Doctor Mordrid

Having not checked the runtime ahead, I was surprised that the film was about to end. I expected more, but the villain ended up being defeated after not much conflict. Even another 15 minutes would have helped. I've enjoyed Jeffrey Combs in every role I have ever seen him in, so no problem there, but he's rather unsettling as a romantic figure because he stares intently without blinking, and while he and the female lead have good chemistry as friends, they don't have romantic chemistry (it doesn't matter anyway because it doesn't really go anywhere). They did what they could with the budget, and the story was interesting enough. Plus, everyone approached their roles with full investment. It would have been interesting to see what they could have done with a bigger budget and more time.

The story of two 'brothers' battling it out over the fate of the world is always a promising mythical theme. However, the film fails to do more with the story than rehash the typical 'good' vs 'evil' idea. This is a particular waste since Jeffrey Combs' strength lies in playing complex characters, rather than whitebread heroes. There was scope in this story to explore issues of human prejudice and the obligations of power, and to flesh out Kabal's motivations more. However, the straightforward story left the plot feeling a little spare. Nonetheless, some of the sets were nice (eg. Mordrid's study), Yvette Nipar and Jay Acovone do a good job as the conflicting police workers, and any movie with Jeffrey Combs in 90% of the scenes is worth taking a look at.

One of the laziest Full Moon movies considering the obvious budget involved. There's almost zero action, stale dialogue throughout and every single scene drags twice as long as it should. Its shot well and the cast aren't slouches, but there is no story. Nothing happens. Its filler until an abrupt and anticlimactic finale that rips off your money. Typical for Charles Band. Avoid this one.

I loved this movie for two reasons: 1) Jeff Combs is absolutely wonderful in it. Plays the role of the modern wizard to the hilt. (And is absolutely adorable.) 2) The movie helped to inspire a role-playing game I thoroughly enjoy, Mage: The Awakening. I've shown it at various LARP after-parties, and it's always a big hit. D&D love and Jeff-squeeing aside, it's not exactly a masterpiece, but it's well-done and thoroughly enjoyable. The plot is fast-moving and engaging in its simplicity, the special effects are pretty good for such a low budget, and the script, while nothing stellar, was not too badly done, and cheesy in all the right places. A good way to spend an evening.

Doctor Mordrid is one of those rare films that is completely under the radar, but is totally worthwhile. It really reminds me of the old serials from the 30s and 40s. Which is why I'd have loved to see follow-up movies... but judging by the rest of Full Moon's output there simply weren't enough tits to satisfy the typical audience. Unfortunately, thanks to a completely superfluous sacrifice scene there two too many for a family audience - which is unfortunate, because without em' this could have been a Harry Potter-style magicfest that kids would have eaten up. Both Jeffrey Combs and Yvette Nipar are great - I wasn't sure if Ms. Nipar hadn't wandered off an A-list picture onto this film, she was very believable. No, seriously! Anyway - it's a shame they didn't have the bucks to license Dr. Strange, because I think this could have been a total kiddie phenom.

This film surprised me a little. I watch a lot of horror/sci-fi films and this is a straight-to-video release that caught me off guard a little. I believe this is Full Moon's best movie thus far and one of Jeffrey Combs best performances. Good movie.

Two sorcerers battle in the fourth dimension,one(Brian Thompson as a Kabal)trying to destroy the Earth,the other(Jeffrey Combs as a Anton Mordrid)trying to save it."Doctor Mordrid" is an enjoyable fantasy fare which offers plenty of cheese.The plot is pretty silly and the gore is completely absent,but the film is very short and entertaining.So if you have enough time to kill give this one a look.My rating:7 out of 10.