A blight on my childhood and a travesty compared to the original, classic DOCTOR WHO TV series. I remember - fondly - watching the Sylvester McCoy stories when I was a kid, and I was 15 when this TV movie premiered on television. I expected a lot; what I got was the worst kind of nonsense, a film as offensive as it was bland.Where to begin with the problems? McCoy himself is given short shrift early on, to be replaced by the uninteresting Paul McGann who never makes the role his own; sometimes he appears to think he's in a pantomime, so lazy is his performance. Then there's the narrative, which adopts some kind of nonsensical action-movie template instead of the usual intricate plotting of a proper Dr Who story.The blame for all this can be laid at the door of the producers, who decided to appeal to the American audience in an attempt to break the American market. So this was filmed in Canada with a mostly American cast, and it completely misses the boat in terms of the feel of a Dr Who adventure. Instead, we get blatant rip-offs and homages to tons of American cultural icons: dodgy liquid metal CGI effects copied from TERMINATOR 2, Eric Roberts playing the Master and dressing as Arnie from THE TERMINATOR, plus pointless comparisons to Universal's FRANKENSTEIN.And that's the gutting thing. If this had just been a typical cheesy US B-movie, I wouldn't have minded as much; I've seen plenty of bad 'uns, after all. The fact that it's masquerading as WHO is what makes me seethe, and yes, I still hate it just the same all these years later. It's a horrible travesty, and something I still couldn't get off my TV screen quickly enough.

Doctor Who is a great series, which died a slow and painful death as a result of bad script writing and directors who no longer cared about it. This movie almost resulted in the end of Doctor Who forever. Why you may ask? Well, let me explain.No offence to you Americans out there, but this is so typically American. And it sucked big time. They picked up a British TV series and tried to do better. Here is a newsflash to all American producers out there... you cannot outdo the British. Especially when it comes to Doctor Who. You just have no idea what you're on about.When the doctor landed and he was shot I was like, really? Gangs? Guns? Shooting? No, no, no, no, NO! Doctor Who is about aliens fighting with aliens. Oh and don't forget the infamous hospital scene. What is it with Americans and gangs, shooting and hospital scenes?Then the rest of the movie was just terrible. The acting was bad, the master was a joke and it just wasn't Doctor Who. The only person who made it even slightly good was Paul McGann. He wasn't fantastic but with such a bad script, he didn't have a lot to work with. If he was given half a chance, he could have been good.So let's just say this... don't watch this. It's terrible and a total waste of time. Watch the original series and the current series but avoid the movie at all costs.

When it was announced in the mid nineties that Doctor Who, which had been cancelled in 1989 after twenty six years, was making a return, this time as a co- production between the BBC and the American Network Fox, it can be understandable that some fans were a little hesitant over what would happen to the show if it was being developed by an American network. Would the TV film retain the shows British quality, but at the same time introduce the show to an American audience in an appropriate manner? the answer is- yes... and no. the film ultimately failed in America due to poor ratings and as a result no series followed. however the film was a success in the UK. despite there being some flaws to this film and reception amongst fans being divided, this film works as a decent continuation of where the series left and in my opinion, one of Doctor Who's finest moments.Many fans will notice the large shift of quality between this film and the original series. the film has big budget special effects which looked pretty good for the time, the new design of the Tardis interior is very well made and its influence on the later interior designs in the revived series can be seen. the soundtrack is composed by Hollywood composer, John Debney, who later goes on to score the soundtrack for Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. Debney does a great job in creating the intensity of the film, and his new arrangement of the shows iconic theme (originally composed by Ron Grainer) is also very well done. I also like the inclusion of the seventh doctor, Sylvester McCoy, (despite the fact that he is only in it for the regeneration scene fifteen minutes in). Paul McGann, who plays the eighth incarnation of the Doctor, does a fantastic job and it is kind of a shame that he only got to play the Doctor once. as a result, McGann's time as the eccentric time traveller was very brief, but very good.now lets look at the flaws of this film. the first thing is the story and more importantly the continuity. there is far too much of it, about a minute in, were already hearing about the Daleks, Skaro, the Time Lords, Gallifrey and also the Tardis. this will be fine for fans of the series, but this film was also an attempt to introduce the show to a more mainstream American audience, who would not understand any of these concepts, and as a result, it would lead to a large amount of confusion. there are also a lot of unnecessary concepts that have been added to the film, such as the idea of the Doctor being half human, which doesn't work for the character at all and is an example of the Americans trying to be a little bit too clever. the story itself is actually pretty mediocre and there isn't anything scene stealing from any of the actors. if you compare this story to any of the doctors previous adventures, there is an awful lot to be desired. another problem is the regeneration from the seventh doctor, into the eighth. in the past, the doctor has died and been resurrected in another form, in a more heroic fashion. the doctor getting shot by a triad is a real let down and Sylvester McCoy did deserve to go out more heroically. the inclusion of the regeneration scene is another example of poor continuity. another problem I have is Eric Roberts as the Master. in the original series, the Master is portrayed as being a sort of evil magician and hypnotist. in this, Roberts plays him more like an over the top action villain, and on top of that, his appearance makes him look like a rip of the terminator. this idea and the appearance is simply all wrong for the character and Roberts is clearly miscast.Doctor Who the Movie might have failed to revive the series, but it is still an enjoyable, if not flawed return of a truly iconic series. it represents what an American version would have been like and it serves as a good continuation of where the series left of. I am glad it wasn't picked up for a series because if it was, we probably wouldn't have the 2005 revived series that is still continuing to this day. anyone that is a fan of Doctor Who, should definitely see this film, it might not be what you would expect from Doctor Who, but it is still decent nonetheless.

I'm absolutely bonkers about Dr. Who. When it's at its best there is no finer Sci-Fi. It manages to mix the supernatural, science fiction, horror, comedy, and history seamlessly at times. This was the failed attempt at reviving Dr Who, with a stronger focus on getting him to break America. This was probably the biggest mistake of all. It reminds me of when pop stars/comedians try and crack the ever important (in terms of money and fame) market. It seems like a lot of the Dr's identity is lost along the way.However, being able to view this after 6 seasons of the most recent incarnations, this isn't so bad. In fact, it is a damn sight better than some of the nonsense Russell T. Davies subjected the audience to (I love a lot of his stuff, but he was hit and miss). Paul McGann is fantastic. Maybe I have a soft spot for The Doctors that didn't last long, but I can't wait to read the novels based on his character. McCoy gets a decent send off and unlike the more recent Doctors it's also fairly subtle and underplayed. Eric Roberts is menacing, but also confusing at times. He starts almost off robotic, and is later camp. A mix between the terminator, a lizard alien thing, and a gay pop star. There are some awful performances, mostly because the American cast members don't seem to understand the tone they should be going for. This is most likely down to bad direction. Overall most of the plot holes that boil fans' blood can be ignored. The half human thing kind of makes sense in a way, as a planet hopping time traveller should really spend some more time away from Earth otherwise. Daleks holding a trial is confusing though. Certainly one to check out, and actually a pleasant surprise after all the negativity.