| Mar. 18th, 2002 @ 11:19 pm Movie Review: Resident Evil |
|---|
Current Mood:  aggravated
All right, I admit it, I really liked the original Resident Evil game. It was incredibly tense, it had certain elements that just grabbed you by the throat like a hungry zombie and never, ever let go. It was a pivotal game design.
The movie is not a pivotal movie design. In fact, aside from some really nice twists, its pretty bog-standard in some ways for a jump-fest horror movie. On the other hand, the twists and visuals really make this movie. The video game truly informed the director's take on things here; certain scenes and shots remind me very, very strongly of the game itself.
Be aware, you're not going to this movie to get deep characterization and meaningful plotting. You're going to get a lot of kick-ass action, gory flesh-eating zombies, and a couple of hot protagonist chicks that you really would love to stare at longer. I could willingly dedicate several hours a day to enjoying Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez's effect on my retinas and other sensory apparati.
Despite the enormous number of negative reviews, I really liked this movie. I felt manipulated by camera angle and music into a whole lot of tension the whole way, but since the original video game did that, it was perfectly apropos. It was obvious the screenwriter and director were one in the same on this one; there's a unity of vision and style you don't typically get otherwise. There's some obvious love for the original game in here, so things are treated with respect, even if its an amused respect.
I give it a B+.
(More terrifying to me was the preview runs before the movie itself. Has anyone seriously looked at Jason X? Not only is it Yet Another Jason Movie, not only is it a SF far-future flick, not only do they thaw Jason out, die en masse, and lock him in a big computer-box, not only does Jason come out again with a bunch of cyborg implant parts ... but, goddamnit, Lisa Ryder and Lexa Doig (interestingly swapping roles from Andromeda; this time Lisa's the android) are both in the fucker ... and there's no way I'll ever miss a Lisa Ryder movie, because she's my dream-woman. OK, Becca Valentine is my dream woman, so shoot me.
You may wonder how I know so much of the plot already. That was in the trailer. I weep blood, really I do. The more so because I have to see this movie. I have to. Goddamnit, I have to. [broken sobs]) |
