The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury

Voices of: Vin Diesel, Rhiana Griffith, Keith David, Roger Jackson, Tress MacNeille, Nick Chinlund
Directed by: Peter Chung
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Animation, Short, Action
Length: 35 minutes
2004

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Riddick (Vin Diesel) is captured by a mysterious woman who has nefarious plans for him.

Review:

Tim: I really love the character of Riddick, even though his movies haven't always lived up to the promise of the character. This animated short film was created to bridge the gap in the character's appearances between his debut in Pitch Black and in The Chronicles of Riddick. It's an interesting experiment and while I didn't love the short, it was worth seeing. That being said, it's also not completely necessary, unless you're trying to fill in a timeline for Riddick.

One of the best things about the character of Riddick is that Vin Diesel does such a fantastic job bringing him to life. Seeing Diesel in this role is so much fun. I'm glad that he voiced the character here, so it very much stays true to the character as Diesel defines him. However, it loses something to only hear Diesel's voice and not see him. The animation is solid and it certainly looks like Diesel, but it's not the same. Diesel has such a tremendous, unique voice and that part was fantastic, but I missed seeing the man himself. Still, I suppose it's fun to see the character depicted in a different medium.

The story is surprisingly solid. A good deal takes place in 35 minutes. I suppose SPOILERS ahead, although I'll try to limit them. Riddick and his companions are captured by a woman who collects criminals as works of art. This idea is actually pretty cool and a bit chilling when they explain the logistics of this. It felt like a formidable challenge for Riddick, which is great fun to see. The short does a good job of setting the stage and stacking the deck against Riddick. Of course, most of the fun of the story is seeing how he rises to occasion and manages to overcome those seemingly insurmountable obstacles. I had fun watching the story. The animation format did blunt some of the excitement. It's hard to feel much emotional connection to an animated character when you're used to seeing them portrayed as a flesh-and-blood character. There's also somewhat lower stakes since this story filled in the gap between two movies. We learn about the characters, but we know they are going to survive.

I do give Peter Chung and Vin Diesel credit for trying something different. I know a live action short wouldn't have made much sense financially, but it's hard not to ruminate on how much cooler that would be. While the short had some limitations, it was still a fun little diversion. It drags in a few places and wasn't quite as effective as it could have been, but it has some memorable moments as well. As I said, I'm a fan of Riddick as a character and while I don't think any of the movies have truly done him justice (this short included), I'm always up for seeing him in action. The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury doesn't add a ton to the Riddick mythos, but it's still worth seeing.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Pitch Black, The Chronicles of Riddick