Resident Evil

Super

Everyone I talked to who had played the Resident Evil video game loved the the first movie. They also happened to like the sequel featuring the nearly indestructible Nemesis. I have yet to garner their reaction to this third and supposedly final installment in a series that, despite some detractors, has become the most popular video game-to-movie franchise of all.

Since I’m not a “gamer” I feel I’ve had a slight advantage, being able to judge these movies as just movies without comparing them to the many characters, plotlines, etc. of the games themselves. I know some would say this is more a disadvantage, but it’s helped me to be more objective.

Resident Evil: Extinction heralds the anticipated return of Milla Jovovich as the genetically enhanced Alice, a product of the megalomaniacal Umbrella corporation. Her fighting prowess as you may expect, is still intact with a one minor addition many will find interesting. She maintains Alice’s coolness, dispensing zombies in a world now completely ravaged by the T-Virus.

Umbrella couldn’t stop the outbreak. And with blood thirsty infecteds roaming around, dried up lakes and rivers, receding oceans and practically no plant life, they did the only logical thing. Escape underground to plot how they can
turn these unfortunate events to their benefit.

We’re cleverly teased in the beginning with what seems to be a flashback from the original movie that turns out to be quite a shocker ;just before we see Alice in grungy desert duds streaking down the highway toward Salt Lake City on a motorcycle. Gas is scarce and zombies are plentiful and you may squirm a bit at how she takes out one savage.

Eventually she runs into some familiar faces to include some new ones whom we don’t get to know very well. Rather disappointing since one of the cherries is Ashanti who plays Betty. The rest of the band consists of Chase on sharp shooting, Mikey on HamRadio, Otto on auto mechanics, cutie pie K-Mart ( I would’ve preferred Target since I work there) and lady impresario Claire Redfield (Ali Larter). Apocalypse alums Carlos and LJ (Oded Fehr and Mike Epps) round out the group that’s about as rag tag as the vehicles their driving cross country.

While Evil may give gamers a sense of being a little disjointed, it ultimately settles on Alice’s shoulder’s as she tries thwarting the efforts of those who created her. Umbrella, naturally, doesn’t take this lying down with another surprise that directly effects our heroine. She gets help from none other than the White Queen (my own name for her since she’s dressed in white), the equally intelligent, more human like holographic sister of the Red Queen from Evil one. And despite Alice’s distaste toward her homicidal sibling, she does manage to give Alice some assistance, speaking in that same exquisite British accent.

Paul Anderson’s solid writing coupled with two other competent directors, Alex Witt (Apocalypse) and former music video director Russell Mulcahy (Extinction) has thankfully kept this franchise relatively consistent with sequels better or just as good as the original. Something Rush Hour 3 failed to do. He also leaves an appropriate opening for a possible fourth chapter that will probably have fans like myself wanting more.

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