Dark Fury - The Chronicles Of Riddick - Dark Fury

Animation, Science Fiction, Action

Vin Diesel (Voice)
Vin Diesel	Richard B. Riddick
Nick Chinlund	Toombs
Keith David	Abu 'Imam' al-Walid
Rhiana Griffith	Jack
Roger L. Jackson	Junner
Tress MacNeille	Chillingsworth

Director	Peter Chung
Producer	John Kafka; Jae Y. Moh
Writer	Brett Matthews; Jim Wheat; Ken Wheat
Musician	Tobias Enhus; Machine Head; Christopher Mann

Taking a page from The Animatrix, Dark Fury is part of a new trend of bridging theatrical sequels. As an official product of a franchise, the 35-minute anime benefits from having the original actors voice the characters, including Vin Diesel as Riddick. This story opens with the new action hero and the two other survivors of Pitch Black already caught by a giant spaceship filled with dread. The sinewy leader has a unique--and creepy--jail for master villains and she has her sights set on Riddick. The film--indeed the series--is indebted to animator Peter Chung, who brings his techno style from his Aeon Flux series. His smooth animation for Riddick doesn't reinvent the character as much as give him a new, appealing fluidity. As anime goes, there's nothing really new here--plenty of action, cool killers, and dramatic spurts of blood--but it's a building block for how this genre might enliven movie series and sequels in the future. --Doug Thomas