Doom 2: The Awakening

Doom 2: The Awakening
Directed by JP

One of the more subtle themes of the Doom series seems to be that fate is inescapable, and nowhere is that more clear than in The Awakening. While the first Doom played upon the supernatural aspects of the story in a more background way in relation to the main plot of the investigation on Mars, here it has become the centerpiece, dealing a sickening final blow to the character of Michael Durden and underlining the message that you can walk away from it, but you can't actually leave. The film is darker, quieter, and yet more powerful than the original in its consistent pledge to inevitabilty.

The tendency to mix drama elements in horror films was most recently seen in Gnomes, which I ultimately felt had mixed principles by subscribing entirely to its horror roots in the third act and sneaking out of a truly satisfying resolution to the more human story. Doom 2 maintains the balance throughout its entirety, using the horror elements to enhance the drama aspect of the story in a strong way. The one-two punch of Keaton's group and the supernatural evil that seems to play with Michael's life like a puppetmaster are used as obstacles rather than being dwelled on as the main plot point, and although the story ends on a depressingly dark note, we're never cheated. Some of the questions raised by the end of the first film are elaborated on here, and while more are raised in The Awakening than answered, the path of the movie never missteps or pursues irrelevant complications.

This was a big step for JP when it was released -- released to largely positive reviews, it may have been the one that started the recent trend of "BEST MOVIE EVER" type responses when a film breaks some serious new ground (as well as the trend of "it's good, but it's being seriously overrated" types of responses). The direction is nothing less than stellar. Few movies even come close to how well The Awakening is paced and shot, and offhand I can't think of any that surpass it in a big way. Lines of dialogue cross over multiple angles to give context for what's being said, the music segways seemingly unrelated events even better than the original film did, and establishing/reaction shots are used to optimum effect, providing exactly the right information without overwhelming us by sledgehammering the tone of the film into our senses. This is one of those few 3DMM movies where even the detractors have to grudgingly admit how fantastic the production values are, even if there's some contention as to whether or not a few popular songs are out of place.

It's three years after the events of Doom, and Michael Durden has returned to Earth with the hopes of living the rest of his life peacefully and forgetting what happened on Mars. What he didn't realize was that someone had their eye on him since the start of the mission, and has been studying what happened there. We saw Keaton for the first time in the Platinum Edition of Doom, as the character who watches Jack and Michael from behind the scenes....he informs Michael of how he managed to survive on Mars and tells him about a second heartbeat he's been tracking in Michael's body. Much of the imagery from the first film returns in new context: The invisible grip that grabbed people in Doom is now a power Michael has control of, and various characters seeing themselves in front of them happens at least twice. Plus there are some new creepy images, like Michael crying blood instead of tears, and some truly freaky things at the end of the film that I won't spoil.

The question that echoes through the whole series is whether or not these images really mean anything, or if they're just more mindfuck juice. But seeing certain things that happened in Doom happen again in The Awakening made it seem clearer in a way. I think JP's trying for some consistent symbolism here, and while it doesn't quite become apparent what he's doing in some cases, it could just be that he's waiting to reveal it in D3mons. But one thing WAS apparent that justified Doom 2's story for me: Michael brought a powerful supernatural presence back with him from Mars, and it seems to be doing things to the people around him without his knowledge. There's a very creepy way that his powers almost seem to be a character of their own, conducting an agenda that doesn't always fall in line with his, but often keeping him alive while he's in danger. The ultimate purpose of this isn't revealed, but consider that in the first film, Jack was killed while Michael was specifically spared, and in The Awakening, Ann is never in any danger, even though Keaton would have known about her and may have thought of using her to get to Michael. Now consider the final sequence of the film, 14 years later. Is the presence thinking that Michael is a liability with Keaton chasing him and wants to pass to a safer, more corruptable host? If this is the case, as JP's choice to shift the main character focus seems to indicate, D3mons may be the film in the series that renounces inevitability and assumes the role of challenging fate. The final shot of the film seems to support this if you think about it.

The second installment in the Doom series was a surprising and intriguing direction to take. After sparing Michael from the horror all around him at the end of the first Doom, JP crafts a dark, doggedly persistent followup that drives the crushing reality of inevitability home. It's rare when a sequel picks up right where the implications of the original left off and pursues them past where the viewer assumed the story had ended, to an ending that only becomes obvious in retrospect. The Awakening is not only relevant to the Doom universe, but essential to it, and to provide this kind of fully justified, extended closure to a story that seemed to be finished is quite a directorial feat. Crushingly bleak and utterly mesmerizing, Doom 2 is ass-whooping in a can, and deserves the highest honors a 3DMM film can be given. It's victory in 2002 Awards was no fluke.

Critical Score: 100/100.
Personal Score: 100/100.