RIDDICK Review: 5 Reasons Why It’s Better Than Prometheus and Most ‘Alien’ Movies The Alien saga is the gold standard for the sci-fy horror genre. Well, at least the first two. The rest have failed to reach similar heights in terms of story, character development, action and wonder. Riddick (in theaters everywhere Sept. 6), a film totally disconnected from the Alien universe is somehow able to mix some of those elements and create something more engaging and entertaining than a big budget installment held by the director that started it all. Here are five things that this tight, relatively small Vin Diesel flick does better than Ridley Scott’s ‘Prometheus’ and most of those that came after James Cameron’s ‘Aliens’. More Frightening In ‘Riddick’ nobody is ever safe. The setting created is a brave new world full of dangers. Its hostile creatures come in every shape and form, populating every single corner: Air, water, ground …underground! The hero/anti-hero of the title is another source of tension. When you don’t see him you feel his presence as a ninja-like assassin. When he is on screen he is even more imposing, with that deep voice and creepy bright eyes. But the true horror comes courtesy of the “mud demons”, the coolest, most original space abomination in a while. Even a Xenomorph would be jealous of their design. Like any good monster it incorporates elements from real animals, like a tail that “enchants” its victims same way a cobra would do, before stinging them like a scorpion. No acid blood but a fast killing poison. The filmmakers reveal them gradually and exploit them to their maximum potential. Less Convoluted At its core, ‘Alien’ stories are about civilized humans versus an uncontrollable force of nature. Other ingredients added in the two first films made it more interesting: the creatures’ mysterious origins (inspired by H.P. Lovecraft writings), a super evil corporation, complex androids, etc. But later chapters shoed-in Oedipus/Electra complexes, heavy handed socio-political messages and over-complicated storylines. Instead of taking this pretentious route, Riddick goes back to basics: A cool bunch of human -OK, human looking- characters, trapped in a confined space, using every resource to survive against monsters and each other. More Relatable The worst thing about Prometheus is that, except for Fassbender’s android, it fails at making you care about its large crew. That’s a crime when you have talents like Theron, Elba, Pierce and Rapace. Here you aren’t just rooting for a killing machine like Riddick, but you also connect with a strong and smart female character (Katee Sackhoff’s Dahl), a devilish and foolish villain (Jordi Molla as Santana) and someone that in another movie would be the big, boring hench-man (Diaz, interpreted by Dave Bautista). The officers and the mercenaries, in a way mixes together the Marines from ‘Aliens’ with those misfits in ‘Resurrection’. Plus, a four-legged digital creation that rivals Weta’s characters. Less Boring Even in those awful Alien vs. Predator productions you can find cool sequences. But to get to those you would probably have to endure either overstuffed scenes of dialogue, unnecessary exposition, or depressing and inconsequential “portrays of the human condition” (yes Fincher, I am talking to you). Riddick -both Vin Diesel’s character and the movie- never stops. While the overall story keeps raising the stakes (one threat, fifty, hundreds, etc.), there is a very satisfactory dynamic of build-up and release. That release usually comes as a funny smart-ass piece of dialogue, a visual joke, or an equally amusing over the top death. The film could also be divided in chapters, each with its own mood and narrative goals. They could be titled something like ‘Discovery’, ‘Recollection’, ‘Hunters’, and ‘Demons’. More Independent Being a self financed production, Vin Diesel and his creative team had the rare opportunity of crafting a blockbuster with total freedom. They cast the best actors for the roles instead of their bankability, injected “unsafe” dark humor and ultra-violent but creative R rated sequences. The modest budget forced them to make it tight, without unnecessary -and in the case of Prometheus, plain stupid- money shots. But it is also independent in terms of its story. The film addresses the previous installments but it isn’t obsessed with answering or asking questions.
