc 2: The Chronicles Of Riddick: Director’s Cut (134:05)
Disc 3: The Chronicles Of Riddick: Open Matte Theatrical Version (119:07)


Since the events of Pitch Black, the survivors have gone their separate ways. Imam is back on Helion Prime with his family, Jack has taken the name Kyra, and resents her mentor while still trying to emulate him, and Riddick has spent the last few years in the middle of nowhere, dodging bounty hunters and mercs. Only now, the mercs have caught up with him, and are bringing him back to Helion Prime for a big payday. But it’s the most unlikely person who has put a bounty on Riddick’s head. The Necromongers are the darkest force in the universe, preying on the worlds of humanity, killing what they can’t convert to their dread religion. Their next target is Helion Prime, and an obscure prophecy suggests that Riddick might be the unlikeliest saviour of humanity.

Picture

The theatrical version and the director’s cut version of the film get 2.39:1 widescreen 1080p transfers, while the film on disc 3 gets a 1.78:1 widescreen 1080p transfer, although the image quality on all three versions is of equally high standards, understandable given that this is from a 4k restoration made for a UHD release. The image is clear and sharp, details are excellent, and colours are rich and consistent, which all makes the somewhat dated visual aesthetic all the more obvious. The Chronicles of Riddick was released in 2004, around the time that digital effects work was still quite nascent, and the more fantastical a world was presented on screen, the more the limitations of the technology used become visible. It’s why films like Lord of the Rings used New Zealand for its locations rather than creating them in what would have passed for Unreal Engine back then. The Chronicles Of Riddick will make you exercise what’s probably an atrophied muscle these days; you’ll have to suspend your disbelief.

Sound

The theatrical cut on both discs 1 and 3 get Dolby Atmos and DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround English with optional SDH English subtitles, while the Director’s Cut disc get DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround English with subs only. Whichever way you go, the audio is excellent, nice and immersive, making the most of the action, while keeping the dialogue clear throughout. However, the music didn’t stick with me.

Extras

The discs boot to animated menus, and the extras are distributed as follows, with most of the new content on Disc 1.

Ambition on Another Scale: Chronicling a Blockbuster (73:48)
Realizing Riddick (13:49)
Back to Black (10:42)
Chronicles of a Cult Film Celebrity (10:17)
Teaser Trailer (1:28)
Theatrical Trailer (2:22)


More of the vintage content, from the DVDs and the previous Blu-ray release are on Disc 2.

Audio commentary with David Twohy and Vin Diesel
Audio commentary with David Twohy, Karl Urban, and Alexa Davelos
Introduction by David Twohy (0:47)
Creation of New Mecca (11:10)
Riddick Rises (13:25)
Keep What You Kill (17:28)
Visual Effects Revealed (6:02)
Interactive Production Calendar (24:38)


Production Vignettes (33:59)
Deleted Scenes x3 with optional commentary (7:43)
Virtual Guide to The Chronicles of Riddick x13 (7:52)
Toombs’ Chase Log (9:59)
Vin Diesel’s Guided Tour (3:10)
Riddick’s Worlds x8 (3:20)
On Set Interviews x 8 (21:57)
Promotional Interviews x6 (22:02)

Disc 3

Escape From Butcher’s Bay (33:42)
The Lowdown (22:04)

Conclusion

I suspect that despite all of the options this release offers, just the Director’s Cut version of the film will see regular play. Otherwise the other discs will only see use for the extra features distributed among them. The Theatrical Version of The Chronicles Of Riddick is what you get when you put a somewhat adult action movie through the grinders of the MPAA and studio system, all to get runtimes that maximise cinema performances per day, and a family friendly rating. The Theatrical Cut has been neutered to make it as inoffensive as possible.


Both versions of the film effectively tell the same story, the Necromongers rampaging through the universe on their crusade, a prophecy stating that only one man can stop them, and with Riddick being that man. The theatrical version has a rather pedestrian and thin narrative, a plodding progression of A to B to C, as Riddick’s quest unfolds. The story does what it says on the tin, the characters are intriguing enough for the most part, and the action is entertaining too.


The Director’s Cut takes this skeleton of a movie and puts some flesh to it. There are three things it does to elevate the story. One is that it ups the intensity of the action and the violence in the film, most evident in a fight sequence on the surface of Crematoria towards the end of the film. It restores a bit of grit, a visceral punch to the film. The second thing is that it restores the sex to the film, thematically speaking. One of the plot arcs, wafer thin in the Theatrical Cut, is the scheming among the Necromongers, specifically Lord Vaako’s designs on the leadership. It’s only alluded to in the Theatrical, but in the Director’s Cut you can really see the twisted, Lady Macbeth nature of his wife. It makes for a much better story when the characters are rounded, developed to the degree that they are here. The third aspect is the prophecy, that of a Furyan being the only threat to the leader of the Necromongers. The Director’s cut restores this content, with Riddick learning more about his Furyan nature.


Now having said all of that, The Chronicles of Riddick isn’t exactly a great film, even if The Director’s Cut is an enjoyable bit of entertainment compared to the disposable fare of the Theatrical. It’s that it fails in what it attempts to do, to create a universe for the Riddick character to dwell in. It wants to be Star Wars, in the way that George Lucas presented a lived in universe with just the one film way back in 1977. Even then, there was the sense that the story extended far beyond the confines of the screen. The Chronicles of Riddick wanted to do that, expanding the horizons of the character beyond the planet of Pitch Black. And there are plenty of worlds in this film, many characters, and the whole mythology of the Necromongers. But everything you see on screen, everything the characters say, is wrapped up within this story (apart from references to the spin-off computer game and animation)


There are plenty of extras with this release, hours and hours of content to partake of. But there is a glaring absence which really makes me scratch my head, and I’m not talking about the other two Riddick movies. Back when this film was released, the multimedia experience was in vogue when it came to storytelling, and movies would come with animations and videogames that would present different aspects of the story, and you’d kind of need them all to get the whole picture. Here, the Escape From Butcher Bay videogame cutscenes have been edited together to offer more of the Chronicles of Riddick story (albeit in the Limited Edition only). But the Dark Fury half-hour animation, that bridges the gap between Pitch Black and Chronicles is missing, which is a shame.


I have seen plenty of small movies, in terms of budget and scope that punch way above their weight. The Chronicles of Riddick is a rare example of the reverse, a big budget movie that feels markedly smaller. For me, it failed in what it tried to accomplish, establishing a Riddick-verse. But when it comes to on disc content, this release reaps the rewards of the film’s ambition, with lots to keep you busy. And while the film doesn’t impress, it still manages to entertain, and the director’s cut even manages to satisfy.