Doomsday

If you go into this film with the notion of seeing the 3rd installment of the recently revival attempt of Grindhouse films, Doomsday kinda works with such a sensibility. We are treated to a mishmash of action-thrillers from the past 40 years or so (fans will have fun identifying them all on DVD later, I suspect), and the narrative scope doesn't pretend to be anything more than it seems on the surface. There are duty-bound protagonists, and over-the-top insane characters for antagonists, with very little shades of grey in between them. Rhona Mitra is game for a B-movie heroine, and her supporting cast is sufficient (though Bob Hoskins' appearance was a surprise, and he provided a bit of grit and gravitas in spots). The guy who played Saul cracked me up, loved his unbridled lack of filters when reacting to situations gone awry.

Director Neil Marshall throws in all sorts of homages, some work, some don't, but the film itself is so tonally awkward as it goes from one set piece to the next set piece in an attempt to carry forward the plot. But even with such deficiencies in the screenplay, there is quite a bit of fun with all the carnage, violence and action throughout the film. The pacing is actually not too bad, and the 3rd act had me rolling in spots, just good ol' fashion fun action sequences (a la Road Warrior) during the big chase scene.

I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.