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Message: <blockquote data-quote="LrdApoc" data-source="post: 2673583" data-attributes="member: 1882">Well...DoomScore – 2 ½ stars ( 6 out of 10)Your Doom is upon you/ Zombies and Demons and Mutants – Oh My!Movies based on video games always suck. They are never able to please hard core fans of the game or make the content accessible enough to mainstream audiences. Doom, the latest silicon to celluloid project, is a rare exception.Based loosely upon the plot of last years Doom^3 game, the film focuses on a squad of elite space marines sent in to investigate a research accident on Mars. Karl Urban (Eomer in The Lord of the Rings) plays John “Reaper” Grimm, a solemn man whose past is connected to the marines new mission. The marines, led by Sarge (Duane “The Rock” Johnson) dive quickly into the fray as a special unit sent to recover the surviving scientists and safeguard precious research data for return to Earth.The opening moments of the film set the unapologetically gory tone well. Several wounded, panicked scientists bolt for a heavy steel door. One falls to an unseen enemy and another trips. The final scientist manages to reach the relative safety of a secure lab and immediately begins closing the security door before his final companion can safely enter – severing her arm in a grisly display as she reaches in begging for his help.Doom is a formulaic film with shades of Aliens and Predator. Many more military sci-fi cliches haunt this film but those moments come off less hackneyed and trite than one might expect.  Sarge especially is reminiscent of Arnold Schwarzeneger’s boldest military archetype - Dutch - but Johnson manages to inject a charisma and intimidating screen presence that Arnold never had.Unlike most zombie survival-horror films, Doom takes its time actually eliminating the disposable  marine characters. While the deaths are not hard to predict, there are a few moments of surprise in the film. The necessary expository moments  are handled well thanks to Rosamund Pike’s (Die Another Day) performance as Dr. Samantha Grimm. Twisting the story a bit, the lovely doctor is a decidedly different sort of love interest for Urban’s character – his sister. This familial bond starts out strained but over the course of the film becomes the center that drives ”Reaper” to change from passive observer and blindly loyal marine into the archetypal hero in a believable way.The origins of Doom's zombies and monsters plays out differently than with the game – namely in that there are no portals to hell or demonic possessions present in the film.. Instead it creates a more acceptable (and presumably economic) explanation revolving around a lost civilization on Mars and genetic tampering. Die-hard fans may grimace but the new story works and a few familiar enemies from the game are represented faithfully in the dark creepy confines of the research station. Imps, Hellknights and the Pinky demon all make an appearance. While the selection of foes is limited the versions presented are well executed thought disappointingly the Imps no longer hurl balls of fire at enemies with abandon.Fans of  Doom 3 should notice an ironic detail: Every weapon carried by the marine characters in the film has a strap on flashlight - a feat the game designers obviously felt was beyond the scope of the video game munitions inventors.Trailers and previews of the film all mention the “ground-breaking” first-person camera sequence. Obviously meant to attract the video gamer,  the technique is introduced logically and is used just long enough that is does not distract from the tension of the films ending sequence. Unfortunately, because of the swift camera movements the segment is blurry and some viewers will no-doubt experience motion sickness.Johnson, Pike and Urban all seem to take their roles seriously. They treat the subject matter with the appropriate gravity but are not above making subtle in-jokes or dropping the cliched action movie one-liners as the story progresses. None will win an award for their performance but far worse performances this year were delivered by more acclaimed actors. Doom walks the line between schlocky horror and summer action film but delivers on its promise and maintains the spirit of its source while offering a good gore fest for the rest of us. The story elements are suitably weak and the character depth non-existent but with the focus of the game being on bloody combat and adrenalin filled survival it is fitting that the film version is full of gut-pounding non-stop action and blood. Refer: Check out Dispatch reviewers Shawn Sines and Nick Chordas’s podcast discussing Doom this week in GameOn! Episode 37. <a href="http://www.dispatch.com/gameon" target="_blank">http://www.dispatch.com/gameon</a></blockquote>

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