Pitch
Black (2000)
from director David Twohy -- the first of
three Riddick movies starring Vin Diesel -- is the very best John Carpenter
movie ever made by an artist who doesn’t happen to be John Carpenter.
By
that description, I mean simply that many of Carpenter’s creative obsessions
are in full evidence here.
Specifically, Pitch
Black features both the corrupt establishment figure (a “blue eyed devil” called Johns), and the
criminal/anti-hero (Riddick) as protagonist we are acquainted with from such
films as Escape from New York (1981) and Escape from L.A. (1996).
The
Twohy film also features a capable “Hawksian” woman (Caroline Fry), much like
the one highlighted in Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), as
well as the faceless villains we recall from Assault, Prince of Darkness
(1987), and Ghosts of Mars (2001).
Only this time, the dangerous swarm isn’t human in nature, but rather a
horde of piranhas-of-the-air that attack and kill without relent.
John
Carpenter also frequently contextualizes his films as Westerns, albeit ones
re-framed in urban, futuristic or horror settings. Vis-a-vis Pitch Black no less an
authority than the late Roger Ebert observed that, similarly, “most of the plot
could be ported into a Western.”
He’s
not wrong.
But
where Ebert saw this descriptor of “Western” as a signifier of Pitch
Black’s dearth of imagination, I view it instead as representative of Twohy’s
dedicated and accomplished effort to keep the film squarely in the tradition
and spirit of Carpenter’s beloved oeuvre, as well as the cherished tradition of
several decades of science fiction B movies in general (think: Moon
Zero Two [1969], Battle Beyond the Stars [1980], Outland
[1981] or even Serenity [2005], for example). The West and Outer Space are, after all, both
“untamed” frontiers. Carpenter films are
remakes of Howard Hawks Westerns, in many cases, so Pitch Black honors that
tradition in terms of milieu as well.
Beyond
the abundant similarities to Carpenter’s film canon, Pitch Black -- and Chronicles
of Riddick (2004) as well --specifically concern the true, raw,“exposed” nature of the human animal, and
debate the very nature of evil itself.
In particular,
Vin Diesel’s Richard B. Riddick is a man that is frequently described as “evil”
in Twohy’s films, though he does not possess qualities typically regarded as
evil by many of us, I would wager.
Riddick
is not ignorant, for one thing (and ignorance is a prerequisite for evil).
More
significantly, Riddick does not lack for a
governing moral or ethical code. And as far as I’m concerned, evil might
best be defined as the absence of just such a personal code.
Rather, Riddick merely does what
he must to survive, and he’ll help you survive too…just so long as you don’t
expect too much by way of hand-holding, and he doesn’t have to go back over old territory to get
you…
Pitch
Black also makes
plain that although some people may view the anti-hero Riddick as a criminal or
a kind of cave-man throw-back, he does not possess many of the deceitful traits
of “modern” or “civilized” man. This absence of modern vice is one quality that differentiates him from the other characters in the film.
Pitch
Black is a
stirring and effective cinematic work in terms of action, horror and science
fiction, with solid creature effects, and impressive production design, yet the
film thrives primarily because of Vin Diesel’s central performance, and the
questions that the Riddick character raises about the nature of the human
animal.
To
misquote Woody Allen, the Riddick we meet as Pitch Black opens would
never be part of any species that would have him as a member.
He is not only a Carpenter-esque anti-hero,
but an outsider in terms of the Establishment, or Authority. Yet importantly, Riddick’s anti-social
qualities are directly addressed in the film, and with surprising, unexpected results.
In
the final analysis, what makes Pitch Black so emotionally satisfying
a ride is that Riddick indeed finds a spiritual apotheosis that even he
isn’t actively seeking. The revelation that
Riddick experiences about himself -- and his
nature -- in the film’s final act proves the very quality that elevates Pitch
Black beyond the “imitating John Carpenter”-stage of filmmaking.
In
other words Pitch Black is not simply Carpenter-esque. Instead, it re-visits and re-examines the long-standing
Carpenter thematic ethos, and then expands that philosophy in a new, original,
and fascinating direction.
Upon such innovations, franchises can be built.
“We’re
all on the same march now.”
A
deep space vessel carrying crew and passengers in stasis is badly damaged when
the ship passes through a comet’s tail. The ship’s docking pilot, Caroline Fry
(Mitchell) panics upon awaking, and nearly jettisons the passenger module
before her co-pilot, Owens (Simon Burke) prevents her from doing so.
Instead,
Fry manages a brilliant, if messy landing on barren planet. Although the ship is pulped, the passengers
survive the ordeal.
One
of the survivors is Richard B. Riddick (Diesel), a dangerous criminal traveling
in the custody of (an apparent) police officer named Johns (Cole Hauser).
Riddick
warns the crash survivors -- including an Imam (Keith David), an impressionable
boy, Jack (Rhiana Griffith), a tough-as-nails miner (Claudia Black), and an
antiquities dealer (Lewis Fitzgerald) -- that they have greater problems to
concern themselves with than his disposition, and his advice proves
accurate.
Fry
and the others soon learn that the planet -- bathed in the light of three suns
-- is about to undergo a once-every-two-decades eclipse that will render the entire
surface dark for the foreseeable future.
Worse, ferocious winged alien carnivores will break free from
subterranean slumber when the eclipse begins. And these predators are very, very hungry.
Fortunately,
there is a possible escape route. An abandoned geology station and an escape
skiff are stationed across a valley of very large animal carcasses.
When
the lights go out, Frye recruits Riddick -- who
can see in the dark thanks to an ocular “shine” job -- to lead them on a
pilgrimage to salvation.
“I
absolutely believe in God, and I absolutely hate the Fucker.”
Set
in a far future age of technological wonders such as deep space travel and
suspended animation, Pitch Black establishes a very
intriguing contrast between Riddick and his fellow man. As the film opens, Riddick narrates…from cryo-sleep. He notifies the audience that the human brain
normally shuts down in such stasis, save for the primitive or “animal side.”
“No
wonder, I’m still awake,” he quips.
This
is a vital distinction. Riddick is identified from square one in Pitch
Black as a throw-back, as an “animal” compared to civilized man. And so while he is considered dangerous, Riddick
possesses none of the vices of “modern” humanity. He isn't a creature of the film's present, but man's uncivilized past.
By
contrast, the other survivors are very "human" in terms of foibles. Fry experiences a bout of panic and cowardice, and nearly kills all
her ship-mates before overcoming it. Johns is a Morphine-addicted,
deceitful man who lies about his true nature and position. Jack also hides behind a lie (about his/her sex…). The miner, Sharon, meanwhile,
beats Riddick viciously with no evidence of his guilt or complicity in another
man’s death (leading us back to the evil of acting from ignorance). The Antiquities Dealer is
flawed and base too: caustic, cynical and alcoholic. He is more concerned with what things cost than with the lives of
the people around him.
And the Imam? I'll get to him in a minute.
How
ironic that Riddick is considered “evil” by his fellow man when the other characters in Pitch Black so clearly
showcase several aspects of evil. Instead, Riddick is evil only in the sense that the devouring flying piranhas are
evil: he acts according to his biological
nature, and his instincts. His
animal brand of viciousness seems much more innocuous (and organic...) than the flaws and vices
seen in the “civilized” characters with whom he interacts.
The
point, I believe, is that in a situation involving life and death, and survival
of the fittest the “primitive” (Riddick) is equipped to survive tumult, whereas
the more evolved characters, with their more “advanced” foibles are not.
But
Pitch
Black is truly a clever endeavor because the film’s final act pulls the carpet out
from under Riddick, and out from under the audience too. It turns out this whole “arena” has not been
about survival of the fittest at all, but something else entirely.
Fry, in her effort to redeem herself (for her
cowardice), calls out Riddick for believing that survival is paramount. She shames him, and makes him see that the
real game is not survival, but how
one survives. She shows him a higher ideal, and she acts on that ideal...for him.
Fry
gives up her life in the effort to save Riddick, and her action --- placing his life above her own-- makes
Riddick grow, whether he wants to or not.
“Not for me!” Riddick shouts with
indignation, an exclamation suggesting that he would rather die an animal than
live by the grace of another person’s sacrifice. But now Riddick can’t do that. He must
earn the days Fry has given him back.
There’s a Christian or spiritual aspect to this apotheosis, to this
reckoning in the film, and one worthy of examination.
According
to Scripture, Christ “died for all, that
those who live should no longer live for themselves,” and these words,
indeed, are a mirror for Fry’s act of sacrifice. Her death forces Riddick to live for something beyond mere survival, beyond mere self-interest, in other words.
This
point is made clear in the film’s closing dialogue, wherein Riddick is asked what
the survivors should say if police ask them what happened to the criminal on
the planet surface.
"Tell 'em Riddick's dead. He died somewhere on that
planet," he declares.
This is not Riddick being cute or witty. This is not Riddick playing with words. This is truth. The Riddick that was before…is gone. The Riddick that Fry’s sacrifice gave birth
to in his stead is the one who pilots the skiff to the stars. He is changed by his experience, and that is
the very last thing even Riddick himself would have expected. From a certain, overarching perspective, Pitch Black is a very spiritual journey, one in which a man falls from the Heavens, reckons with Hell and demons on the planet surface, finds himself and his faith, and returns to the stars "re-born."
Every
time I watch Pitch Black, I am reminded of an old bromide about character.
You’ve heard it a million times, I know. Character is what you have (or don’t have) when no one is watching you. Pitch Black modifies that idea a bit, I
think. Character is what you have in the
dark, when no one can see you.
The whole movie -- in a world of pitch black -- is about who really possesses “human” character, and who does not. In the end, Johns doesn’t have good character,
but Riddick surely does. The planet
surface may be bathed in “lasting
darkness” but at the end of the film, a new Riddick emerges to leave that
darkness behind. The part of him that “wants to rejoin the human race,” in
Fry’s words, finds outlet. Visually, we
see this when Riddick brings light to the planet surface -- and the photo-phobic monsters -- with the ship’s skiff.
Let
there be light?
All
kidding aside, Pitch Black is a deeply spiritual film, even down to its subplots. In particular, the Imam’s story -- of losing
three adopted sons one after the other -- mirrors the Book of Job.
The Imam loses one boy after the other in short, devastating order, and
must -- like Job before him -- wonder why the righteous are made to suffer. The answer is, I believe, that though the
Imam prays and shows all the requisite outward signs of faith, he -- like his
modern brethren -- is flawed, at least until he loses everything. He is one of the people, after all, who
counsels Fry not to save Riddick, but to leave the planet without him. The trials that the Imam undergoes -- reflective of
Job’s -- suggest that he must transcend from being superficially righteous to
legitimately so.
As a side-bar here, I should note too that the Imam is played by Keith David, a John Carpenter regular who appeared in The Thing (1982) and They Live (1988). He is an actor of powerful voice, and imposing physicality, and is often utilized in Carpenter films as a man who is worthy of great respect, even from the central protagonist.
That is ultimately the Imam's role here. One of the best scenes in Pitch Black involves Riddick and the Imam discussing faith and God. Imam preaches belief at a time of doubt and crisis, but Riddick turns the value of belief around on the man of God. He believes all right, but Riddick hates God for making his life what it is. It's a dark moment, but an appropriate "low point" for Riddick before he is re-born at the denouement, following Fry's sacrifice.
I
began this review by comparing Pitch Black to the John Carpenter
film canon. The Carpenter films, which I
love and admire deeply, often climax with the hero reinforcing his own established or standing view of authority and civilization.
Snake plunges the world into darkness (twice, really…) Nada destroys the
alien signal in They Live, and so on.
But
Riddick in Pitch Black -- the Carpenter-ian anti-hero -- gets thrown the curve-ball
of a redemption he didn’t want, and didn’t’ seek. He is forced to countenance
the idea that he had it all wrong, and that his previous world-view may have been
limited in some way. Frye forced him to grow.
This "evolutionary" aspect of Pitch
Black is commendable because it plays as the first step of Riddick’s heroic
journey across a film trilogy, and allows for the character to grow and develop through his ensuing cinematic
adventures. But the redemption angle is also valuable because it utilizes Carpenter's canon as a basis for its ideas, and
then spins them off in a new and unexpected direction.
Next
Tuesday we see where that direction takes the franchise: The Chronicles of Riddick
(2004). And this Thursday (the 9th), I'll be posting an essay that more exhaustively details the similarities between Riddick and John Carpenter protagonists.
Why is Fry a coward for wanting to jettison the passengers? I don't disagree that redemption is the prevalent theme for the Mitchell character. My disagreement is redemption for what? She has no reason to redeem herself to anyone imo. In wanting to jettison the passengers, Fry was just doing what she felt she would've need to do to survive. A trait that Riddick himself has in abundance. As it stands, they barely survived the crash landing in the end, her cowardice, if you want to call it that, is only evidenced by barely surviving a crash landing. A crash landing, by the way, that Fry herself piloted. I know she says .."I'm not going to die for them".....but again, we are talking survival here.
ReplyDeleteWhile Riddick embraces his animal side and his lack of modernity, he is also capable of piloting a spacecraft. I believe that would be a highly specialized field of training even in Riddick universe.
Hi Trent,
DeleteWell, this is how I see it (rightly or wrongly): Caroline wanted to eject the passengers, and was stopped only by her co-pilot wedging a rod or something into the door, and thus preventing the ship's separation into multiple modules. She did this, I would say, out of cowardice: the desire to survive at all costs, despite the lives of the others. She confesses her "sin" to Johns, and he uses it against her. Even Riddick brings it up. She feels bad that she is the kind of person who would value herself at the expense of others, and changes her ways: seeking redemption by saving everyone left. (And yes, she did clearly save the others in terms of a successful if messy landing...but this was her second option...why wasn't it her first?) I'm not saying I'm any better than Caroline, or would have done any differently in that situation. I'm just saying she had a moment where she had to choose between the safety of all, and the safety of herself. She chose herself. Only the co-pilot's obstruction stopped her.
Actually if I saw it correctly the release lever got jammed so she couldn't jettison the passengers.
DeleteFascinating points, John. I saw Pitch Black when it was first released and remember it as enjoyable but disposable. However, as a big fan of Carpenter (I just rewatched Escape from New York over my Christmas break), I now want to give it another look... the insights you bring to your reviews tend to have that effect on me... :D
ReplyDeleteI would love the opportunity to interview David Twohy, because so much of John Carpenter's cinema seems entrenched in "Pitch Black" (though it takes those obsessions in a new and inventive direction). I saw the film in theaters and loved it, but wasn't sure what I was keying in on, precisely, until I began to recognize all the Carpenter-esque touches. Tomorrow, I post about those touches in more detail....
DeleteNever seen this one. I've got to get over my dislike of Vin Diesel. He just bugs me for some unknown reason. Ah well.
ReplyDeleteYour description of his character reminds me strongly of Robert E. Howard's vision of Conan. He's a man who society views as a barbarian, or a beast, but he behaves in a way that is more dignified and humane than the "civilized" people he interacts with. Wonder if Twohy ever read any Howard. :)
Hi Roman,
DeletePitch Black was the first time I ever saw Vin Diesel in anything, so I have always liked him. Isn't that funny? I have always rooted for him to be in better films, and still believe that Pitch Black is something of a career-high for him.
I like the Redick character a lot but recently late 2013, I saw Vin Diesel on Jay Leno's show and was disappointed when he said he smoked a joint before the interview and acted like he did, silly and stoned,diametrically opposite to Stallone. That said I'm looking forward to 'Pitch Black 2'.
DeleteGreat sleeper SciFi though too bad Fry gets 'fried' at the end,hope another sequel returns back to that 'cool' planet with Redick of course,Vin Diesel's only really sellable nitch character.Maybe Fry can get resurrected Hollywood style.
ReplyDelete