In 'Pitch Black,' Vin Diesel became a star. Here's why the campy sci-fi thriller holds up, 25 years later.

A planet orbiting a star 1,400 light-years from Earth is darker than asphalt. ... That close distance is also probably responsible for the alien world's pitch-black color.

But it was playing an unashamed antihero in sci-fi actioner "Pitch Black" — which turned 25 a little while ago* — that would make the world take notice of the actor better known as Vin Diesel.