Scott LeBrun "Omega Doom" is a thinly disguised sci-fi version of the concept behind "Yojimbo" and "A Fistful of Dollars", in which one character manipulates two warring factions in an isolated setting. Albert Pyun, the prolific low budget genre director who co-wrote this with Ed Naha, gets at least somewhat ambitious with this script - he starts off by quoting a Dylan Thomas poem - but ultimately this is too dull, and too routine, to really take off. The characters, for the most part, tend to not generate much interest. Star Rutger Hauer is fortunately charismatic and amusing as usual, but he can't bring a lot of life to this tired movie. He plays the title character, a robot in a world of the future where mechanicals have practically decimated all mankind. So now they're left to fend and think for themselves and also fight one another. Doom, whose programming was damaged during a fight, comes upon a remote run down area where two types of robots, "Roms" and "Droids", are having it out, convincing each side to try to team up while having his own hidden agenda. Leading the Droids is sexy Shannon Whirry of the erotic thriller genre, and leading the Roms is Tina Cote, a regular in Pyuns' films. Also among the cast are the appealing Anna Katarina as the "bartender" who serves up refreshing glasses of water, Jahi J.J. Zuri as a trouble making Droid, and Norbert Weisser, who like Cote reappears often in Pyuns' oeuvre, as the principal supplier of comedy relief, as the hapless "Head" who's the recipient of much abuse. Decent atmosphere and convincing production design (the movie was shot on location in Slovakia) are assets, but overall the movie is not terribly stimulating, nor is it very easy to root for anyone present. Die hard Hauer fans or devotees of post-apocalypse cinema may find some value here, but it's not something that's worth a hearty endorsement. Five out of 10.

Woodyanders Machines reign supreme in a bleak post-apocalyptic world. Rival factions the Roms and the Droids fight over a hidden cache of guns in a rundown old town. Salvation materializes in the unlikely form of shrewd and lethal hybrid automaton Omega Doom (a fine and smooth performance by the always cool Rutger Hauer). Director Albert Pyun, who also co-wrote the engrossing script with Ed Naha, relates the fun story at a steady pace, presents an intriguingly grim and harsh futuristic environment full of despair and bereft of hope, stages the showdowns with flair, and gives the whole thing a neat and imaginative "Man With No Name"-type spaghetti Western kind of gritty'n'groovy vibe. Moreover, the cast have a ball with the offbeat material, with especially stand-out work by 90's erotic thriller starlet Shannon Whirry as the pragmatic Zed, Norbert Weisser as a sage, much abused, and frequently disembodied robot head, Tina Cote as the ruthless and impulsive Blackheart (her big climactic confrontation with Omega Doom rates as a definite exciting highlight), Anna Katarina as a weary and gentle pacifist drone bartender, Jill Pierce as the tricky Zinc, Cynthia Ireland as the suspicious Ironface, and Jahi J.J. Zuri as the brutish Marko. George Mooradian's garish cinematography gives the picture a funky-punky bombed-out look. Anthony Riparetti's flavorsome score hits the rocking harmonic spot. A very enjoyable oddity.

vgerdjk You can't give a movie a 0, but Tina Cote was in it, so I gave it a 2. This movie went nowhere. What sucks is - there was a lot that could have been done to make this movie much better. Not an 8 or 9 but at least a 5 or 6. The droids were way too human. The dialog was too human. The special effects could have been better, it was made in '96, not '76. I was expecting something better given that Rutger Hauer was in it. He didn't do enough. Marko was the worst depiction of a droid on screen, ever. This would be a great movie to overdub, in the way "What's Up, Tiger Lily?" was done. It seems like this movie was to have a different ending but they just gave up because of either time or money problems.

Lee Bartholomew When I mean special effects from hell, I don't mean they suck. Even worse they arn't finished or haphazardly done. In one scene... Shannon whirry lay um... dying (in robot terms) and green screen material is clearly showing. And our dear HEAD's real neck is poorly erased. Still, the story is sound. The acting by the important characters are surprisingly well done. As the backside to Blind Fury. I couldn't tell which is worse. bad acting , good story on blind fury or good acting, bad effects on the other.The unfinished look of the film will scare most film nuts away. But having a certain bias towards Rutger, I think giving it a 5/10 is pretty darn good. Certainly better than Battlefield Earth. In that case, bad acting bad story, fantastic special effects. :P5/10Quality: 2/10 Entertainment: 8/10 Replayable: 7/10