Incorrect Title For The Start Of A Franchise... "The Last Witch Hunter"

The Last Witch Hunter (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Vin Diesel, Michael Caine, Elijah Wood, Rose Leslie, Julie Engelbrecht

Directed by Breck Eisner

The Story:

Kaulder (Diesel) led his men on a quest to kill the Witch Queen (Englebrecht) during the Dark Ages. With her dying breath, she granted Kaulder immortality so that he would be forever apart from his wife and children in the afterlife. Centuries later, there is a truce among the witches and humanity and Kaulder is the agent that hunts down rogue witches who would do evil and banishes them to a prison run by the witch council. But when his Dolan, # 36 (Caine) is attacked, Kaulder enlists # 37 (Wood) and a reluctant witch (Leslie) to help him save #36's life and stop the resurrection of the Witch Queen before it's too late.

It's nothing spectacular, but it's kind of fun.

Vin Diesel brings forth the beginning of another possible franchise and I already like this one more than the Riddick movies.

It seems to follow in the similar footsteps of The Brothers Grimm and Van Helsing, but takes the events more seriously than either of those films did.

That's not to say there isn't humor or a little heart to be found in the proceedings.

This time, instead of the usual vampires or supernatural monsters of the night, the focus turns to witches.

The movie will flash back to Kaulder's events centuries earlier, and even a few flash forwards to show what the world might be like if the Witch Queen isn't stopped.

Witches have been on the short end of the supernatural stick for some time, losing favor to the vampires and werewolves over the years, but this movie does a good job of showing what a formidable character witches can be.

It's a step in the right direction, and much better than watching sparkly vampires in love.

Final Grade: C+

Third Time's The Charm... "Riddick"

Riddick (2013)
Rated R for language, violence and nudity

Starring: Vin Diesel, Jordi Molla, Matt Nable, Katee Sackhoff, Dave Bautista

Directed by David Twohy

The Story:

Riddick (Diesel) is left for dead on an unknown planet.  Far from dead, he heals and finds a remote outpost and sends a signal that is picked up by bounty hunters looking to collect on the reward for bringing in Riddick dead or alive.  Santana (Molla) and his crew arrive first, followed by another group led by Boss Johns (Nable) who is the father of the pilot on a previous ship that Riddick was on.  He wants answers first, then revenge.  Riddick wants off the planet and gives them a choice: give him a ship or die.

You can probably tell which option they chose.

Put me in the category of "meh" for Pitch Black and the Chronicles of Riddick.  They were okay, but nothing that I absolutely loved.

Vin Diesel, however, vehemently disagrees with that assessment.

So much so, that one of the conditions on getting him back into the Fast and Furious franchise was that he wanted to get the rights to Riddick.

Universal relented, and has more than made up for it with the last 3 installments of The Fast and Furious each being more successful than the previous.

Meanwhile, Diesel and Twohy decided to make a rated R movie on a much, much smaller budget.  That way even a moderate success at the box office would pay big dividends as opposed to the Chronicles of Riddick movie that had over a $100 million dollar budget and didn't fare so hot.

Smart move.

Aside from a bit of a slow build, this was probably my favorite of the 3 movies.  Once the action gets started, it doesn't really let up, and Riddick almost takes on a horror film as he makes his way through the crews of both ships.

I almost wonder if I should revisit the  first 2 installments again and see how the whole saga plays out.

Maybe someday...

Final Grade: C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: If you've enjoyed the franchise before, you should really like this third installment.