PITCH BLACK

Directed by David Twohy. Starring Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell

Easy on the eye, and not exactly challenging in the grey matter stakes, Pitch Black is a highly watchable if far from unforgettable slice of low-budget sci-fi/monster-movie daftness.

Eleven passengers on a space-ship piloted by Radha Mitchell crash into a comet, killing most of the crew and leaving the survivors stranded on a remote planet which - unbeknownst to the crew - is home to savage cannibalistic aliens who only ever come out after the darkness falls.

When one of the crew dissolves into a pile of human guts, suspicion attaches itself to escaped serial-killer Riddick (the imposing Diesel), a massive murderous man-mountain who has abnormal powers which enable him to see in the dark: sure enough, a solar eclipse soon flings the planet into complete darkness, and our heroes are forced to rely on Riddick's night-vision to save them from a grisly death.

Cue a swarm of nocturnal fanged-and-clawed aliens intent on scoffing the crew alive, which provides plenty of opportunity for the computer-graphics department to go into overdrive.

Diesel makes for a highly effective villain, and gets thrown what few good lines the script has to offer, while Mitchell makes a competent Sigourney Weaver substitute.

You wouldn't dream of watching Pitch Black twice, but it passes the time very acceptably, and though it never quite chills the blood the way Event Horizon did, it's immediate enough to engage even those with a knee-jerk aversion to sci-fi.

A fine B-flick of possible enduring video appeal.