A commercial transport ship and its crew are marooned on a planet full of bloodthirsty creatures that only come out to feast at night. But then, they learn that a month-long eclipse is about to occur (www.imdb.com).
Director: David Twohy (The Chronicles of Riddick, A Perfect Getaway, Riddick)
Starring: Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser
Pitch Black is a decent cross-genre movie, that ups the ante the deeper it goes. Starting as a fight for survival, PB is an upheaval of frights for the marooned party we know so little about, on an unknown planet after their plane crashes. With limited food, water and no shelter, the odds are against them, especially with a known murderer in their midst. The temperature drops, sun begins to fade, and the creepy crawlies come out to play. Pitch Black holds no originality to its name, displaying facets of thrillers like Alien and Predator. The computer-generated beasts riddling the survivors' breathing space are imaginative; covered by the darkness to make our imaginations run wild, but also to hide the fact the CGI is below par. The darkness settles, scaring them and us respectively. One terrifyingly cool scene sees the group fending off hordes of monsters with big glow sticks. At the time in 2000 none of the actors were glowing stars. This means everyone and no one can survive, from Diesel's hard-edged mystery man to Radha Mitchell's likeable captain. All you need to know is what's right in front of you. Like other thrillers, the who's and the hows aren't necessary.
3.5/5
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