Doom isn’t the first computer game to have been made into a feature-length motion picture.  So devoid of ideas are they in Hollywood, we’ve had Super Mario Brothers, Street Fighter, Wing Commander, Double Dragon, Mortal Kombat, Resident Evil, Final Fantasy and Tomb Raider.  Most struggle at the box-office but if you are a fan, don’t worry because there’s even more on the way.  A cinematic version of Halo, one of the most popular games of the moment, is set for release in 2007.

            In Doom, Sarge (The Rock) informs his small team of soliders that their leave has been cancelled.  There’s been an incident at a science research facility on Mars and they have been called in to rescue six missing scientists and to secure the area.  As they enter the darkened tunnels of the building, they realise that this is no ordinary mission.  They find the mutilated bodies of some of the scientists and can’t explain what caused such butchery.

            The pieces will soon be put together and the answer is an all too familiar one in the world of science fiction.  The scientists were experimenting with genetic mutation and were altering the number of chromosomes found within the human body.  Lo and behold, the experiments went bad and now there are some crazy creatures on the loose.  Isn’t this just Resident Evil all over again?

            The film has been rated MA in Australia and it’s worth knowing if you’re thinking of seeing it.  There are some particularly gruesome scenes which generated some laughs and some groans at the screening I attended.  There’s a sizeable amount of coarse language also.

            Doom isn’t a film I’d watch a second time but there are few moments in the final half-hour of the film which I did enjoy.  It’s can’t elaborate because I don’t want to give away the ending but let’s just say the final fate of one character in particular was unexpected (and the screenwriters had a good sense of humour about it).