Resident Evil

Rating:
Summary: The Version That Shouldn't Have Been
Review: I really don't like writing negative reviews. I like to write about things I enjoy, it makes the process of writing reviews much more enjoyable. But every now and again something so rotten comes along that I've gotta say something. This is the case with Resident Evil. Hollywood seems to be getting into a zombie phase these days. This is scary coz Hollywood knows about as much about making a good zombie flick as I know about nuclear fusion. History has shown us that all great zombie flicks have been made outside the system. There are many reasons I hate this film, but here's the top two: 1) I'm a fan of George Romero, and 2) I'm a fan of the video game series. Resident Evil is a game based on the works of George Romero, yet Romero wasn't allowed to do this film. Just like a previous reviewer, I have also read some of Romero's original script for Resident Evil. If he made it, it would have been superb. Why wasn't it chosen? Probably coz it was intelligent, it actually stuck very close to the story, it would have been about two hours long, and it would have been too gory for an R rating. In other words-for people who like good horror films and not cruddy rock video type films. Instead the studios figured that they'd go with Paul Anderson since he directed another lame movie version of a video game. This film actually has a decent opening sequence, but falls flat on it's face afterwards. Anderson decided to take it upon himself to change the story, and not for the better either. Now everthing is all high tech and computerized. Part of the scariness of the game was it's simplicity. It's down and dirty approach to survival. We have yet another clone of 2001's HAL in the form of a computer security system called the Red Queen(oooooh, scary). Everything's a cliche in this film, no surprises. The soundtrack is dated and annoying. It's full of that lame Matrix slo-mo junk we've seen a million times before, as well as those lame VanDamme-esque slo-mo kicks and punches. The "Licker" is pitiful. I've seen scarier creatures in Fraggle Rock. The cast is all pretty people, not real looking people. All of the scientists in the beginning are hot women! Yeah, right. There's a scene stolen from the movie, "Cube". There's basically no gore. Sorry to sound so shallow, but the sad fact is that gore is required for a zombie film. The only positive I can think of is the zombie dogs which looked good. But that's the only good I could find out of an hour and forty minutes. I feel so sorry for Romero. He's really been getting the green weenie lately. First, he's screwed out of Resident Evil, then some no-talent hack by the name of Zack Snyder remakes Dawn Of The Dead! And this is Romero's genre! He made this genre, now they're treating him like a doormat. Accept no imitations and make it a Romero night!

Rating:
Summary: Flawed but Entertaining, at times-Scary, Horror/Action Flick
Review: When a Dangerous Virus that got Broken in a Giant Corporation and turning the Virus loose and it has Scaped in a Secret Facility, which is called-The Hive. Killing, all the People from not letting the Virus Escaping. Then all the Dead Workers and Dogs from the Umbrella Corporation becomes Zombies and they were Studying-in the Isolated Place of Raccoon City. When a young woman wakes Up without remebering nothing-Alice (Milla Jovovich) is taked by a Group of Soldiers, telling Her, who is really is and aksed to Help the Team to Shut Down, an Super-Intelligent Company and an Dangerous Virus before it's goes out into the Entire World.

Written and Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson (Mortal Kombat, Event Horizon, Soldier) made a Strong, Entertaining, Sci-Fi/Horror/Action-Thriller, Based on a Popular Video Game. Originally George A. Romero was the Writer and Director for this Movie but he left from Creative Differences (Although Anderson does some Tribute to Romero in this Flick). This Movie plays like it's Dawn of the Dead meets Aliens, which surprisingly works well but It's does have Some Weakness and also has some unintentional laughs coming from the Dialogue. Anderson brings a stylish Edge to the Film and Even when the Zombies are Scary. Jovovich looks good in this Flick, also Michelle Rodriguez and Eric Mabius gives Good Performances. The ending isn't great but it's a set-up for a Sequel. Resident Evil wasn't a Huge Hit in Theaters, since there's a sequel in the works. We will see, if that second part of the film-would be better than the first film. Director:Paul W.S. Anderson pulls this off well. Don't miss, this Underrated flick. DVD's has an sharp anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1) transfer and an terrific Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. DVD has an commentary track by Director-Anderson, Producer-Bolt and Actors-Jovovich and Rodriguez and a few nice extras. Rumor that Anderson is working a 2-Disc Collector's Edition on the film-Including his original NC-17 Cut before he recut it for an R and it seems to have a different ending also. Grade:B+.

Rating:
Summary: A real shame to the actual game, why did capcom endorsed it?
Review: It is a shame that this movie has nothing to do with the actual game. The zombies are more laughable than they are scary. Michel Jackson's Thriller video was even better in this department and it is dated back more than 20 years ago. Also the atmosphere in the video is what the RE Movie should have been about but this movie is simply an average horror movie.

I cannot believe that Capcom endorsed these bunch of idiots to create a movie for the best survival horror game ever. Didn't they read the script? Where is the story? Where are the original characters?. Come on even the (realy bad by the way) movie of the house of the dead is closer to its game (also a shame) than this one.

If I could give it negative stars I would give it at least 10.

Don't get me wrong the movie is "fine", the girls are realy gorgeous and the story not too bad but IT SIMPLY IS NOT THE RESIDENT EVIL STORY AT ALL, NOT FROM ANY OF THE GAMES, NOT FROM A COMBINATION OF THEM, NOT FROM ANYWHERE NEAR.

Damn I am upset with this.

Rating:
Summary: Nice try, but not as fun as it should have been.
Review: Resident Evil is sort of an unbalanced mixture of old-school zombie horror and new-school filmmaking and special effects. Everything about the movie has to be a lot faster (except the zombies themselves, somewhat surprisingly), there has to be martial arts complete with even some wire-fu, and it has slimy monsters that are rendered by CGI, not old-fashioned animatronics. As you can see, I was never particularly won over by the film.

Resident Evil opens in an underground laboratory called "The Hive, a top-secret facility owned by a company called the Umbrella Corporation, situated underneath Raccoon City. One of the lab workers sabotages the place, shutting the power down and unleashing a deadly virus that kills its victims and brings them back as zombies.

We then cut to a cutie naked chick (Milla Jovovich) called Alice, who awakens in a bathtub inside some large mansion; not only is she unclothed, she's also suffering from a mild form of amnesia. Before she can collect her bearings (though she has enough time to put on a dress), an elite military task force barges into the building, taking her and an outsider (Eric Mabius) to the underground facility, directly connected to the mansion. Their mission is to shut down the Red Queen, the computer controlling the lab, but they''ll have to get through flesh-eating zombies and maniacal defense systems to accomplish that.

As directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, the same man who crafted the far superior and terrifically frightening Event Horizon, Resident Evil is unfortunately lacking in much of that film's thrills and chills. Anderson shows an inconsistent hand at staging and filming action sequences; the movie's numerous shootouts and fight scenes are only mildly exciting at best, hampered too often by close-up shots of big guns and expended shells. Worse yet, all the violence is sanitized; there's hardly any blood or gore in this picture.

Actually, what's probably most memorable about the picture as a whole is how maddeningly inconsistent it is in terms of pacing and excitement. For every scene that's fun to watch, there's another that's just plot-stopping, whether it's watching the survivors move from one bland-looking corridor to another, or Milla Jovovich jump-kicking zombie dogs in slow motion, or a computer program tiresomely going over the very simple zombie rules.

There are also some glaring technical faults that I'm surprised were't fixed or edited in post-production, such as an unbearably loud industrial score that blocks out most of the expository dialogue, most of it uttered by Colin Salmon, who if you're familiar with his work, already has a pretty quiet voice that'd be inaudible matched up against anyone else in the cast.

The zombies in this movie are your basic "pale and rotting skin" undead, some with the occasional missing bits of face and flesh. Unfortunately, the zombies in this film have goofy-looking mechanical movements, as if though their joints were so stiff, they could barely show much in the way of mobility. Maybe it's the effects of rigor mortis, but this makes zombies far less enjoyable to observe.

Most of the cast ranges from non-descript to just plain awful. Easily the worst of the bunch is Michelle Rodriguez, whose only distinct trait is a perpetual frown; she's given a lot of macho dialogue, but Jenette Goldstein she is not. Surprisingly, it's Jovovich who stands out as the film's kickass heorine. Sure, she's not much of an actress, but she's got the physical stuff down pat, for the most part. And she's cute enough that I don't mind seeing her in a slinky red dress, as well as a couple of scenes that briefly reveal some of her naughty bits.

Because there's hardly any gore, Resident Evil doesn't really work all that well as a zombie flick. And because it's not scary, horror is out of the question, too. But being a zombie fan, I'm prone to forgiving movies of this ilk simply because I'm pretty easy to please. Resident Evil is a passable enough timewaster, worth a rental, but it's certainly nothing I'll ever give much thought to again.

Compared to the recent spate of zombie horror, Resident might very well be the most lackluster of the bunch. It's never as intriguing or intelligent as 28 Days Later or as marvelously thrilling as the Dawn of the Dead remake and it's never as hilariously enjoyable as the misguided House of the Dead, proving that mediocrity really can be less entertaining than plain awfulness.

Rating:
Summary: It may be brain dead but it's still fun!
Review: What to say about RESIDENT EVIL? Well, the film's director, Paul Anderson, is probably one of the most hated directors in Internet land and while I don't hold as harsh of an opinion on the man as many do, I still don't think he's anything great and I definitely don't think he is qualified to direct his next feature, ALIEN VS. PREDATOR. Anyway, that's beside the point. How did Anderson do with the adaptation of one of the most popular video games of all time? Unlike its video game turned big screen adventure predecessor TOMB RAIDER, RESIDENT EVIL isn't a total waste. However, at the same time, for as much action and danger as the story tells us is going on during the film we don't really see all that much happen.
What RESIDENT EVIL does well though is the way it thrusts us into what we are able to see happening. In the first five minutes, several people are dead and we are introduced to the lovely and very naked Milla Jovovich who stars as the films lead character, Alice. Granted, RESIDENT EVIL doesn't break any new ground whatsoever with the things it shows us. The things we see throughout the film are actually borrowed from several other movies ranging everywhere from DAWN OF THE DEAD to ALIENS to that Bridget Fonda LA FEMME NIKITA movie. But that doesn't mean it isn't fun to watch them again does it?
I admittedly don't know that much about the video games of RESIDENT EVIL other than the fact that I know there are zombies in them so I don't know if the film is faithful to the video game or not. What I do know is that as shallow as it is, I had a pretty good time watching RESIDENT EVIL. While the film may be brain dead, it's still fun, popcorn munching entertainment.

C+

Rating:
Summary: A well done movie that delivers thrills and chills.
Review: Hmm. Zombies, monsters and hardened commandos...oh my!
When I heard Sony was doing a Resident Evil movie, I was excited and uneasy at the same time. Usually video game movies are[junk] (with the exceptions of Final Fantasy and Tomb Raider). I'm happy to say I was proven wrong. This movie delivers the thrills and horror that has made the game series so successful. It's not as gory as all those ridiculous war movies and such that are out these days...but it still manages to capture the true atmosphere and sense of helplessness that made gamers the world over fall in love with the series in the first place. The music, direction,acting and dialogue is incredibly good. And the best part is, you don't need in-depth knowledge of the series to understand the movie. As for the whiners complaining how it [copied] elements from other movies...give it up! 95% of movies have at least one thing they've taken from other flicks. It's not the first time a movie's done and it sure won't be the last. Bottom line is, this movie is good. If you love being scared, buy it when it comes out on DVD. I guarantee you you'll be sleeping with the night light on for weeks after.

Rating:
Summary: superbit verson vs. regular dvd
Review: i have both versions, i dont knowhow i ended up with the regular one, but i put them to the test and man can you tell/see a BIG differance.all of the colors are more vivid, the shadow detail is amazing, you can see the texure on th wall in the dark manson.Superbit is winning me over by a landslide, i wish everything was on that version but, i think it is only put out by tri-star pictuers, so that sux!!!just go and buy this movie, and The Fifth Element, the color detail in that is awestrucking!!!

Rating:
Summary: Little intrigue, lots of opportunity missed
Review: Resident Evil undoubtedly works far better on the small screen than it did at the cinema. There is no way any director (no matter how experienced) can bring a video game to life without sacrificing art in the process. Anderson has been here before with Mortal Kombat but injected into both movies enough competency and style to make them respectable in their own right.

With Resident Evil he has given us a decent story with a touch of complication and a fair amount of suspense. My main gripe is the fact that the movie looks far too slick to be as truly disturbing as the grainy and filthy Zombie movies of the '70s. Plus the violence isn't all that graphic but there is still plenty of fun to be had in watching a bunch of office workers turn into the living dead and it's scary how cheaply their lives are considered by the Umbrella Corp. they work for. I'm certainly not going to work in an office for a company like that if that's what they're going to do to me.

The characters are thin but not entirely one-dimensional. You do end up siding with some of them and feel urgency in their futile escape from the underground skyscraper (shouldn't that be 'Groundscraper' then?). Milla Jovovich is cuter here than she was in Fifth Element or Zoolander but Michelle Rodriguez just plain annoys me. All I've ever seen her play is a moody Latino who frowns all the time. It's time for here to try and expand her range a bit and I wish someone else played her character.

Video games will never make for classic movies. They can be mind-numbingly terrible (Super Mario Brothers, Double Dragon) or competent, such as this. Just turn a blind eye to the really, really bad FX at the end when a CGI monster goes on the rampage. My old Commodore 64 was capable of better graphics.

The DVD is in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and a choice of Dolby 5.1 or DTS 5.1 soundtracks which sound great but, as a result, also serve to highlight he meaningless and clichéd Marco Beltrami/Marylin Manson 'score'.

Rating:
Summary: A scary and fun time.
Review: I was a bit worried this movie would be nothing but another bland horror attempt, but thankfully Resident Evil is far more. It has the visual effects, the soundtrack, and the acting to really shine. The story is complex enough to keep you guessing, but simple enough to let the action flow. Resident Evil is the truly first good horror movie in quite some time.

The visual effects of RE are quite unique. A beautiful mix of all CG scenes with live action really puts that video game fill into it. The often overlooked fact is that as a RE gamer, you usually have at least in part a lot of info on the world around you. You know things you couldn't otherwise know. For example, how things work, maps, where things are, etc. This movie does a great job of keeping the viewer informed in this manner, without going so far as to ruin the surprises. As for the undead, this movie is unmatched. The way they move, moan, and even die is exactly what any RE fan will expect. It's really good to see the attention to detail.

The soundtrack is every bit as cool. In the theater it sounded incredible, and it certainly doesn't disappoint at home. For all of those out there watching on some crud two speakers system... you'll miss out. The movie just doesn't have the same punch without the deep bass and creepy ambient surround sounds around you. For all of those with the system to handle it, you'll have a new showcase title for your DVD collection.

As for the acting, the downfall of so many movies, it's simply outstanding. You really do feel as if you're watching an elite squad of jaded specialists. It's somewhat like Starship Troopers, in a different setting. I really felt convinced of the performances. When they're hurt, they act hurt. When they're scared, they're scared. There's very little room for uncertainty here. If they actors aren't upset about being injured, or scared of the death that surrounds them, then it's quite hard for the audience to be concerned either.

Resident Evil manages to not only get the job done, but to excel. It should pass all expectations you may have for it, and surprise you a few times as well. It certainly ranks among my favorites as an action / horror flick. I honestly believe it would even if it didn't have the game series behind it.

- Rirath_com

Rating:
Summary: fun---but i'll take the game any day.....
Review: I'm a huge Resident Evil fan, and have trouble disliking anything related to the series (I even thought that RE survivor for PC was pretty good). This movie on the other hand was a let down for me. Gone is the creepy atmosphere, the feeling of suspence, and the over all fright factor the game created for so many. This has instead been replaced with a slick sci-fi-action movie with some sub-par acting and some reasonable special effects. The movie follows the game's story VERY loosly (there are still zombies, there are still guns, there are still comando-people, there is a high-tech lab, and they threw in the Licker monster from RE2....thats about it), which is one of the main reasons I was disapointed with this film. Many of the fans know and love the twisting, mysterious story of the orrigional game, and it has been replaced with a movie that is remanesent of Starship Troopers (not that this is particularly bad, but it is a huge change from the orrigional story). All-in-all, this was not a bad movie by any means, and is a fun action flick that you should at least rent, however, I believe RE fans will be some what disapointed. If you have no idea what Resident Evil is, or have never played any of the award winning games, you will probably enjoy the movie a lot more.