Before I talk about the film I watched this week I would just like to state something. Film critics have always been a small group of people who through landing writing jobs have been awarded the opinion that their view is more important than the view of anyone else. Although I understand why there was once a need for film critics I believe that in the modern age their role in society is quickly beginning to become obsolete as the masses begin to decide what they like on their own without being told. Proof of this I feel comes with the Resident Evil movie franchise. The first three movies in this season have served to demonstrate the difference between critic opinion and public opinion. Every movie in the Resi series has been universally panned by critics and yet this is a stark contrast to their phenomenal box office success. I have always been a fan of these films and it's not only because I feel they are a brilliant example of action horror (where the protagonist can fight back and are not just helpless victims) but because Resident Evil is the perfect example of people power and public opinion winning against the ever decreasing power of a small number of critics.
Anyway onto the film, Resident Evil: After Life is the fourth installment of the action horror video game adaptation. Video game adaptation are normally horribly done cash ins to try and make money from already successful franchises however the Resi films have always been better than the standard fare so I had high hopes for this film.
For the uninitiated the back story to Resident Evil is basically that a man made virus known as the T-virus created by a multi nation corporation known as the Umbrella corporation spark a world wide Zombie apocalypse. The story focuses on the main character codename project ALICE (Mila Jovovich) as she and other survivors battle Zombies and the Umbrella corporation in equal parts in hopes of finding a safe place free of the infection. The film begins in an umbrella facility and feature one of the best action shooting sequences since the lobby scene in the matrix. From then on in the film is composed of a number immaculate zombie bashing action sequences all wrapped together in a basic tale of survival and hope, with an injoke thrown in for any fans of the Prison Break TV show.
The film is in 3D and it should definitely be viewed that way. This film displays the best 3D effects I have ever seen (and yes I have seen Avatar). The 3D at no point feels like an add on but is used perfectly to make the audience feel that the action is bursting out of the screen. You feel completely immersed in the action as debris, bullets, smoke and shrapnel explode from the screen.
My overall opinion of the film is that it did not disappoint, It felt like a beautifully done matrix homage combined with a zombie movie all realised in the best 3D experience to date. The story is a basic one and if you want something complex this won't deliver on that front but this more than made up for by the concept of 3D bullet time. The critics have panned it once again but that hasn't stopped it opening number one in the US box office.
This film is an absolute brilliant 3D action film and an event that every one should experience once if not twice or even three times.
9/10
