Stephen Bird Gees, where do you begin..., I've just peeled myself off the floor after suffering some kind of visual overload, yes the scenes were very flashy, very colorful, and I couldn't keep up with the story because I was being overwhelmed by the seriously over-the-top special effects. From what I gathered, The Chronicles of Riddick could be considered a decent film from a different opinion, but in my opinion I wasn't a fan hence why I rated it lower, not necessarily a bad film it just didn't float my boat in any way. An exhibition of elaborate set designs and headache inducing special effects, this is proper Sci-Fi, I just wish I could've understood it. The Chronicles of Riddick is the sequel to (the much better) Pitch Black, that was a film I enjoyed and actually could follow, and Vin Diesel was fantastic in creating the allure and mystique that surrounds the titular character, Richard Riddick; yet in this film, the mystique and coolness was sadly replaced by confusion.Unusual for one of my reviews but I really can't elaborate on the story or the plot, because somewhere along the viewing I got lost and couldn't find the thread to get back into it, but, that's the point, it's a confusing film so I will base my review on that very point..., if you can watch The Chronicles of Riddick and understand it, well you must be a smarter guy than I.

Harrison Tweed (Top Dawg) This sci-fi film was ahead of it's time! I've watched this over and over again and it's a great sequel to Pitch Black. This film is what made Vin Diesel and is one of if not the best film he's been in! Truly one of my all time favs! This film is a cult classic with stunning VFX and excellent story. If you have not seen this, even if you're not a fan of Vin Diesel... watch it and you will earn your respect for his early and initial years of acting. His character was on point! A must see and a perfect 10/10 from me!

bowmanblue The Chronicles of Riddick was probably always going to be a hard sell. It's a sequel that was spawned off the back of a blatant B-movie which - somehow - exceeded all expectations and became a sleeper classic, ie. Pitch Black.Chronicles of Riddick is set five years after space convict Riddick escaped the last prison transport (and a planet full of monsters) and has now found himself not only hunted by mercenaries but also charged with the task of bringing down an empire of intergalactic nasties.Personally, I quite enjoyed it. It has great action, some witty dialogue from Riddick himself and decent (if a little too CGI) special effects.However, it's worth noting that it didn't perform as well as it was predicted at the Box Office. I'm guessing that was because it doesn't really seem to know what sort of film it wants to be. Its predecessor, Pitch Black, was an out and our sci-fi horror. Chronicles waters down the fear factor in exchange for a lower rating (in order to draw more younger viewers in) which annoyed its core fanbase. Plus there's only ever really Riddick to root for. He works alone and this is proved by the fact that he barely ever meets up with 'a gang' so to speak of. He just goes from planet to planet, briefly interacting with one set of locals after another. Then you have the baddies. Yes, the costumes and sets are great, but they're pretty clichéd and one dimensional. Ooh, a Bristish bad guy - there's a shock.All in all, Riddick is fun, but the bottom line is that it's little more than a remake of the eighties (so-bad-it's-good) classic Flash Gordon, only with better special effects.

TxMike I have been seeing the Riddick movies in mostly a reverse order. A few weeks ago I first saw the recent (2013) one "Riddick", where he had to escape the Mercs, then I saw the first, "Pitch Black" plus the animated short. Now I have finally seen this one, "Chronicles of Riddick." This one is a very dark theme, as the main nemesis are the race calling themselves the Necromongers. It is derived from the prefix 'necro-', which means death, and the term 'necrophilia' which is 'love of the dead.' According to this story, the Necromongers seek to convert all races in the universe into their type, which involves passing through a state of death, or perhaps near death.I found this explanation online. " The Necromongers practice a religion known as Necroism. The primary belief of this religion is that life in this universe is a mistake which must be corrected. This revelation was brought about by the discovery of the Underverse, which is described as another universe in which life is cherished and even the dead are brought back to life. The Underverse is both the afterlife of the Necromongers and the ultimate destination of their interstellar journey. Entrance to the Underverse is restricted to those who follow the Necromonger religion "Vin Diesel is of course back as Riddick, and as this movie starts he is hunted down on a planet where he has been in seclusion for a few years. He wants to find out who revealed his location, and that journey takes him to the Necromongers.The chief among them is Colm Feore as Lord Marshal. An associate (for lack of a better description) is Thandie Newton as Dame Vaako. Even the great Judi Dench has a role, as the half-invisible Aereon. It wasn't totally clear to me whether she was good or bad. And the key hunter was Karl Urban as Vaako.I will not pretend to understand the interactions of all the characters, or of all the consequences of the various battles. For me the movie was just fun entertainment, a space travel and alien life fantasy. Most of the fun is in seeing the various ways that Riddick, often seemingly imprisoned with zero hope of escape, actually escapes and gains the upper hand on the bad guys. Just a fun movie to view for light entertainment.