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Doomsday
Directed by: Neil Marshall Starring: Rhona Mitra, Bob Hoskins, Sean Pertwee, Malcolm McDowell, Alexander Siddig, Adrian Lester
Synopsis: Doomsday starts in 2008 - a deadly plague called the Reaper virus is ripping through Glasgow, killing hundreds of thousands. There is no cure. The UK Government's only course of action is to totally seal off Scotland and leave the whole country to die. Eden Sinclair is one of the few that made it out, thanks to her mother's sacrifice. Twenty years later the reaper virus appears in London, Sinclair is sent into Scotland to find a cure. She and her team have 48 hours to save London...
Review: Before I begin, I'd just like to say how much I love the French poster for this movie - so much better than the weird one's we've had in the UK, and gives a much clearer idea of the film itself. Neil Marshall is fast becoming one of my favourite directors. I thought Dog Soldiers was great for the budget and I admit to screaming during The Descent (the classic night-vision moment). Marshall's previous movies have been chock-ful of references to classic movie scenes (for example, Dog Soldiers re-worked a scene from Jaws, whilst The Descent used imagery from Apocalypse Now). With Doomsday, he doesn't so much steal from other movies but evoke them. You'll still notice the reference points but Marshall has grown as a director and hasn't found the need to make a carbon copy of what's gone before. The movies that Doomsday riffs off most are Escape from New York and Mad Max 2 - for those of us of a "certain age" (thirty...something..) these are revered classics, but Doomsday comes off very favourably in the comparison.
Ever since his first movie, Dog Soldiers, Neil Marshall has shown that he knows how to put together a thrilling action set-piece and given a larger budget he puts together some very good moments - the initial attack on the convoy, Sinclair's introduction, the climactic chase - I could just about namecheck the whole movie scene by scene. There are a few downers though - character development (aside from Hoskins and Mitra)are left far behind for the sake of keeping things as lean as possible, and I felt that Sean Pertwee (one of my fave genre actors - when is someone going to release Bodyguards on DVD???)was underused - I have a feeling some of his scenes were sacrificed in the editing room. The only other part which doesn't quite work is "the rave", but it has been a sticking point of many a movie, trying to evoke that experience -many have tried, most have failed (Matrix Reloaded is still the worst though). The cast are up to the physical challenges of the movie - Rhona Mitra and Adrian Lester (from BBC's Hustle) particularly convincing as tough-as-nails characters. Good to see that there is Life after Star Trek: Deep Space Nine for Alexander Siddig, too, here playing a very put-upon Prime Minister.
Marshall keeps the story simple and constantly in motion. There are however Big Issues underlying everything - what would you do if part of your country was dying of an uncurable epidemic? Do you leave them to die, or carry on trying to help and increase the risk of the infection spreading? Either way, couldyou live with the consequences? (The movie depicts an England that's as popular as Zimbabwe or Burma).
Verdict: A little rough around the edges, but I think that's intentional, considering it's genre leanings. This is destined for greatness -a wonderful homage that reveres the movies it evokes. Considering this is being released in the same month as Iron Man, Speed Racer and Indy IV, Doomsday should be compulsory viewing for any action fan. 8 out of 10 (Review by MikeOutWest)
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