On February 7 Universal Home Entertainment releases to DVD the Unrated extended edition. Based on the world famous DOOM game franchise (on PC, PSOne and Xbox) by id Software, fans of the game should find some enjoyment in watching this film. Those who’ve never played the game (all three of you), will find this to be an action packed sci-fi thriller that competes with many of the releases of this genre out today.

When all communication (other than a few garbled cries for help) is cut off from a Mars based research facility, a group of hardcore space marines known as the Rapid Response Tactical Squad (RRTS) is called in to investigate and contain the situation. Led by there overbearing and extremely by-the-book leader Sarge (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), the team can only be described as a group of dangerous misfits. As an added twist, one of the soldiers, Reaper (Karl Urban) has an estranged sister, Dr. Grimm (Josamund Pike) who is a scientist working an archeology dig on the planet. What the team finds when they get there is complete chaos -- or more to the point -- pure evil about to take control. So when a bad situation turns worse Sarge informs his heavily armed men to exterminate all the flesh eating monsters and thus rid the planet of its evil. Which is what DOOM boils down to, the fight between good and evil as well as the evil within us (or a least some of us).

If you’ve read my previous review of this movie (the theatrical version) then bear with me as I reiterate my opinion that if you're just watching DOOM to find the discrepancies between the game and the film then you’ll be pretty busy. I'm a firm believer that other than the concept it's not possible to accurately transfer a video game to film. So what I always suggest is watch the movie as a movie, not a game. That being said, I found DOOM to be a pretty decent movie. The acting held its own especially that of "The Rock's". It’s a rarity to see an entertainer from any field make the cross over to acting and be good at it. The way "The Rock" portrayed Sarge is about the best way that character could have been played. I also think that when he turned down the main character of Reaper he made the right choice as it gave him more room to be a little crazier and darker.

The rest of the members of the RRTS definitely don't pale in comparison to their leader. As a matter of fact they all have some kind of unusual quirk that stands out and I believe each one of them played their roles in very good fashion. The writers also deserve some recognition for creating and adding these unusually strange traits. Also the filmmakers captured the dark feel that came from the game with low lighting, tunnel scenes, and confined spaces for a large portion of the film.

Now I'm not saying this film is flawless and without faults - its not. There are some things that could easily have been more similar to the game. I also think the set, while very good, could have been better or more accurately it would only have been a matter of color and lighting on the doors and walls. But all in all if you’re willing to put aside your hopes of seeing a perfect video game to film adaptation then you’ll find DOOM to be a pretty decent flick with some awesome weapons (including the BFG from the game), decent fight scenes, and interesting characters and monsters.

DOOM includes a first person shooter sequence like in the game and this film has an extended version of that from the one shown in theaters. There's also "Basic Training With The Rock" which shows the cast members getting weapons training with real military experts. There’s also a huge amount of behind the scenes footage and interviews with the director Andrzej Bartkowiak as well as the cast and crew. I thought it was interesting how much of the special effects turned out to be manmade like costumes and make-up, So much of the special effects (like monsters) in movies is computer generated these days.

The DVD also includes tips and tricks for a beginner in the DOOM game and the DVD itself doubles as a demo of DOOM 3 when used in your Xbox. One of the extras I enjoyed the most was the DOOM Nation which shows where DOOM got its start and how its grown as well as interviews with cast and crew about their personal experience with the game series. When you add that and all the other bonus material to the unrated extended version of this DVD, you definitely get plenty of bang for your buck. The Unrated and Extended version of the DOOM DVD is available at major retailers everywhere beginning February 7th. Learn more at homevideo.universalstudios.com or www.doommovie.com .