by Dingo » August 4th 2004 8:15 am
My sentiments echo the thoughts of pretty much everyone else. A large number of critics have been blasting away at this (although nice little side note is that the Aussie critics have actually been fairly kind to it since not all of them have steel poles inserted up their arses) yet it's a rather enjoyable film. It doesn't aspire to tell some earth-shattering story that will profoundly change your life, or play to the usual good-guy vs the universe cliché.
You have the best killer in the galaxy, his little protegé and a veritable legion of mind-wiped soldiers. Pure, unadulterated (which could be good or bad depending on your point of view) fun that isn't let down by over-bearing studios or pompous directors.
And this is Diesel's plumb role because the lack of morality to the character and the setting feed to the presence he brings. Of all the movies he's done outside of the Riddick character, only Boiler Room doesn't show his acting weaknesses. With some luck they might be able to squeeze another one out, even if it has to be a directy to DVD release.
As to Dark Fury, it wasn't bad, but it was woefully short. I think that they could have done more, but it fizzled a bit at the end and after the slow draw-out of the beginning it ends too rapidly. The animation fit fairly well with the characters, it gave it the edge that Pitch Black had. If they went down a more traditional anime style it would have looked a little comical because of the fairly rigid shapes that are used.