Doomsday (I) (2008) User Reviews

Crazy plagiaristic fun

[Prof-Hieronymos-Grost · 6/10 · 10 September 2008]

A deadly virus of unknown origin has spread rapidly through Glasgow, Scotland, killing its victims rapidly. The British government has built a 12 foot steel wall the whole length of the Scottish/English Border in super quick time, so that nobody can get in or out and so the Scots can rot away to their hearts content. 20 years later in London and there is another outbreak and so the government is forced to act, they know that there are still survivors beyond the wall and so they send a crack team of experts in, to find out if they possibly have immunity and to find the mysterious Dr Kane a scientist they believe might have been working on a cure. The leader of this expedition is Maj. Eden Sinclair, a one eyed woman who as a child had been saved by soldiers at the last moment before the wall closed for the last time. her motives are to see her family home and perhaps find her mother.

Like all films by Neil Marshall this latest effort came with a great air of expectancy, so does it deliver?…well it does and it doesn't. Its an apocalyptic tale along the lines of 28 days Later, but it soon spreads its wings and delves into many genres and plucks with its plagiaristic fingers ideas at will from many films. The overall feel of the film is a hotch potch of ideas, one gets the notion that Marshall doesn't have an original idea of his own at all. What is it about the future, that when all law and order has gone and people are struggling to live, find food and drink, some shelter not to mention avoiding a deadly virus etc…rational thoughts desert them and the first thing they want to do is build a car or a hotrod motorcycle with skulls on it?….well I'll tell you why, because they need transport to the local Cyber Punk Hair Salon, where they all queue for hours with photographs of their favourite member of Sigue Sigue Sputnik and discuss the merits of Adam Ant's Kings of the Wild Frontier, where they also tell the stylist "I want a Mohican like that...oh and could I have it in bright pink please? damn all out of bright pink, How about luminous aquamarine or cerise? Not only that, but they also live in Glasgow, I don't know if any of you have been to Glasgow, I have many times and its Effing freezing, so why do they all the men go around bear chested and all the ladies wear leather bikinis or less? Maybe its because they are at war with the devilish Dr Kane, who lives in a big Castle, where all the men wear suits of armour and all the ladies have wee lace bonnets and dress like old hags? One thing about a deadly virus it always gives people bad dress sense.

Marshall has made his own bed here and must take responsibility for a lack of imagination, I believe he has stated he wanted this one to be "for the fans", so they could "guess the films he was homaging", but it can't take away from the fact that he has single handedly stolen ideas from Mad Max, Escape from New York, 28 days later, Ivanhoe, Gladiator, Indiana Jones and a host of other genre films. So enough of the good things and on to the bad, oh I mean good, Well the film wastes no time in getting going and it goes along at a fair old pace, so fast you don't always have time to turn your eyes to heaven and tut. The special effects are really good, as are the fight scenes and the driving/chase scenes, the acting is a little stilted though, (ooops I'm back on the negatives again...oh well) the dialogue doesn't fare much better. From my comments you might think I hated this film....I didn't, I don't know why but somehow against my better judgement, I actually enjoyed it, its escapism and fantasy on another level, its not great by any means but if you want a mindless entertainment for a couple of hours, this one fit's the bill. 6/10

A fun but deliberately dumb movie with nothing original

[Superunknovvn · 6/10 · 27 August 2008]

Like Greg Mclean, director of "Wolf Creek" and another great white hope for the horror genre, Neil Marshall followed a very promising horror flick with a deliberately trashy project. Where Mclean directed his attention to a murderous crocodile, Marshall took a bow to two of his favorite movies, "Escape From New York" and "Mad Max". "Doomsday" is not just influenced by those two movies, it's practically a mash-up with the female heroine from "Underworld" thrown-in. So, the first thing you should forget about when you pop in this movie is originality. Marshall makes no excuses for paying homage to his heroes George Miller and John Carpenter (hell, he even named two characters in this movie after them).

Like "Escape From New York" and "Mad Max", "Doomsday" demands a lot of suspension of disbelief to be enjoyable. However, maybe sci-fi flicks could get away with more stupidity in the 80's or maybe Marshall's movie is just extra dumb. Sometimes it seems like the director wasn't even trying to fill plot holes or avoid laughable action scenes. If you're looking out for mistakes in "Doomsday", you'll find plenty to complain about.

So, no, this isn't the high profile follow up one would have wished for after the dense, claustrophobic "The Descent". On the other hand, "Doomsday" doesn't fail to entertain. It's fast paced and charmingly old fashioned. Who else dares to come up with a post-apocalyptic world in which punks and knights rule the country in this day and age? Marshall's love for the project is somehow transmitted to the viewer and actually gives you a very pleasant feeling.

If you're able and willing to turn off your brain, "Doomsday" can be a very entertaining, old-fashioned action movie. It may not be a masterpiece or even a good movie, but it can definitely be seen as a fun little interlude by a director that must not be written off just yet.

So much fun

[sjbeattie · 7/10 · 16 March 2008]

OK, I'm not claiming its good but it is serious fun. It is basically a mix of the Mad Max films in Scotland but also throw in some scenes from 28 Days Later, Resident Evil, LOTR and Braveheart.

If you can imagine that then you'll have a pretty good idea what to expect - no, I didn't think you could.

It does just massively rip off all the above but as I said, I'm not claiming its good, just a lot of fun.

Added bonus is the great music choices which just add to the fun - "Good Tning" by FYC when the main lunatic introduces himself to the crowd and "Two Tribes" by Frankie Goes To Hollywood for the big car chase.

Not gonna win an Oscar but a hell of a ride.

Doomsday

[brains-19 · 14 April 2008]

If you enjoyed 28 Days Later, Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome and Gladiator, this might be the film for you. Writer and Director Neil Marshall (Dog Soldiers, The Descent) an obvious student of genre movies, has managed to smoothly craft together a cinematic Frankenstein's monster of sci-fi action clichés. Gratuitous blood geysers? Check. Insane, post-apocalyptic punks? Check. Buff, beautiful, uber-bad-ass heroine that can kill without a moment's hesitation but still possesses superior morals to those that command her? Check. Ego-maniacal bad guy played by Malcolm McDowell? Check. Ticking clock to doomsday? Check. Marshall has skillfully engineered what is truly an homage to the genre movie and an action buffet for moviegoers with appropriate kitsch and over-the-topness without lowering himself to the realm of spoof. If you're looking for high cinema don't look here, but if you're looking for excitement, humor and an overall really good time, Doomsday will certainly fit the bill.

A futuristic movie full of kinetic energy and amazing stunt work

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 22 August 2009]

This thunderous picture begins in Great Britain, 2007 . A deadly virus spreads causing hundreds of thousands infecting . The government evacuates people and builds an impregnable wall along with the Wall of Adriano, impeding the access . London, 2035 recent time, the reaper virus breaks out again. Then , various authorities, P.M (Alexander Siddig) and Canaris(David O'Hara)decide to send a specialists team. Nelson(Bob Hoskins) assigns the dangerous mission to Major Eden (Rhona Mitra). She along with a crack group (Adrian Lester, Sean Petwee, among others)are urgently dispatched into quarantined Scotland to meet Doctor Kane (Malcolm McDowell)who allegedly has a cure. In the near-future Glascow city, they'll have to fight against cutthroats, a band of depraved crazies thirsty for blood and survive some battles to-the-death.

This exciting movie is packed with noisy action, unbelievable car stunts, tension, thrills, chills, and lots of blood and gore, including throating-slit ,beheading, impaling and cannibalism. The story is a blend of classic Sci-Fi movies as ¨Escape from N.Y.¨, ¨27 Days/Weeks later¨ and of course ¨Mad Max¨, taking parts here and there. Thrilling musical score fitting to action by Tyler Bates. Colorful cinematography reflecting splendidly the Scotland outdoors in which resides the Doctor Kane and where he has built a medieval world. The motion picture is well directed by Neal Marshall (Descent, Dog soldiers) but with no originally because he has copied previous films. This remarkable action film appeal to science fiction buffs

28 Years Later: Escape from LV-246

[MrGoodB · 2/10 · 4 November 2008]

Now this one is what you see when you look up "letdown" in a dictionary. It started out decent, even promising, with a suitably gloomy introduction that, while not exactly what I would call innovative, set the mood very nicely: in the near future, the fatal Reaper virus decimated Scotland and now threatens to makes all human life in the UK a thing of the past. Extreme conditions demand extreme responses, and so the government revives the time-honored British tradition of building humongous barriers across the country. Hadrian's Wall 2.0 is finally finished, the gates are welded shut, the automated sentry guns come online (much to the dismay of the local fauna), what's left of Scotland is sealed off from the rest of the world and everyone is happy. Problem solved, or is it?

Of course, it's not, and three decades later, the virus rears its ugly head again, only this time in London. Understandably troubled, the government assembles an elite team of assorted badasses with security clearances, among them captivating police officer Eden (!) Sinclair and sends them over the wall to meet up with Dr. Kane (!!), who, according to recent satellite reconnaissance, might be alive after all and might even have the cure for the Reaper virus.

This, unfortunately, is the turning point for the movie, which, in an eerie mirroring of the events unfolding on screen, veneers from hey-this-ain't-so-bad highway straight into dark, uncharted I-can't-believe-that-somebody-greenlighted-this territory. Let me explain: the group enters Scotland by means of two wheeled, heavily armored APC's, which, as we are explicitly told, were built to protect its passengers from each and every harm that might lurk on the Other Side (capitalized for dramatic effect).

After running over a cow (those things can be tricky at night), the group exits the vehicles and searches an abandoned hospital for clues, while the operator stays put and watches their progress via helmet-mounted cameras on the APC's impressive array of screens. If that description vaguely reminded you of some other movie, you are absolutely right: the entire scene is lifted straight from "Aliens". The fear that "Doomsday" would merely turn into a bad copy of said movie was unfounded, however, because it quickly becomes apparent that "Doomsday" also aspires to become a bad copy of several other movies, including but not limited to the 28... Later and Mad Max series, Waterworld, Gladiator and Lord of the Rings.

After getting attacked by a gang of mohawked punks straight from the "Escape from New York" set, the slightly shaken group flees into the soothing steel embrace of their nigh-indestructible tank things. Little good it does them, as these marvels of military technology are quickly destroyed by a combination of molotov cocktails, arrows and bricks (I couldn't make this up if I tried) in a chase scene again lifted directly from Aliens. The survivors are taken prisoner and we encounter a ragtag society of garishly dressed maniacs who burn alive and devour one of the captives while playing a Fine Young Cannibals tune (my, that's clever) in a scene that tries to be both scary and funny and fails to be either.

Of course, the survivors MIRACULOUSLY manage to escape - on a steam train, waiting for them in a nearby station, no less. Don't ask. Wandering around the Highlands for a bit while not resembling the Fellowship of the Ring at all, they finally traverse a mountain range by means of a gigantic, underground storage bunker filled with mysterious and obviously completely untouched containers, crates and boxes.

After getting kidnapped by some knights on horses, encountering the elusive Dr. Kane – who now rules a pseudo-medieval community based in a castle - and defeating his best fighter in a breathtaking and totally unexpected turn of events, the group escapes once again, re-enters the Warehouse of Moria, opens one of the millions of containers nobody ever bothered to look at twice in 30 years of passing through and finds – huzzah! - a shiny new Bentley Continental. The tiresome punks from Act I make their reappearance and give chase, only to be killed off in various unexciting ways by the strangely slow but completely indestructible Bentley. Well, whatever. I won't give away the ending, lest I spoil the surprise (ho, ho).

2/10 (one star for the first five minutes).

Unoriginal , Bizarre But Watchable Post Apocalyptic Thriller

[Theo Robertson · 6/10 · 5 January 2010]

I remember both DOG SOLDIERS and THE DESCENT , two very different horror movies in both tone and feel . I wondered how writer/director would follow up on this . DOOMSDAY came along and got slaughtered by the critics and bombed at the box office so I made no attempt to see it until it came along on Sky movies recently . Whilst the critics are right to a certain degree it's nowhere bad as some of them claimed . It's certainly far from a masterpiece of course but is far more enjoyable than I was expecting

Where the critics are correct is the " Every post apocalyptic movie you've ever seen in your life plot " There's the basic premise of 28 DAYS/WEEKS LATER , DEF CON 4 and MAD MAX along with nods to ALIENS and TOMB RAIDER . This isn't enough to condemn the film and is often entertaining . Indeed watching the first 15 minutes as survivors try to to storm the barricades is both impressive and bleak and the scene I remember is a couple of survivors triggering mines whilst a third is killed by an army sniper

Unfortunately where the film falls down is the horrendous lack of logic to much of the storyline . Just how quickly can barricades be erected to contain the infected ? Aren't there any farmers left alive to grow crops and herd cattle ? In fact cattle are shown so why do people become cannibals ? There's also countless scenes where petrol bombs are thrown but this contrasts with countless scenes where the Scottish society is very much medieval with no means of technology , so where'd they get they get the petrol for Molotov cocktails and cars ?

Not to be too critical DOOMSDAY is a highly watchable movie , maybe down to the fact that it's not too camp . Agreed you'll have to turn off your brain for most of it to work but there's enough gory action on screen to keep you entertained . In short it's very much a bizarre B movie

Mad Max Meets a Big Pile of Lame

[jeepcj5guy · 3/10 · 8 August 2008]

I certainly didn't rent this movie expecting anything good, just something mildly entertaining. What I received was slightly less than entertaining. In this Mad Max wannabe film, mohawked road-warriors have simply been replaced with slightly more stylish, punk-looking freaks with equally overdone mohawks, copious piercings and unrealistically flawless tattoos. How these people got ahold of all the tattoo guns and yet have no actual firearms is beyond me. How these club-swinging, Molotov-throwing ruffians are somehow starving and forced to subsist on human flesh yet the protagonists drive through a herd of cattle prior to entering post-apocalyptic Glasgow is also beyond my comprehension.

I think the writers may have smoked a little too much weed while creating the script. I can picture one of them in his living room, lips pressed to a two-foot bong, thinking…"Cannibals. That's it! That's how we make it stand out from Mad Max. Genius!" The plot holes and inanities continue throughout the rest of the film. Even the music was lame. They could have at least included some good heavy metal. Well, the chick with all the face tats is hot, until she gets beheaded of course. If you dig B-grade splatter horror/action with a Hollywood blockbuster budget, you might actually enjoy this film (as it seems other reviewers have). Otherwise, your time might be better spent sitting on the toilet or mowing the lawn.

Cheesy, derivative...and huge fun

[Leofwine_draca · 8/10 · 27 June 2016]

DOOMSDAY is one huge mess of a movie, but in a good way. Neil Marshall, the Scottish director of such low budget but entertaining fare as DOG SOLDIERS and THE DESCENT, apparently decided to make a good old-fashioned post apocalypse movie while paying tribute to his favourite movies along the way. Some might call this film a rip off of the popular '80s sci fi films, some might call it a pastiche, while others might call it a homage. For me, DOOMSDAY is original enough to be entertaining throughout, even if the story is all over the place and frequently unbelievable (even by genre stakes) and the epilogue is a damp squib compared to what's come before.

For the record, this movie references THE LORD OF THE RINGS (in a strange feudal interlude, the armour is the same as that of the Orcs in Jackson's opus); GLADIATOR (there's a fierce arena battle that doesn't disappoint); ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK (you can sense it in the get-in-there-and-do-the-job vibe as well as stuff like the walled-off area and streets brimming with thugs); THE WARRIORS (the punk-inspired bad guys); DISTRICT 13 (the revamped 2000s action vibe, and the film that no doubt convinced Marshall to make this); MAD MAX 2: THE ROAD WARRIOR (again, the punk bad guys as well as the climatic road chase) and also 28 DAYS LATER (infected zombies running amok). There are probably plenty of other references I either didn't get or didn't notice at the time.

Anyway, the main reason I liked this film was because it's fun, and a whole lot of fun. Genre fans will have a ball. Marshall throws in plenty of crowd-pleasing stuff and the movie never stops moving. There's a ton of action and it's also very gory, with lots of heads being severed, as well as limbs and arterial sprays of god-knows-what. Marshall is a guy who shows a rabbit being machine-gunned for a laugh and who doesn't shy away from showing cannibalism in graphic detail, either. The cast are champions, sharing fun, hard-ass dialogue and it's great to see the likes of Bob Hoskins and Malcolm McDowell giving authority while letting the likes of Rhona Mitra and Adrian Lester have some new-found glory – Mitra and Lester are both fine, by the way. Sean Pertwee pops up yet again for an exceedingly unpleasant demise and there seems to be no end to the budget, with tons of shoot-outs, chases, explosions and more.

I'm not really sure why this film gets a lot of flak, because it sets out to be a fun romp and never pretends to be anything else. It's gory, funny, action-packed and well-choreographed; I didn't find a single thing not to like, and that's great. If TAKEN and RAMBO are 2008's best serious action thrillers, then this is the tongue-in-cheek flipside of the coin.

Escape From Thunderdome

[Minus_The_Beer · 7/10 · 9 July 2017]

It's "Escape From New York" meets "The Road Warrior" by way of "28 Days Later" in "Doomsday". Director Neil Marshall's ("The Descent") post-apocalyptic homage to the above mentioned (and more) plays it pretty fast and loose with plot and logic, never once slowing down for character-building as it jumps from one wild set piece to another. It's a film that seemingly has no attention span, never feels terribly cohesive, and yet never fails to entertain.

It's the year 2035 and a virus has all but decimated Scotland. In an attempt to contain and control the virus, the government builds a wall separating the ravaged country from the rest of Britain. Presumably, they made Scotland's ravaged population pay for the wall themselves. Enter hardened officer Eden Sinclair, as played by Rhona Mitra. Part Sarah Connor, part Snake Plissken, Sinclair (and her faceless team) is tasked with re-entering the ravaged region to hunt down a possible cure for the virus. Along the way, she matches wits with the locals who include but are not limited to a group of "Mad Max" rejects and a game Malcolm McDowell (who also provides the film's lengthy expository narration). Butts are kicked and blood is shed, to say the least.

Marshall knows what kind of film he is making and he also knows you've seen this film a hundred times before. Appropriately, he takes glee in his film's excess, going full Paul Verhoeven at times in embracing over-the-top gore and laugh-out-loud ultra-violence. This is a film made for the genre fan whose bread is buttered by '80s action, sci- fi and horror. It's pure homage of the highest order; a grindhouse- esque onslaught of tackiness and titillating tension. "Doomsday" never quite rises above its source material, and that's OK. As far as mindless, late-night entertainment goes, few modern films get the formula down as well as this glorious cheesefest does.

Unintentionally Hilarious

[Mysticum · 1/10 · 27 July 2008]

This is, without a doubt, one of the worst movies I have ever seen. It is so fantastically bad, I could talk for hours and hours about each and every little atrociously bad element of the movie. I am no stranger to the incredible or the suspension of disbelief required of any sci-fi fan wishing to be entertained. I love outlandish and outrageous things! I cannot, however, abide things which are literally UN-BELIEVABLE, and which conflict with ANY world, fictional or not.

This movie is a tour de force of idiocy. It is one long line of things so unimaginably retarded, you end up with a slight sensation of vertigo from shaking your head so thoroughly from start to finish. I will mention a few things that stood out as being particularly idiotic, but please believe me when I say that there are somewhere in the neighborhood of five hundred to a thousand equally appalling scenes left unmentioned.

Let's begin. Why are the soldiers at the beginning standing amidst a crowd of plague-carrying Scots? Why are they in front of the fence? As you ponder this, watching them get torn to shreds, you are interrupted by the realization that not only is there a fence behind which they would have been safe, there is also a forty foot tall steel wall a few hundred feet further back. Why are they not behind this wall? Who is in charge of this completely incompetent band of military morons? Why is a chopper behind enemy lines at this point? Why are the soldiers in the chopper not wearing protective gear? Why do they let indigenous Scots covered in blood and grime approach the helicopter? Why do they bring a blood-covered, bleeding, Scottish girl fresh from the crowd of plague-carrying lunatics onto their chopper, which is en route to the safe side of the wall? Is this not...perhaps a little foolish? In 2035, why does the heroine toss her eyeball (yes, really) instead of using a small mirror? Failing that, why isn't she using a little camera and a wrist-mounted monitor? In 2035? On that note: why is the technology in 2035 virtually indistinguishable from technology in 2008? Returning to our heroine, why would she give up her depth perception and risk losing her one eye? Someone might step on it, I'd think? How does the eye rotate on a flat surface without movable parts, while staying in place? Up in Scotland, if the tanks in which the special forces ride are so sturdy and gas-proof and you'd-need-a-50-caliber-rifle-to-put-a-dent-in-this solid, why does it come equipped with a large glass front window which can be shattered by throwing a brick? Why did no one spot the cows from afar? A thousand cows and suddenly they just hit one in the middle of the herd without warning? Ninja cows? Who dyed the Scots' hair? Why do they dye their hair? Why are they armed and working together? Why are they in the hospital after 27 years? Did they sit there for 27 years thinking, "One of these days...!" ? Who took the time to carve the names of disease-victims intricately into the large slab of marble at the hospital? After Scotland is walled in, its population dropping like flies, someone took the time to erect a massive marble wall and start carving the names of the dead into it? Seriously? How could a scientist in 2008 get further with his research in 3 months in a war zone than the entire body of scientists on the planet could in 27 years? Why did the rest of the world's scientists not attempt to concoct a cure for the virus? Why does the guy left behind in the vehicle outside the hospital go out to "help" the girl? Why does he carry her into the tank, remove his protective gear, and then turn his back on her? Who exactly is throwing the grenade right after the guy gets his throat slit and dies?

I could go on for a great deal longer, I assure you. I repeat: EVERYTHING - every single little thing - about this movie is so indescribably retarded as to be downright depressing.

This is the worst movie in the world. Hands down.

Gonzo mix of Mad Max, Escape from NY and 28 Days Later

[angelynx-2 · 8/10 · 22 March 2008]

What an insane movie! I saw it in a criminally tiny Saturday afternoon audience (four people) and we all had a terrific time. Don't expect sense, great acting or original dialogue, just go for the kicks and enjoy. A totally deranged, over-the-top splatfest with hideous viral deaths galore, some of the best post-holocaust punk makeup and chase scenes since Road Warrior, brilliant use of 1980's dance music (Adam and the Ants, Frankie Goes to Hollywood--the placement of Siouxie and the Banshees' "Spellbound" and a Fine Young Cannibals track at the punk barbecue is simply inspired), a coliseum battle-to-the-death, a bizarre interlude in a Scottish fiefdom that feels as if the movie took a fast detour into the Shire, and the coolest star turn by a UK car since Harry Potter's posse made one fly. All of it snapping and crackling with so much kinetic energy and wild creative freedom that it's hugely exhilarating. We were still giggling like maniacs an hour after the movie.=) It's just such fun to see a director decide to go full-speed over the edge like this. It's not great art, but trust me, if you enjoyed Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome, Planet Terror, Escape from New York/L.A., and/or any recent zombie movie, you can't miss this one.

not bad movie, but bad movie about virus (topic)

[NijazBaBs · 6/10 · 29 March 2020]

I liked this movie for not being bad as a whole movie. It had good stunts, effects, humor, vehicles, landscape, weapons. Also it is filled with enough content, meaning not empty. But as a virus or infection or pandemic movie it is bad. Almost not related to its topic, has nothing to do with virus. Instead it became some funny weird joke and song. Bit funny and immoral and negative. But towards end it lost its topic. Also weird to see vehicles near cannibals, kings, knights, castles. Too mixed up different people and ages, that it looks not serious and unreal. But although overall not bad, it is not good enough either.

Mad Max meets 28 Days Later meets Lord of the Rings

[Drue_Hardegree · 1/10 · 14 March 2008]

Now don't get me wrong. I love bad movies, I really do. I may love them more than good movies. But Doomsday is one of the worst movies I have ever seen. And I didn't like it. Picture this: an Aeon Flux reject from Resident Evil is sent to an area walled off 30 years after a crazy virus kills off thousands of people. Why is she sent? To find the cure of course! Outside of the Wall she finds a whole bunch of cannibalistic gutter punks. Aside from some hilariously bad dialogue, and the cannibals, there are knights (thats right, from Medieval times!), ridiculous stunt driving with lots of explosions, and plenty of walks across the countryside with hobbit-like survivors of the plague, looking like they are trekking to Mordor. I think it was about that time I got a case of the giggles and had to excuse myself. This movie was one of the most gratuitous, ridiculous wastes of time ever! But I did get a bit of a laugh out of it, so maybe I'm being too harsh.

Homage to the post-apocalyptic

[Cujo108 · 9 May 2010]

It's April 2008, and a sudden viral outbreak has hit Scotland hard. To contain the deadly bug (dubbed the Reaper Virus), the British government works quickly to build a containment wall around the afflicted country. The possibility of the disease spreading to the rest of the world appears to have been effectively stopped in it's tracks. Fast forward 30 years and the virus has reappeared, this time in London. Satellite monitoring has picked up images of apparent survivors in the hot zone, which leads the government to suspect the potential for a cure. Desperate to put an end to the reborn plague, the Brits send a team of soldiers into the walled off country in the hopes that they can find the cure that may not even exist.

The third feature film from British filmmaker Neil Marshall. I thought this was a fun time at the movies, but don't expect anything new here. Doomsday is a pure love letter to Escape From New York and the Italian post-nuke films of the 80's. There are homages all over this thing, and I would like to think that I caught most of them. Hell, even Nightmare City seemingly gets a nod with the look and behavior of the infected. Watch the scene where one of the infected axes his way into Hatcher's compound and see if Lenzi's trash classic doesn't come to mind. Marshall knew what he wanted to do with this film, and he does just that. I have to admit, it was somewhat surreal watching such a film on the big screen, particularly the extended Sol/feast scene, which gets pretty nutty.

Rhona Mitra plays the team leader of the squad sent into the hot zone. She's a gorgeous woman with a killer accent, but she also comes through as a believable action star. I've long been a fan of her's, so it's nice seeing her get a role like this. Craig Conway is warped as the over-the-top Sol, but he lacks menace. He did get me to hate him, but that had more to do with the fact that I found him annoying. The considerable talents of Malcolm McDowell, Bob Hoskins and Alexander Siddig provide solid support despite what little they have to work with.

My biggest gripe with the film is the wall to wall use of music. It seems like there's never a scene that doesn't have some form of music blaring, and that becomes tiresome. A little more subtlety in that area would have been most appreciated. Also, some of the scene transitions feel awkward, and the film itself feels quite rushed. We don't get much down time or quiet moments, it's all very busy.

Still, I must admit that it's decent fun. Original? No. Flawed? You bet. That aside, if you have a certain affinity for this brand of entertainment, you should eat it up. And for the record, I'll take this one over The Descent any day. Mitra puts the wannabe badasses in that clunker to shame.

Doomsday is a must-see for action genre enthusiasts and apocalypse fans

[kevin_robbins · 6/10 · 29 November 2023]

I recently rewatched the UK 🇬🇧 picture Doomsday (2008) on Tubi. The storyline unfolds in Scotland, quarantined due to a deadly virus outbreak, resulting in a world of violence and cannibalism. As a similar virus emerges in London 30 years later, evidence suggests the cure lies in Scotland, leading to a team sent to retrieve it at any cost.

Written and directed by Neil Marshall (Dog Soldiers), the film stars Rhona Mitra (Underworld: Rise of the Lycans), Bob Hoskins (Danny the Dog), Vernon Willemse (Mad Max: Fury Road), and Alexander Siddig (21 Bridges).

While always a fun watch, the movie falls short in terms of overall execution. The plot combines elements of Mad Max, Death Race 2000, and Medieval Times, with a puzzling castle 🏰 and renaissance ending. However, the kill scenes shine with excellent gore, blood splatter, and exploding heads. The soundtrack, is very good, but falters at the end by using the same song as "28 Days Later," making the conclusion feel cheesy and somewhat of a ripoff.

In conclusion, Doomsday is a must-see for action genre enthusiasts and apocalypse fans. I'd rate it 6/10 and strongly recommend it.

Been Done Before And Better = What was the point?

[bob_bear · 4/10 · 28 May 2011]

In my experience, you know you're onto a loser from the get-go when the film starts with a voice over. In this case, one that goes on and on, filling you in on the back-story. Film is a visual medium. If the director cannot set up the film without a lengthy spoken intro then he is not much of a director in my humble opinion.

But if you can stomach the spoken intro, can you also be expected to swallow the rest of the preposterous opening nonsense: A wall has been erected surrounding Scotland in its entirety, one that is capable of containing the entire Scottish population and all constructed in the time it took for a rampant, deadly virus to appear and spread??? No, I don't think so either!

Rhona Mitra plays the lead role as if she's channeling Kate Beckensale and, indeed, she shares Kate's amazing ability to keep one facial expression throughout the entire length of a movie. Bob Hoskins turns up to collect his pay packet. No one else is worth mentioning.

I understand the film is meant to be a homage to other films and other film makers. But why? Why bother? Why not make something fresh and original? I don't want to watch Mad Max for the 43rd time. It was okay in its day but we've moved on...er, well, no, not in this film we haven't.

It's not a badly made film, it's just lame and derivative. I wouldn't recommend it unless you are easily pleased.

Has potential, but takes too long

[morinoravenberg · 7/10 · 2 May 2018]

This movie is about a virus pandemic that breaks loose in Scotland, and as a result is quarantined by the UK govt; years pass, and the virus resurfaces in London. That's when a girl that narrowly escaped the quarantine (that is now a counter terrorist agent), which is the main protagonist, is sent in to retrieve a cure that the UK govt. thinks there is due to survivors showing up on satellite imagery.

The movie has potential on paper and story wise, but the plot drags on way too long (2hrs) & it's like a fusion between Mad Max, Resident Evil + King Arthur, in the sense that Scotland is now ruled by 2 entities: a Mad Max type society that's cannibalistic and a Medieval style society at the other end. No zombies in this one, in case you were wondering.

Final verdict: good, but don't expect anything great. Definitely.

Embarrassing experience to watch....

[SimonHeide · 1/10 · 12 August 2008]

I think that the movie starts out well. The narrative is fine and the atmosphere of impending doom gets through to the audience. At the very moment that we enter the virus-zone the movie falls apart.

They are attacked fiercely by a large number of punks and since the team was so unprepared it made you wonder what information they had from the photographs taken from the satellite. They try to escape in their vehicles and somebody smashes the window with a rock or something!? How is this possible as we were told that their armored vehicles could withstand high caliber weapons...? Many obvious flaws in the movie combined with a world in the virus infected zone that is to unbelievable...

I can't recommend this movie no matter what.... You will not be able to suspend your critical thoughts when watching this movie.

Regards Simon

PS. such a shame that Malcolm Mcdowell chooses to appear in this movie.

Ps. When you read reviews that gives max score check to see if the user has made more than one review. If not consider the possibility of a lobbyist. If you agree consider putting this post scriptum at the bottom at your own reviews.

ridiculously retarded B movie that is fun fun fun!

[diseriq · 8/10 · 15 March 2008]

OK, like before DOOMSDAY, Neil Marshall made two great films, DOG SOILDERS and THE DESCENT, so going into this, i had high expectations. then i heard all of the negative buzz on the internet for months and months. so then i had low expectations. and the trailer sucked. basically, if you go into this film expecting anything serious at all, then yeah, you're going to be disappointed, because this is in no way a serious movie sci-fi action future apocalypse thriller. what it is - a tongue in cheek splatter fest homage to the great John Carpenter movies of the 80s and with a bunch of mad max thrown in. if you loved PLANET TERROR, then you will dig on this. really this flick reminded me of the vibe of BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA or CRANK. i'm not sure why more people weren't laughing, cause this film is simply hilarious. it just gets more and more over the top! cannibalistic punks BBQ one of our heroes to Siouxsie and the Banshees "Spellbound." and they have a GIMP!! little furry bunnies get blown up, and cows are squashed via tanks! oh yeah, look at you now, all covered in virus infected blood prime minister. what did you say, who is that guy? oh yeah! it's Dr Bashir from Star Trek Deep Space Nine, yes!!!

the gore is consistently excessive and top notch. then out of nowhere, it's a knight on a horse, hey there's Malcom McDowell collecting a paycheck!! boy does his nose crazy silly for some reason! this film is totally intentionally funny and camp. the thing is, i think it has a bit too much of a British sensibility for an American audience, cause there is a certain dryness to the humor, but it's pretty clear that Neil Marshall set out to make a big dumb retarded and fun Hollywood movie, and that ironically Hollywood is too stupid to know how to market it. this will find an audience on video, cause while parts of it are derivative of it's influences, it's too much fun not to like. you just gotta keep drinking and/or smoking! there are only a couple of aspects that keep it from being great - the editing is terrible pretty much throughout, and some of the action is hard to follow. then there is the dialogue that is really poorly staged. like they were working so fast to get the shots and come in under budget (especially at what is supposed to be a climatic scene between our heroine and one of the villains) that they just staged it, shot it once, and the actors were like, hurry up lets be done with this, we're ready to hit up that catered food. but regardless, i had a blast, don't know why my roommate asked the theater management for his money back, what a loser.

Give it a chance...

[demartiniratt · 7/10 · 15 March 2008]

I went into the movie with an open mind and without thinking too much of the criticism relating to the similarities to Road Warrior, 28 days later etc and was pleasantly surprised that the movie was actually pretty good. Of course the movie's not without its flaws and is far from perfect but overall, its a fun movie which captivates the viewer and holds your attention throughout the movie. There's plenty of gore and non-stop action to satisfy action fans everywhere. Considering the movies out now: Jumper, 10,000 BC, College Road Trip, The bank Job, id say that Doomsday is the best of the bunch and you could do a lot worse on a cold rainy day. 6.5/10

It had potential...but sadly it's just a shitty action movie

[alphacentauri-945-738849 · 3/10 · 13 January 2011]

Such a pity really, started out interesting but it quickly turned in a total shitfest. Full of clichés, illogical directions, over the top nonsensical action scenes, lousy characters, annoying, ...

Really it angers me how a good idea is turned in to such a cringing and facepalming orgy.

It is slightly better than Terminator 4, but considering how bad T4 was don't get your hopes up. The only way this movie could have worked is if it was released in 1980 and even then it would make you squeak in pain.

If you like this genre i do recommend seeing it, maybe it will excite you a few times, but mostly to see how a good movie doesn't look like.

Awesome action flick. Very entertaining. Who cares for the plot.

[Fella_shibby · 9/10 · 11 December 2016]

I first saw this with my dad in a theatre in 2008.

Revisited it recently on a dvd which I own.

Aft havin njoyed Neil Marshal's Dog Soldiers n The Descent, I found this one too to be very entertaining n action packed.

It was like Mad Max on steroids.

This movie is a pure adrenaline rush with lots of action and suspense, violence and gore.

Its an over-the-top grindhouse epic.

A homage to Mad Max, Escape from New York, Death Race, 28 Days Later.

The movie has awesome visual effects.

The pacing is very good.

Action n horror fans will not b disappointed.

The gore effects are top notch.

The action is superb, the car chase is excellent with lots of body count n superb camera work n loud music.

Mitra is gorgeous in this one.

Lee-Anne Liebenberg is deliciously hot.

Neil Marshall undoubtedly had fun with Doomsday. The question is, will you?

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 12 May 2008]

When I first heard about Doomsday, I was very excited: Director Neil Marshall had already made two of my favourite horror films of recent years—Dog Soldiers and The Descent—and I was sure that he possessed the talent to successfully deliver a perfect platter of UK-based post-apocalyptic mayhem.

Unfortunately, rather than making a serious (and original) attempt at filming Britain's answer to Mad Max and Escape From New York, Marshall has opted to deliver a deliberately camp exercise in self-indulgent excess: a big, dumb, gory, and gleefully OTT homage to his favourite post-apocalyptic movies. Whilst it's undeniably a 'fun' movie, Doomsday is a far cry from being the end-of-the-world action masterpiece that I had hoped it would be.

The story, which borrows heavily from several genre classics, sees a deadly virus sweeping across Scotland, forcing the British government to seal off the infected area (via a huge metal barrier) in order to prevent the disease spreading to the rest of the UK. Years later and those people abandoned behind the wall are presumed dead and the virus is consigned to the history books.

Then, much to the government's horror, the virus makes a comeback—this time in London. However, all hope is not lost: satellite photography shows that there are still survivors in the quarantine zone and a team of soldiers, lead by sexy Major Eden Sinclair (Rhona Mitra), is sent in to see if a possible cure can be located—a job made extremely difficult by the gang of cannibalistic punks that now controls the area.

Just as many bands struggle creatively with their third album, so it seems to me that Neil Marshall has suffered from 'difficult third movie' syndrome, where a combination of a bigger budget and the pressure to perform has led the talented director to temporarily lose sight of his primary objective: to tell a decent story.

To many, it will appear that Marshall has developed this movie 'arse about face'. In other words, rather than starting with a solid plot and then working on the visuals, he has taken a collection of 'cool' ideas inspired by his favourite movies and attempted to mould a story around them, the result being nothing more than a series of spectacular special effects, impressive stunts, and (admittedly) exciting set-pieces that unfortunately fail to gel together to form a satisfying whole.

One thing is for sure—audiences wishing to get the most from Doomsday should approach the film with a willingness to relax and go with the flow, because dissecting the story, examining the plot holes and questioning the film's logic will only lead to disappointment.

6.5 out of 10, generously rounded up to 7 for IMDb.

Derivative

[bkeithg · 5/10 · 26 March 2008]

I went in this movie with low expectations. I was hoping for a fun, lightweight popcorn movie that might creatively rip off similar movies. It turned out that it just ripped off similar movies. There were clever touches and some enjoyable attention to detail but those brisk moments of relief were too far apart.

The problems started for me in the beginning. All of the best films of this genre never had lengthy set ups. In Escape to New York, the president is caught and Snake is on his way in and that's all you really need to know. In the Road Warrior, Max just shows up out of nowhere right into the action. This movie had a long winded exposition by Malcom McDowell and a superfluous action scene aboard a ship.

The film had moments of potential, after the introduction of Sol and the final chase come to mind, but there was quite a bit of nothing going on in between. There were also more than a few clichés. About the only thing missing was a cat jumping out of the shadows.

It may have been intended as an homage to other movies of the genre but it's tributes only served to remind me of how these other films were much more superior and I ended up leaving the theater wanting to see The Road Warrior.

In fairness to the movie I probably did go in comparing it to these other post-apocalyptic films and maybe my expectations were actually higher than I originally thought but despite that it was still a pretty bland film.