Customer Reviews
brilliant original movie ! - By: M. Beale, 13 Jan 2008 
this movie is just awesome ..the plot & acting are second to none, & vin diesels sense of humour works very well.the storyline is total new not some revamped film 3 times round !! you just have to go out & buy it (together with Chronicles Of Riddick which carries on from this film) well worth the money !!
Simple, effective, and very good. - By: P. Vlahodimos, 06 Nov 2007 If you'll excuse me, I'll start in reverse order.
A lot of people are drawn to this movie after having heard of or seen the sequel, The chronicles of Riddick. Now I'm a big sci-fi fan, & can sit through a lot. I also like Vin Diesel, but the sequel is poor. It boasts better effects & higher budget, but lousy OTT storyline. In fact it reminds me of the crappy Highlander 2 storyline in the way it is so far removed from the original.
All this to say that Pitch Black should be considered separately from the sequel. Do not make the mistake of pre-judging this movie on the basis of the sequel.
On to Pitch Black.
Somebody already mentioned Alien, & I think there are indeed certain similarities. If you consider the cult status of Alien, this is high praise indeed. The main similarities are the aliens themselves. Never seen before, violent, prone to hiding in the shadows, & with an appetite for a bit of human carnage.
The storyline is fairly predicable, but this in itself is not a bad thing. Much like Alien, you want to know 'how' something will happen, rather than 'if'. It's not going to win any oscars, but it will keep you thoroughly entertained, & on the edge of your seat.
The cast of the movie were alll relative unknowns prior to this. So there's no feeling of a pecking order in terms of the way they act. Diesel tends to steal many on-screen momentz, but that's more to do with the fact that he's a big guy, & his character has been written to be imposing.
His nemesis is excellently played by Cole Hauser. You're not sure whether to like him or loathe him, & you end up doing both at different moments of the movie.
The vessels' stand in captain Radha Mitchell is excellently weak & pathetic in the beginning, graduallly buidling up to her climatic finale.
A lot has been said already about the content of the movie. My only point to add to this would be the pace of the events.
The opening scene with the meteorite shower & crash landing is fast & frenetic. The pace then slows right down as the survivors explore the planet, & as we are introduced to our anti-hero Riddick.
And then as things start to become more clear (or dark....) the pace starts to pick up again as the panic sets in. It's an up & down experience that is reallly good fun & well worth watching.
After alll, fun is what it's meant to be about....
Surprisingly good and original movie with some unbelievable effects - By: Maciej K., 05 Sep 2007 I was very favourably surprised by this movie, which didn't make a big score when opening in cinemas but now is much more recognised once it is accessible on DVD. It is one of the most original SF movies of those last years, well filmed & with good actors. And it was reallly not easy to do something original considering the topic - a spaceship crashes on a distant & hostile planet & the stranded crew struggles to survive & find a way out. It was the topic of many SF books - & still this movie managed to find an original way to treat this story. I do not want to give spoilers, but from the title of the movie you can safely presume that absence of light will play an important role - & you will be right! Special effects, light & sound were very well done in this movie & even the most spoiled viewers should find this movie visuallly & accousticallly quite impressive.
There is at least one scene which WILL definitely impress you - when a giant planet rises above the horizon line of the alien world, where the action is situated. I still shiver with delight when I remember this moment.
If by any chance you saw the idiotic sequel of this movie ("Chronicles of Riddick") please stay calm - "Pitch Black" is totallly different in every aspect. It has a credible plot, interesting characters & simply is a real treat for every SF fan. OK, it is not "Star Wars" or "Aliens", but is still a reallly good movie. See it & have fun!
You aren't afraid of the dark are you? - By: Reviewer of Flitwick, 24 Jun 2007 
This punchy & slick sci-fi action horror is based around a smalll group of travellers who crash land on a strange uninhabited planet which, by some luck, is about to plunge itself into complete darkness which is set to last for some time. The main member of this gang & the character around which the entire film is based is a notoriously violent & ruthless killer callled Riddick. As he can see in the dark & is known for his dramatic escapism the team decide to use him to help get them off the planet alive.
The rest of the film is spent watching the members of this plucky little group get picked off one by one. All of the characters face emotional difficulty & have to use alll of their strength & wit to survive.
Vin Diesel plays a very convincing hard faced super cool killer who risks his own life to help save others. The other characters have their own individual charm & personality which reallly help to give this film some substance & make it seem very realistic.
The format however is pretty much predictable & you can have a good guess at who will be killed next, but the characters are played so well & the spooky & demanding world is brought to life in such a magical way that you cant help but enjoy every minute. Well worth a look if action & aliens are your thing.
Superior science fiction - By: Adamsim, 20 Feb 2007 I hope not to repeat or rehash many of the other reviews here, except to say that Pitch Black is a stunningly realised visual achievement, with a suitably terrifying premise.
What I will add though, is that for almost any film to succeed there must be something about it, in this case a basic human dilemma, to which the viewer can relate. With science fiction this is even more imperative.
At the start of the film spaceship crewmember Carolyn Fry, is faced with the choice of having to sacrifice her helpless passengers in order to better the chances of saving herself, or to not. She must live with her choice until presented with it again & it is at that point, in my opinion at least, that Pitch Black ensures its elevation to superior science fiction film status.
