Sunday, May 31, 2020

Pitch Black

Movie Name: Pitch Black
Year of Release: 2000
Director: David Twohy
Starring: Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, Keith David, Lewis Fitz-Gerald, Claudia Black, Rhiana Griffith, John Moore, Simon Burke, Les Chantery, Sam Sari, Firass Dirani, Ric Anderson 
Genre: Sci-Fi, Horror
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5 
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:
When "Pitch Black" made its debut in 2000, no one could have imagined this would start a series of films, largely propelled by its star and co-producer, Vin Diesel. The film follows the story of a group of survivors who crash land in an unknown planet, following a run with a meteor shower which damages the ship where a much larger contingent of passengers are traveling. Carolyn, one of the pilots, is thrown into a leadership position, when her co-pilot and senior officer die as a result of the landing. As the group devises a way to escape the planet, they are faced with a few challenges, namely the fact that the planet is going through an eclipse, and there are alien creatures in it that are attacking and killing the few remaining survivors. They're forced to rely on a survivor, who was also a prisoner by the name of Riddick. He can see in the dark, is very resourceful and a survivalist. The few survivors have to unite forces, in hopes of escaping the lethal creatures on the planet.
Director David Twohy made a name for himself in the 90s as a screenwriter, having written (or co-written) Andrew Davis's "The Fugitive", Deran Sarafian's "Terminal Velocity", Kevin Reynolds's "Waterworld" and Ridley Scott's "G.I. Jane", to name but a few, before his first directorial effort, the alien arrival thriller by the name of "The Arrival". "Pitch Black", which he also co-wrote, is a low budget sci-fi film, with a distinct B-movie flair, which drinks heavily from Ridley Scott's "Alien", nonetheless managing to have a distinctive flair, by way of introducing the anti-hero/lone ranger, in the figure of Riddick. The film also bears some influences from the Western Spaghetti of Sergio Leone, with the central character never really being a villain, but also never quite being a perfect hero. He's the man living by his own rules, saving himself before everyone else, and generally being resourceful in dire times. The film quickly establishes characters and motivations, and what it lacks in stylistic approach and visual prowess, it manages to deliver enough suspense to keep the narrative moving forward. The cast is fairly solid, with Radha Mitchell and Keith David in particular making this all the more enticing, while Vin Diesel manages to create a character with just enough edge. While not particularly memorable, it's still a watchable endeavor. 

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