340 - Doomsday review

Have you ever seen “Escape From New York?” Well, so have I, but now I’ve seen it again, albeit with setting, protagonist, nationality, quality, and title. This time it’s called “Doomsday,” but the similarities to that 1981 cult actioneer are so numerous that even the captions explaining the date are identical.

Like “Escape From New York,” “Doomsday” sees a tough-as-nails anti-hero travel inside a quarantined area to retrieve something of great importance. In 1981it was Kurt Russell as Snake Plissken, in 2007 it’s Rhona Mitra as Eden Sinclair, and though Plissken was undoubtedly the better character. Plissken was retrieving the president of the U.S., while Sinclair is searching for the cure to a plague that caused Scotland to be walled off from the rest of Britain, suggesting further decline for the once great nation. The plague causes quick and hideous death, or it turns people into zombies, the film itself seems as unsure of this as we are.

While both films portrayed shattered cities infested with vicious rag-clad hoodlums, “Doomsday” takes it a step further and throws in medieval knights on horseback. Plissken had an eye-patch, while Sinclair has a computerized glass eye. While Plissken escaped in a shoddy old taxi, Sinclair gets the heck out of Glascow in a shiny BMW. Whereas Plissken sticks it to the man in the end, well, Sinclair must have watched his exploits on DVD. And they both have a had time finding a cigarette. On the other hand, fans of “Doomsday” can find some hope in the knowledge that this film is blantant rip-off of an earlier one; “Escape From New York” had an okay 1996 sequel called “Escape From L.A.,” so if they’re willing to wait fifteen years, perhaps they’ll get another, albeit inferior, installment.

Mitra gets the job done as Sinclair, looking in suitably muscled shape though without anything interesting to endear us to the character. Bob Hoskins and Malcolm McDowell have small supporting roles as a government stooge and the leader of the overblown medieval themed society, but neither part is written well enough to allow the actors to flourish as they usually do.

Writer/director Neil Marshall, who directed the critically revered 2006 horror film “The Descent” gets the action part right, the fight and chases striking a balance between kinetic energy and wince-inducing gore. But where he goes all wrong isn’t so much the preposterousness of the scenario, but the glum attitude draped over the endeavor. The killing parts are exhilarating and fun, but little else. To Marshall’s credit, the film feels shorter than it actually is, although a fair amount of time is spent developing characters and places that hold no interest and offer little payoff. “Doomsday” feels like it suffered massive cuts in the editing room, countless script revisions, or both.

Already lacking originality, “Doomsday” also misses out on the irreverent wit of its spiritual predecessor, which was what made that film a cult classic. Note to filmmakers: if you’re going to copy something, make sure you include the best part.

2.5 out of 5