Doom

Doom the movie is based on the video game of the same name which established first person shooters (FPS) as one of the dominant genres of the computer gaming industry. The latest version of the Doom video game is Doom 3, and it raised the bar in computer graphics to a whole new level, with never before seen use of lighting and shadows in a video game to create incredibly realistic images. Of course gameplay is another story altogether (see previous post here).

Doom 3 is an action packed, suspense filled shooter that will have you on the edge of your seat for the duration of the game as you nervously await where the next monster will appear from. As for its story and plotlines, it hardly has any. It was basically written to appeal to the senses via eye candy graphics and eerily realistic directional sound. Not to mention the fact that it taps into your violent tendencies and subconscious fears as you obliterate zombies and monsters trying to kill you as you grope in the dark (literally) toward the game's conclusion. The movie is actually no different.

Top billed by The Rock, the cast was pretty spot on in capturing the essence of being marines and scientists trapped in a life and death struggle on Mars. However the writing was lackluster, the dialogue was forgettable, the story predictable, and the climax abrupt.

The director, Andrzej Bartkowiak of Romeo Must Die fame, tried too hard to emulate the game on which the movie was based. Unfortunately, he succeeded to the point of even emulating the faults of the game. Instead of enhancing its mythos, the movie was constrained by it, making it nothing much more than a high-tech sci-fi action bloodfest. The few (but major) deviations made from the story in the game (for example, the doorway to hell main plotline in the game was changed to an extra pair of chromosomes in alien DNA) harmed the movie more than helped it, and made it more similar to other zombie flicks like Resident Evil, Dawn of the Dead, and 28 Days Later.

As a movie, sad to say Doom sucks. Big time.

However, if you're a Doom fan like I am, it really wouldn't matter what I say, you'll still want to see it, if only to see how the game translates to the big screen. And if you lower your expectations with the pathetically shallow plot, you'll actually think it's cool. The sets, lighting, computer displays, weapons, monsters are so identical to those in the game, you may start reaching for your mouse and keyboard before you realize you're in a movie theatre and not in front of your PC. However way you slice it, the effects are impressive, though dark and chaotic at times. There's a brief sequence in which the movie takes the point of view of one of the protagonists, and for a moment the screen is just like one big first person shooter. It's unique, much like bullet time was when first seen in The Matrix, but unlike bullet time, which is always fascinating to watch, the first person view gets tired pretty fast, and after a while you wish the damn thing would just stop.

The plasma coming out of the BFG (Bio Force Gun, Big Fucking Gun) is blue, instead of being green in the game, and no one really bothered to explain what a chainsaw is doing on the red planet (Are their any trees there? Is there wood?). But I have to remind myself that this movie is based on a game which is in reality a shoot-em-up no-brainer. No need to tie up loose ends here.

That being said, if you're a Doom fan, go ahead and see this movie, because you won't forgive yourself if you don't. Oh, you'll probably enjoy it, but you won't think of it much after you leave the theatre (unless you think: "I paid good money to see that?"). If you're not a Doom (or a Rock) fan, or worse, never heard of the game, stay far, far away. Almost nothing was lost in translation when the game was transformed into a movie, and in this case this turns out to be a bad thing, especially for non-gamers who will just find themselves outside the loop.

There was only one catch phrase worth remembering. Its: "Semper Fi motherfucker!" It isn't even that good a catch phrase. And don't even bother asking me what it means. Look it up.