"Doomsday," the third feature from British "B"-movie tour de force writer-director Neil Marshall, is a rehash of several distant cult movies, including both of Marshall's previous films, which are also considered cult classics. Yet, that doesn't make "Doomsday" even remotely bad, but it does make it very interesting not just to follow the story along, but to also point out the many references to films past.
Even the most amateurish film buff could point out the assorted references to "28 Days/Weeks Later," "Escape from New York" (1981), "Aliens" (1986), and the "Max Mad" movies. It's all part of the fun, really, and you can't blame Marshall for making references to the movies he loves and have inspired him as a filmmaker. Even his first feature "Dog Soldiers" (2002) and his superior follow-up horror flick "The Descent" (2005) get some mention here.
In the future, an out-of-control virus called the "Reaper virus" (the "28" movies) completely decimates Scotland, eventually leading to its being quarantined off with a 20-foot-tall, 12-inch-thick impenetrable wall ("Escape from New York") on all sides. The rest of the world goes on as if nothing happened, while millions are forced to fend for themselves in the virus-ravaged wasteland of former Scotland. In the the 30 years since the quarantine, law & order broke down and anarchy took over.
30 years later, the Reaper Virus makes a comeback, this time outside the quarantine zone. More news develops when spy satellites monitoring the former Scotland detect human survivors. Could there be uninfected people? Could there be a cure in there somewhere? Regardless, the government organizes a small task force to go inside and find answers. Nelson (Bob Hoskins), a government handler, is given the assignment of having his best operative Eden Sinclair (Rhona Mitra) go inside with a crack team of commandos and look for answers.
They have 48 hours.
Right away, "Doomsday" removes itself from other post-apocalyptic movies by not focusing on the catastrophe itself and instead just focuses on humanity's attempt to move forward. "Doomsday" is about anarchy, and the downfall of society: What happens when you just leave a country to wither and die in the face of disaster? On the inside, however, it's all about finding a cure or a vaccine and bringing it back to the rest of the world. When Sinclair and her team are on the inside, they're all their own, but of course they are not alone. As it turns out, barbaric clans have been formed (the "Mad Max" movies), under the leadership of Sol (Marshall's favorite go-to guy and movie regular, Craig Conway), who seeks to lead his punk regalia-clad minions to the conquest of the free world outside the quarantine zone. It should be pointed out here that they're pretty much cannon fodder ("Aliens").
It's fair to chide "Doomsday" for some script deficiencies and overly-abundant throwback references to films past and an apparent lack of details regarding Scotland's decimation in the 30 years since the Reaper Virus's outbreak, and Sol's rise to power. But Marshall keeps "Doomsday" lean and focused. Once on the inside, it's anything goes, as Sinclair and her teammates are pretty much left to fend for themselves when Sol's men ambush them and force them to participate in increasingly sadistic games of violence for survival and for that, the blood and gore is sufficient (Marshall knows no boundaries in the area of special effects).
"Doomsday" is an accomplished third feature from a provocative filmmaker, Neil Marshall. Though by no means perfect ("The Descent" was and I was feverishly looking for "Doomsday" to surpass it), "Doomsday" is still looking to make a killing at the movies this weekend.
