Resident Evil: Afterlife
But isn't regular life in 3D?
Resident Evil is officially a movie
franchise. After scores of video games, shirts, toys, and even an
animated movie, Resident Evil has moved past the originally planned
trilogy and gone on to number four. Off the top of my head, I can't
recall a fourth movie of a franchise being particularly good. Not
Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Halloween, or Friday The 13th.
Would this movie fair any better? I mean, it has zombies in it and
zombies make everything better. Right?
Resident Evil: Afterlife once again
stars Milla Jovovich (Fifth Element, Zoolander) as Alice, the
superhero killing machine infected with the Umbrella Corporation's
T-virus. Alice and her clones created from the previous movie
Extinction infiltrate the underground base of Umbrella in Tokyo.
Alice reaches Umbrella leader Albert Wesker on his helicopter, where
Wesker injects her with a cure to the T-Virus, stripping her of her
powers. The helicopter crashes, seemingly killing Wesker while Alice
survives. Six months later, she heads to the supposed haven of
Arcadia in Alaska. When she arrives, she is attacked by a
mind-controlled Claire Redfield (Ali Larter, Legally Blonde, Final
Destination). Alice removes the device controlling Claire and they
both travel to Los Angeles where they see a group of survivors on the
roof of a prison surrounded by zombies. They join the group of
survivors and learn that Claire's brother, Chris (Wentworth Miller,
Prison Break, Underworld) is actually being held captive in the
basement. They learn that Arcadia is not a fixed location, but a
cargo tanker floating around the West Coast. The zombies have evolved
and are able to tunnel into the prison. There is also a giant super
strong zombie carrying a huge ax pounding at the prison's gates. The
group makes a break for the port in an effort to make it out to the
Arcadia. One of the survivors steals Alice's plane, so they have to
go by foot. Most of the survivors are killed while Alice and Claire
fight off the ax-wielding monster. They make it out to Arcadia to
find it completely abandoned, despite the computer saying there are
over a thousand people on board. Is everything as it seems and did
Wesker really die in that helicopter crash?
These are my boom sticks
In terms of being a horror movie,
Resident Evil: Afterlife may be the least horrory movie. That's not
to say there aren't some good zombie scenes, some scares, and the
general apocalyptic desperation that occurs in plenty of horror
movies. I just feel like the focused more on sleek action scenes and
check-this-out 3D shots. While watching this on a regular screen,
every time there was a scene that was clearly shot for 3D purposes, I
would shout “3D!” It's a visually stunning movie shot in High
Definition with great production and editing with loads of superhero
action. That's all great, it's just not heavy on the horror, which is
where the video games and original movie started.
One problem I had with the movie was
with the zombies themselves. They're faster and their faces open up
like some sort of monstrous starfish. There's also the random giant
monster with his giant ax. None of this is explained. Why are these
zombies different and where did this big fuck come from? And where
did he find the huge ax? Home Depot? It's like watching Silent Hill and never playing the video game. I wouldn't have known who Pyramid Head was if I hadn't looked him up. Milla Jovovich is great once
again as Alice and Ali Larter does well reprising her role of Claire.
Boris Kodjoe (Love & Basketball, Surrogates), who plays survivor
Luther West, also does a fine job, especially knowing that he did his
own stunts. Paul W.S. Anderson reprises his role as director, using
his sharp eye for beautiful slow-motion action shots, but not much
for atmospheric horror.
What an ax hole
Resident Evil: Afterlife is a fun
action movie, but a disappointing horror movie. The acting is good
and the action is fun. It is beautiful to look at and the soundtrack
adds something extra to the scenes. If you have not played the video
games, like myself, you'll miss references and may be a bit lost when
it comes to the zombies changing. The movie is certainly
entertaining, but its unfortunate to see it move away from horror so
much. I'd recommend seeing the previous movies before watching this
one as you will be lost and confused. Though not as good as previous
installments, it's still worth watching if you're looking for a fun
movie. After all, there's a new one coming out later this year.
6.5/10
No comments:
Post a Comment