By Kit-Kat

Let me say that I am a Doom Game fan. Not the new kind of Doom Game (though I suspect they are ultra cool - alas I've never had time to check them out!) but the old school Doom 95. That's right, mild mannered NKK has a soft spot for the violent, chainsaw massacre, bloody extermination fest. I recall fond memories of sitting in the back room of the flower shop and blasting critters to smattered bits for amusement, whenever there was a lull in business. Scared yet? Hiding from me lest the blood lust take over? No... well then read on!

Games to movies are tricky things, albeit less tricky than a book to my mind. There have been changes in the transformation, but I can tell you a Doom fan need not fear. Something has gone wrong at a remote scientific research station on Mars (c'mon that is a total given) and the brief bits of information provided to the Rapid Response Tactical Squad marines, is less than heartening. With a level five quarantine in place, only the marines have in or out privileges. The research being done at the facility has gone wrong, unleashing a legion of nightmarish creatures that lurk in every dark corner of the facility. Sealing the portal to Earth; Sarge (Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson), Reaper (Karl Urban) and their team must use every weapon at their disposal (and some gathered along the way) to carry out their orders - nothing gets out alive.

The special effects for this movie were my favorite. Even the beginning where the trademark Universal Earth was replaced with Mars- had me grinning with anticipation. The set up of the facility is very reminiscent of the game (at least to my old brain it was). To my surprise and delight, the level of excessive violence wasn't really toned down. Ten years ago, Doom fans fought their way through a game that had no real plot, no explanations as to what you were doing there - yet we didn't care, we immersed ourselves in the sheer joy of exaggerated violence and dispatching an overwhelming amount of creatures. The biggest fear I've heard on the net was the lack of that great wild violence and for me, as I said- I was surprised that I was not disappointed in the least. True Doom fans will rejoice that the crazy chainsaw (as seen in the movie images online) brings back fond memories on screen. Also, fans will not be disappointed when they get the infamous first person shooter perspective (now that was a trip). Now, I've already admitted that I have no clue about the newer versions of the game, so the tactical squad I have nothing to compare to. I've seen Dwayne in some pretty wild roles (same for Karl) and they do a good job making their characters believable. Sarge is a marine to the extreme as only 'The Rock' can do; and Reaper brings a more rounded perspective that Karl Urban excels at. I'll admit I wished the back story for Reaper more played out however, what tidbit we do get serves its purpose. Rosamund Pike (Samantha Grimm) was pretty impressive as well, and I look forward to seeing her in more roles. The rest of the team: Destroyer, Goat, Duke, Portman, The Kid, and Mac are definitely good for a few laughs.

I would recommend this movie especially to all Doom fans - new and old. I'm sure the hard core fans will have many complaints for the switches in bringing the game to screen, and that will be a shame. Put aside the preconceived notions of what it should be, and enjoy it for what it is - a good movie based on a game, and one that can make you laugh, cringe in fear (or gore disgust depending on your nature), jump in shock and make your eyes go wide with surprise at a few twists along the way.