all in good fun

Rating: 7/10 (18 June 2005)

I first saw _Pitch Black_ when I worked at SCIFI.COM. Attended a pre-release screening, which was a lot of fun.
The movie was far better than I anticipated. Sure, in some ways it is a rip-off of _Alien_, but then _Alien_ was a rip-off of _It! The Terror From Beyond Space_ (and much more explicitly, too).
Acting is across-the-board solid, though Radha Mitchell has some trouble covering her Aussie accent (it doesn't affect her performance). The effects are good: in a way I have to admire a "little" film that simply processes various scenes in different-colored light -- to suggest the light of different stars -- as a "special effect." :^) I won't say anything about David Twohy's direction except to note that I have a very strong feeling he has a desperate crush on actress Radha Mitchell. The camera quite literally caresses her body, and especially her rear end, in a way that someone (not me) could describe as "near pornographic." Or maybe it's just my liking of short-haired blondes.
That said, there is no nudity in this film. Lots of blood and cussing and nerve wracking suspense, though. You could easily spend 106 minutes in a less entertaining way. _Pitch Black_ has more surprises and unique twists than a half dozen Hollywood films.