Riverworld

2003
5.1| 1h26m| NA| en| More Info
Released: 22 March 2003 Released
Producted By: Alliance Atlantis
Country:
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

A movie for the Sci Fi Channel based on the book series by Philip José Farmer. The location is Riverworld, a mysterious and treacherous land where every human who died between the years 99,000 BC and 2,200 AD has been resurrected on the banks of a huge river.

Watch Online

Riverworld (2003) is now streaming with subscription on Prime Video

Director

Kari Skogland

Production Companies

Alliance Atlantis

AD
AD

Watch Free for 30 Days

Stream on any device, 30-day free trial
Watch Now
Riverworld Videos and Images
  • Top Credited Cast
  • |
  • Crew

Riverworld Audience Reviews

Cubussoli Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
GamerTab That was an excellent one.
Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?
filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
dncorp Should have been Everybody that ever lived on Earth is Resurrected naked and virgins incapable of procreating on the shores of a River. They have a metal container attached to them named a Grail, only the owner can open the "Grail".Large flashes of what appeared to be lighting strikes at only one location are seen, the Resurrected go to investigate, there they discovered a mushroom shaped "Grailstone". Using the Grails, the person that opened the Grail had food that was familiar to them (not like in the TV Series Pilot, baby food), and many other items bits of cloth, cigarettes, narcotic gum. Three times a day (breakfast, lunch, supper) the flashes occur coming from the Mushroom shaped Grailstones after the Grail Owners place their Grails on top of the mushroom shaped Grailstones. Rarely a "Open by Anybody" Grail appears on top of the Grailstones.Language was the biggest barrier, there was no Universal Translator (like in the TV Series and Movie), everybody learns Esperanto.Explorer Richard Burton wakes up naked on the Shore of the River. Being an Explorer he starts to travel, he gets killed and ends up further down stream hundreds of Miles away from where he died. Instead of walking Explorer Richard Burton commits suicide repeatedly traveling hundreds of miles downstream each time to areas occupied by Races, Cultures, Empires, of different time periods of Earth History.During his numerous times of committing suicide and being resurrected, something happened, he woke up before ending up on the shore naked. He observed a chamber of countless people in clear pods (coffins) still not resurrected.Richard Burton commits suicide and is Resurrected again, this time he is visited by a cloaked figure that warns him that by committing suicide so many times (hundreds) he has become noticed, and that the next time he might not be Resurrected. The cloaked figure tells Explorer Richard Burton if he wants answers he must go to the Polar Sea to a Tower.Explorer Richard Burton meets Samuel Clemens aka Mark Twain. They compare what the had seen, there is almost no metal to make anything at "Riverworld". No Animals were Resurrected so travel by foot is the only current means or committing suicide. Riverworld has the River going north to south completely around the Entire Planet to the Polar Sea. Samuel Clemens is searching for his Wife Livy. It took a very long time for Samuel Clemens to build the Riverboat, the cloaked figure that Samuel Clements named "X" arranged a metal rich meteor to strike near where Samuel Clemens was at, causing widespread destruction and over 300,000 deaths, among the dead is his Wife Livy. Samuel Clemens starts Mining the metal, and for protection made a deal to be Allied with King John, they then formed a Nation. Samuel Clements Riverboat is built.They encountered other Explorers, one group had actually saw The Dark Tower (Stephen King must have read Riverworld), a very large black tower located in the center of the polar sea, while searching for the source of the River. Some died after seeing The Dark Tower, and were Resurrected all over Riverworld, as to how word spread so quickly.The Nation created by Samuel Clemens starts construction of an Airship, the size of the Hindenburg Airship. Built airplanes and a helicopter launched from and recovered by the Airship.They fly to The Dark Tower in the Airship. Only to discover the entrances are protected by a force field. One of the Explorers makes it into The Dark Tower, Explorer Richard Burton and Samuel Clemens suspect he was an Agent for the Creators of Riverworld they named "Ethicals", and that they have been infiltrated.Samuel Clemens and King John become Enemies.A Battle occurs between King John and Samuel Clemens, two Riverboats destroyed each other. King John is killed during aerial combat fighting Samuel Clemens, Samuel Clemens airplane crashes into the River and dies of a heart attack.Explorer Richard Burton uses a remaining ship and gets to the Polar Sea."X" is called to The Dark Tower to Stand Trial. "X" kills everybody in The Dark Tower to end the Resurrections, this also stopped the Grailstones from providing food, in the Chaos half the population of Riverworld gets killed fighting for food.Also damaged at The Dark Tower, the Computer that holds everybody's Souls that died at Riverworld, and will not be Resurrected if not repaired, their Souls will be forever lost to the Universe."X" starts killing the other Creators "Ethicals" and Agents of the Creators outside The Dark Tower.Now Pacifist Herman Goering of the Church of the Second Chance attempts to repair the Computer and is immediately killed. Alice bypasses the security and Loga repairs the Computer."X" reveals that he is not a Creator of Riverworld and had been Resurrected Centuries ago, trained by the Creators "Ethicals", and that Riverworld is a Moral Test for Humanity to become "Enlightened", those that have not become Enlightened after the Test will have their Souls released to be lost to the Universe forever.The Survivors must now figure out what to do with The Dark Tower, capabilities of the Creators of Riverworld.
one-nine-eighty Maybe the book this was based on is better, maybe it's just as dire as this straight to TV movie which in reality should have gone straight in the bin. An astronaut dies and reawakens under water on a mysterious planet. It's not actually that mysterious as it looks Earth like still and the atmosphere is evidently breathable. After breaking free of his binding and swimming for safety he finds a capsule on the beach which has all the clothing he needs to survive on the baron landscape, a few cotton clothes which when unfolded make nice trousers and a shirt. He turns around to face the sea and all of a sudden a wave of people are swimming for shore too. They each have a capsule of clothing too. Disturbingly the clothes all fit the people perfectly and they aren't all the standard shape and cut, some of the woman manage to find capsules with skirts in, some of them have strapless tops in them. I noticed none of the capsules have underwear in them but all the people somehow have flesh coloured pants and bras. It becomes evident that people from all ages of Earth's like are on the beach together, people from the American civil war, Neanderthal's from the stone age, modern people… it's a who's who of people who lived and died on earth - including an alien who died on Earth in the future. This is not heaven nor Hell, it's like a purgatory where anyone who died on earth eventually goes. It seems Earth is no longer, these people are the surviving children of Earth and they have been reborn on Riverworld. This fresh crop of people are soon hunted down and trapped by existing inhabitants on Riverworld. The premise of the film from here is that the Astronaut leads a revolt to rescue the people who then set about travelling the river on a big boat looking for adventure and answers. I really can't say many good things about this. Perhaps the novel by Philip Jose Farmer was really good but this film adaptation, directed by Kari Skogland really isn't. The film was filmed in New Zealand and this was about the only saving grace as it offered lush landscapes and backdrops. The acting was wooden and laughable, the effects were poor, and the flow of the film was bad. Like the universal but unique clothing no answers to why everyone speaks a universal language is explored, nobody seems really to care that much that they are all dead but still alive - I'd want to celebrate that. The ending was left wide open, presumably for a TV series branch off or a follow up film but I really hope nothing comes of it. As this was made super cheap and broadcast on the Sy-Fy channel I can't see much coming of the open ending. I'm giving this 1 out of 10 and I'm thankful that I won't have to watch this ever again.
Leofwine_draca Apparently, Philip Jose Farmer's RIVERWORLD novels involve a fantasy world inhabited by souls of dead famous people. This Sci Fi Channel treatment of the story turns the whole concept into an outlandish B-movie with crushingly dull American characters and cheesy fight choreography. The whole effect is something you'd see in the likes of XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS instead of a proper, thought-provoking piece of filmmaking.The movie was made and filmed in New Zealand, so picturesque locations are about the only thing this has going for it. Everywhere else the acting is terrible; particularly Emily Lloyd, who has the fakest-sounding voice ever, like she's been dubbed. There's a lot of action here, but it's infantile in the extreme, done by people who have no clue how to stage properly exciting scenes. RIVERWORLD is a bore and barely worth watching, a generic mess no different from a hundred other such productions.
PHASEDK On Movies4Men in the UK late night..until I read this IMDb..why, each time I go to a site the login has changed.. anyway, having watched this, realised it was a made for TV movie.. but.. as someone said, left high and dry at the end..as in WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? We are taken on a journey, guessing whats happened, some questions answered along the way, damned good action and story, I've not a clue about the books.. as a film buff this was good, very humorous as times..and then its the end.. AH.. OK..characters realised..on their way.. then.. well, i'm ready, aren't I. Another TV pilot? Drat and double drat! They suck you in.. how much did it cost to make? Cos its made for TV that doesn't matter? So not a box office flop then but.. I thought equally as good as any other adventure film? I saw the film maker.. Alliance and realised thats the same 'maker' as many sci fi TV shows.. I guess that should have told me. New Zealand.. very nice. I'd still like to know how much it cost.. was it destined for a series, did someone change their minds..?