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Open Letter to Doom Fans from Script Writer

Posted by Zonk on from the now-that's-comedy dept.

HomeLAN has a reprint of a letter written by Doom movie script writer Dave Callaham. In it he (wittily) attempts to explain why the Doom movie is going to be so unlike the game, and what his role in the creation of the film has been. From his letter: "The screenplay I wrote DOES differ in a number of ways from the games. I want to be very honest and forthcoming in saying that, and I know that I won't make any friends amongst the fans of the game in doing so. But it should be mentioned that it was never the goal of anyone involved in this film, from myself and the producers to the studio to the guys at id, to make a direct film adaptation of the game(s)."

6 of 120 comments (clear)

  1. Say huh? by sc0ttyb · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Without all the things that makes DOOM what it is then all you really have is Resident Evil. Think about it:

    - virally-altered humans (i.e. zombies)
    - not on Mars or its moons
    - no hell demons
    - SWAT team

    If that's not a Resident Evil flick, I don't know what is.

    --
    "Apparently so, but suppose you throw a coin enough times. Suppose one day, it lands on its edge."
  2. Assume this is a real letter... by PoderOmega · · Score: 2, Insightful

    ...that the themes and elements that you love about Doom are ALL represented strongly in the film...just with some new twists

    Hmmm what themes are we looking at here:
    Monsters
    Violence
    Weapons ...uh... I'm drawing a blank for any original or non-overkilled movie themes here. Just in the last year we've had Dawn of the Dead, AvP, Resident Evil 2....

  3. Oh boy. This guy is a scriptwriter? by SmallFurryCreature · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Doom is doom. It is marines at a research base on mars being overrun by the legions from hell. This story could be found in the readme.txt in the original Doom. If you bothered.

    Doom 3 expands a bit on it by adding such nicesties as in game story to the mix. It adds a "bad guy" or something.

    Now after years of talk someone is trying to turn the Doom game into a movie. We get a list of staff that belong neither on the A-list or the cult list. It screams direct-to-video.

    Then all we hear is about things they are going to change. I could understand if this guy was a Steven Spielberg but surely he can't be that deluded? You are a nothing given a ready made universe. USE IT. MILK IT. We hear things like cost being bandied about but how expensive is a mars base anyway? Geez this is the age of CGI. Hell you got the sets in Doom3. Rerender and keep the shots very short. This guy is only showing how crap he is by complaing about budget. Exactly how much did the shot in Star Wars cost that firmly set luke on an alien planet? I am not a photographer but what is the cost of a double exposure nowadays? All you need for a mars exterior is a sand desert with a red filter. The BBC can do it for a docu/drama.

    Now he is complaining that the fans are upset because he is taking all the doom out of doom. Note that he doesn't actually refute any of the changes that are rumored.

    Learn something from better movie makers. learn something from every goddamn suckass bad game license movie that came before. You got a very simple frame work in wich you can make one hell of an action movie. All you need to do is have the hero be a marine, set it on mars and the bad guys are demons or possesed humans. The rest of the story is up to you. You can make it an alien or an aliens. You can make it pure horror or comedy. You can add a love interest JUST AS LONG AS IT IS ON MARS, HAS MARINES AND DEMONS.

    What the fuck is this guy problem. I would very much like to know what the people at ID are thinking. Are they paid a huge amount for the license or have they never watched any of the other game license movies. I don't think a new Doom is planned so are they planning to really sink the license once and for all?

    The guy seems to have a George Lucas attitude that the fans will just have to swallow what ever he makes. One problem George Lucas got big before his ego swelled. The current George Lucas has with the new star wars movies not repeated the success. The first three movies are a part of culture. The new ones are not. Just make a proper Doom movie then use your fame to make your virus swat team movie.

    Oh well maybe Half-life will get a proper movie. Oh, they wanted a love interest for Freeman? Never mind.

    --

    MMO Quests are like orgasms:

    You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.

    1. Re:Oh boy. This guy is a scriptwriter? by twosmokes · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Did you read the letter?

      "I am pretty much solely responsible for that, since it was my pitch and my screenplay that got made."

      He never wanted to make a Doom movie. He wanted to make a movie in the Doom universe.

      It's like making a movie called "Marvel Universe" about a housewife's illicit love affair with her pool boy.

      He's keeping the theme of the games minus the demons and minus Mars. So we'll get a Will Smith movie with a BFG thrown in. Good thing they're using the Doom license.

  4. Re:All he needs to do is make sure there are by superpulpsicle · · Score: 1, Insightful

    They can't make the movie the same, quite frankly Doom III the game already ripped off Aliens the movie directed by James Cameron.

  5. Re:Why call it doom then? by tenaciousj · · Score: 2, Insightful
    When is Hollywood going to give us what we want?? Instead, we once again get a resounding "Fuck you".

    Answer: Never. Because they say "Fuck you" and people still happily go and pay for it.

    Until there is a universial "Fuck you" right back at them, why should they give us what we want?