Customer Reviews

Doctor Mordrid [VHS]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Two begins from another dimension; two sorcerers with immeasurable powers. One has sworn to destroy the Earth; the other has vowed to protect it. Their timeless battle has crossed over from the fourth dimension and only one man will reign in the end...
Doctor Mordrid (JEFFREY COMBS) is the chosen guardian who can protect the Earth from eternal darkness; Kabal (BRIAN THOMPSON) is his vengeful enemy whose implacable wrath has escalated with time. Kabal has arrived on Earth and is planning to use his infinite powers to unleash a horde of hellish demons to devour and destroy humankind.
Bound by hate and a mystical amulet that holds the powers of life and death, the immortal wizards will meet for the last time. Their centuries-old rivalry has matured into the ancient struggle of good versus evil. Now, their battle takes on majestic proportions as Mordrid and Kabal give life to prehistoric skeletons and begin their final conflict...

I find it to be utterly disappointing that this movie never received as much recognition as I feel it deserved. If any movie from Full Moon Studios was ever able to propel it to the level of a major motion picture studio, this was it.

To begin, the main antagonist and protagonist are two of the most underrated actors in Hollywood. Jeffery Combs is brilliant, as has been recognized for years by many movie critics and sci-fi/horror fans. He uses every ounce of his star power in his role as the enigmatic Doctor Mordrid. He makes the character believable.

His opposite, Kabal, is played by the delightful Brian Thompson, who seems to be destined to forever play bit parts in sci-fi movies and TV shows. Fans will recognize him from The X-Files, and also from a cult classic (but unfortunately short-lived) series from 1992 called Kindred: The Embraced. (If you have the opportunity, watch it...you won't be disappointed.) In Doctor Mordrid, he plays a twisted counterpoint to Combs, but seems almost a sympathetic villain. His motivations appear to be confused, and one almost seems to feel sorry for him at points.

Doctor Mordrid has very credible special effects, a well-developed story line, believable and likable characters...what more could one ask for?

On the whole, I found this movie to be wildly entertaining, and isn't that the point? It has a great premise (based on Dr. Strange) but rather than folding the project when they lost the rights to use the Dr Strange name, they instead forged on and completed what I feel was a watershed film in the sci-fi genre. Compared to many of the multi-million dollar turds regularly forced down our throats by Hollywood (e.g. Battlefield Earth) this low-budget masterpiece uses on time-tested story-telling elements and wonderful character archetypes, portrayed with excellent acting, to show us once again how truly entertaining a science fiction movie can be.

This was orginally meant to be Marvels Doctor Strange, but do to the limited budget, became Mordrid. It is still an enjoyable film for those of us that are fans of this type of genre.

This is a movie, not a book. Doctor Anton Mordrid is a wizard protecting Earth while moonlighting as an apartment building owner and lecturer on the Occult. Jeffrey Combs plays Mordrid with obvious enthusiam. Combs is a terrific actor who deserves some mainstream success. He can currently be seen on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as Weyoun. This film has good acting, a female lead who is NOT a mindless bimbo, only one scene with nudity, and decent special effects. Give it try.

Come on, surely this deserves a DVD, whether on it's on own, or with a few of Jeffrey Combs' greatest hits [hint-hint]...? Why don't the production companies look to see what films people actually *want* to buy, instead of what they think people want to buy? If it's a 'cult' film, they can put a few together; most people tend to like the same type of films, the same actors; it's not brain surgery. We'd probably have a lot fewer bargain bins at Walmart if they did this! I'd really like to get rid of my VHS copy of Doctor Mordrid, and move a little further into this modern world! Please, give us a DVD. :)

DOCTOR MORDRID follows a powerful wizard who must face off against his arch nemesis, the evil Kabal, whose heart is set on the destruction of Earth! After losing the rights on a licensed film adaptation of Marvel Comic's Doctor Strange, Full Moon creator Charles Band made a few quick rewrites to bring this superhero picture to life. Although many of the special effects would be considered quite cheesy and hackneyed by today's standards, given the time and budget in which they were made, DOCTOR MORDRID proves to be a wildly ambitious attempt at creating an epic fantasy adventure filled with magic and monsters. Jeffrey Combs plays the title role of Anton Mordrid, but he sucks the fun out of the character with a spiritless performance. The X-Files' Brian Thompson, on the other hand, takes his character's hammy overacting to an outrageous level of supervillainy that is perfectly fitting for the production. The final confrontation between the two sorcerers features lightning bolts, lasers, and even a pair of re-animated dinosaur fossils that are brought to life using more of David Allen's incredible stop-motion effects. DOCTOR MORDRID may be Full Moon's most technically-accomplished film, and it is a surprising little gem that superhero fans are sure to enjoy!

-Carl Manes
I Like Horror Movies