Resident Evil
review by Bobby Blakey
The Resident Evil video game series has been literally killing it with fans for years since its debut in 1996. Since then, it has had numerous iterations of the game as well as the popular film franchise that spawned 6 entries in the live action, a reboot film, 3 animated features and TV series. Now Weapons and Barbarian director Zach Cregger is bringing a new vision to the franchise with an all-new film. Could this latest entry do justice to the franchise, or will it mutate into something not worth the title?
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Resident Evil follows Bryan, a medical courier who unwittingly finds himself in an action-packed, non-stop race for survival as one fateful, horrifying night collapses around him in chaos. The film stars Austin Abrams, Zach Cherry, Kali Reis and Paul Walter Hauser.
I never got into these video games but have loved the film franchise even with its flaws. Anytime I saw something with Resident Evil on it I was there for it. Getting to add director Zach Cregger, putting his own spin on the franchise, had me insanely excited to see what he was going to deliver. The choice to step away from the action side and lean into the horror, as it should, was a brilliant choice and this film delivers all the bloody good horror that fans will want.
At first look the film doesn’t look like a Resident Evil thing, but that’s because of what the franchise became on film. This one plays up like the lead played excellently by Austin Abrams, is the person playing the game and trying to navigate this world as opposed to being one of the badass characters that kill everything. He is an average joe who does get into the action, but fumbles to it like any normal person and makes it more relatable and tense at every turn.
The film has just enough set up to get him moving towards Raccoon City and once we hit the icy road it kicks into high gear and rarely lets up until the
violent monstrous finale. It doesn’t spoon feed you at each step and instead just lets things go on the attack leading to some great jump scares and bloody fun. For the majority of the film, it is just Abrams running for his life and trying to figure out what the hell is going on, and he does an outstanding job.
The cinematography is amazing at every turn from the ice-covered roads and forest to the gritty sewer tunnels. It screams the tone of the game with every new location feeling like a level in the game but never feels cheesy and video game like. Instead, these locations feel almost like characters with the monsters and weather coming together for the perfect place for him to journey through. He is easily the most dedicated courier as well with him never letting go of that package keeping it the focus of why he is doing all this right up until they finally reveal what’s in the cooler.
I loved this flick and had a great time with it. Cregger has once again showcased his skill as a filmmaker. HE has crafted easily the best Resident Evil film to date that stands all its own. You don’t have to have played the game or seen any other film in the series to dive in and get in on all the insane gory fun. The monster effects are great and while getting way over the top in the final act it fits the history of this franchise and worked to perfection for me. I love the final shot that doesn’t give you a real ending to anything other than the characters’ journey and honestly no need for a follow-up either, but I will for sure be there if it happens.
Decide for yourself and check out Resident Evil in theaters now from Sony.
