Pitch Black felt underhyped when it crashed into theaters in Febuary, 2000. Unlike so many films that pushed clips when it started production on the evolving internet, it seemed low key. I don’t even remember the movie blitzing the cable dial with ads. People emailed and AOL instant messaged me to go see when Pitch Black arrived at the local cineplex. The film had a transport ship crash land on a planet with nasty creatures that come out in the dark. Their only hope for survival is Riddick (XXX‘s Vin Diesel) who is a criminal with enhanced eyes. The film became a success in theaters and did even better in the DVD business where the high resolution allowed viewers to see dark scenes better than on VHS. The film helped elevate Vin Diesel into a movie star status. It seemed natural that he would return to the character. The Chronicles of Riddick took the killer with silver eyes into a larger universe with even more deadly foes.
After last seeing him on a desert planet, Riddick hides out on a frozen planet. He can’t stay relaxed and retired as a spaceship full of bounty hunters led by Toombs (Nick Chinlund) tracks him across the icy surface. Eventually Riddick gets the upperhand and takes over the spaceship. He discovers they were sent by someone at New Mecca on the planet Helion Prime. Turns out Riddick has a pal there in Imam (They Live‘s Keith David) from his Pitch Black days. He and air elemental Aereon (Dame Judy Dench) need his help. A group of warriors known as Necromongers have been attacking and destroying planets. They fear New Mecca will be next and need Riddick’s help. Before they can argue things out, the Necromongers attack. They’re led by the Lord Marshal (Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould‘s Colm Feore) and Commander Vaako (Star Trek‘s Karl Urban). But Vaako’s wife (Beseiged‘s Thandiwe Newton) wants her husband to take over and sees Riddick as a great way to frag the Lord Marshal. Of course Riddick has his own problems when he ends up on the hostile prison planet Crematoria. There’s a lot more going on than just a single planet where bad things happen went the lights go out.
When Chronicles of Riddick came out in theaters back in the summer of 2004, part of it felt rather rushed. Turns out they had do a bit of snipping to achieve the PG-13 rating. When the DVD came out before Thanksgiving, David Twohy had a chance to create a Director’s Cut. Besides restoring the R-rated action, there was fifteen minutes of story that made the film work better. Now you can get both versions upgraded to 4K UHD. The Theatrical Cut is 1:59:07. The Director’s Cut is 2:14:05. There is also a third version of the film in the boxset with the Unmatted version of the theatrical cut. The film was shot in Super 35mm so this is not a pan and scan. You’re seeing more on the top and bottom of the frame.
The Chronicles of Riddick plays even better now than when it came out 20 years ago. The action on various planets keeps your attention especially the one that burns everything on the surface when the sun comes out. The Necromongers hold up as a fearful cult army. Vin Diesel doesn’t disappoint when he gets to do more with Riddick. He’s able to pull off the huge stunts and the delicate acting moments that allow us to see him beyond his steely eyes. This boxset has so much for fans who want to deep dive on The Chronicles of Riddick.
The Video is 2.35:1 anamorphic for both the Theatrical and Director’s Cut. The 4K was approved by David Twohy. The Unmatted version is 1.78:1 anamorphic. Things look fine during the destructive scenes. The Audio is the original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio for both films. The Theatrical Cut has a remixed Dolby Atmos. All three versions are subtitled in English.
Illustrated collectors’ booklet an essay by Walter Chaw, original production notes and the ‘Chronicles Compendium.’
DISC ONE
Ambition on Another Scale: Chronicling a Blockbuster Sequel (73:48) is a fresh documentary that interviews writer-director David Twohy, actors Keith David and Linus Roache, storyboard artist Brian Murray, and others. Twohy talks about how the producers of Pitch Black came to him with an offer that if he fixed the script, he could direct. He talks about how Pitch Black almost vanished when Polygram got taken over by Universal, but the studio gave it a theatrical release. When Vin Diesel became a superstar with Fast and the Furious and XXX, the studio wanted to do a second movie about Riddick. Twohy didn’t want do Pitch Black 2. He had an idea to expand the universe. Keith David reflects on how Riddick is evil and good. There’s talk about how huge the production became.
Realizing Riddick (13:49) has Twohy admit that during testing for Pitch Black, the test audiences wanted more Riddick. He gained a sense that there was more to this character. He wanted to show more of the worlds that Riddick inhabits. He did actual scale back the script. He explains the buzzsaw shaped spaceships. He gets into how he was contractually obligated to deliver a film that was under two hours. He’s thrilled to have been able to create a director’s cut.
Back to Black (10:42) has Brian Murray on his work within the Riddick saga. He said that this is the film people enjoy asking him about working. He talks about an earlier version of the script.
Chronicles of a Cult Film Celebrity (10:17) lets Keith David explain why you should watch Pitch Black and Chronicles of Riddick. He talks about what works for him in science fiction. He talks about the role of Imam. If you’ve ever been confused between actors Keith David and David Keith, they met up on The What Are We Talking About podcast recently.
Trailer Gallery includes Teaser Trailer (1:28) and Theatrical Trailer (2:22).
DISC TWO
Archive audio commentary by David Twohy and Vin Diesel makes sure you know which one of them is talking. Vin has the deeper voice. This was made in 2009 for the Blu-ray release. Vin points out that it’s a new technology. They are in preproduction on Riddick and also discuss making Pitch Black.
Archive audio commentary by Twohy and co-stars Karl Urban and Alexa Davelos gets into their experience on the set.
Archive introduction by Twohy (0:47) has him explain a bit about the missing frame element for this cut.
Creation of New Mecca (11:10) is an archive featurette giving a sense of the worlds beyond Pitch Black. Vin Diesel wants us to see Helion Prime. The city of New Mecca was where the character Iman was heading in Pitch Black. There’s behind the scenes footage.
Riddick Rises (13:25) is an archive featurette about the prison planet of Crematoria. They talk of Riddick as an anti-hero.
Keep What You Kill (17:28) focuses on the world of the Necromongers. They wanted to juice up the villains. The behind the scenes shots has the actors in the Necromongers cutting up. Twohy wants to bring out a bit of the infighting between them.
Visual Effects Revealed (6:02) gives us a sense of the VFX. There’s talk about how there’s so many special effects that he won’t know what he really has until two weeks before the film debuts. The special effects crew sees themselves as adding onto the work of the art department.
Interactive Production Calendar (24:38) is a series of short videos captured during the shooting time. This was probably offered up from the movie’s website.
Production Vignettes (33:59) are behind-the-scenes segments that were part of the Picture-in-Picture bonus feature on the 2009 Blu-ray.
Three deleted scenes include “Aereon and Imam on Hellion” (1:35), “Original U.V. Planet 6” (2:55) and “Toombs’ Demise” (3:13). There’s also commentary tracks to let you know why they were snipped.
Virtual Guide to the Chronicles of Riddick (7:52) contains short animated segments that talks about worlds and characters in the film. The actors read the descriptions.
Toombs’ Chase Log (9:59) has Nick Chinlund narrate his tracking of Riddick and others on his bounty list.
A guided tour of the set by Vin Diesel (3:10) has him point out the work of the production and art departments. There are also 360-degree panoramic views of eight major sets.
On-set interviews (21:57) include time with Twohy, Diesel, Dench, Urban, Colm Feore, Alexa Davelos, Thandiwe Newton and producer Scott Kroopf. Most of these interviews are included in the other making of specials.
Promotional interviews (22:02) with Twohy, Diesel, Newton, Urban, Davelos and Feore seem to be set up from the press junket.
Easter egg is lurking on the disc.
DISC THREE (LIMITED EDITION EXCLUSIVE)
Escape from Butcher Bay (33:42) are the scenes from the videogame that came out for the original XBox. These are the “drama” scenes and not the game playing. The actors voiced their characters including Vin Diesel.
The Lowdown (22:04) is the TV special that ran before the movie’s release.
Arrow Videos presents Chronicles of Riddick: Limited Edition. Directed by David Twohy. Screenplay by David Twohy. Starring Vin Diesel, Thandiwe Newton, Karl Urban, Colm Feore, Linus Roache,Keith David, Yorick van Wageningen, Alexa Davalos, Nick Chinlund & Judi Dench. Boxset Contents: 3 versions of the movie on 3 4K UHD discs. Rating: Unrated & PG-13. Release Date: September 17, 2024.
