Movie Info
Movie Name: Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Studio: Constantin Films
Genre(s): Horror/Action/Adventure
Release Date(s): September 10, 2004
MPAA Rating: R
He just wants to give you a kiss!
Attempts to contain the T-Virus have failed, and Raccoon City is facing a plague that could threaten the world if not contained. As officers face invasion, S.T.A.R.S. (Special Tactics and Rescue Squad) are trying to contain the outbreak with minimal damage to the Umbrella Corporation’s reputation. Dr. Ashford (Jared Harris) finds his daughter Angela (Sophie Vavasseur) trapped behind the quarantine lines and is refusing to help Umbrella contain the situation until she is retrieved. As police officer Jill Valentine (Sienna Guillory) and civilian Lloyd Jefferson Wade (Mike Epps) fight for survival inside the city, Alice (Milla Jovovich) wakes up to find she has superhuman powers…and facing a monstrous zombie being called Nemesis prowls the streets.
How much is that doggie in the window?
Directed by Alexander Witt, Resident Evil: Apocalypse is a zombie horror action film. The movie is a follow-up to the 2002 hit Resident Evil. The adaptation of the hit video game series continues with many allusions to the video games, and the film was met with mostly negative reviews but big box office returns.
I am not a huge fan of the Resident Evil series mostly because I feel that they are overall a letdown (though sometimes fun). Sitting in a dark dorm room playing Resident Evil 2 was a kind of terrifying…especially when a lasher would jump through the police one-way mirror…a story loaded with jumps and scares you think would at least lead to jumps and scares on the big screen, but Resident Evil: Apocalypse proves that it doesn’t.
I kick zombie ass!
The story of Resident Evil continues to be completely garbled. What is meant to build suspense simply builds time and drags out an already paper-thin premise. The story simply should be that the T-Virus got out to the streets of Raccoon City, but instead multiple characters and backstories are developed…poorly. I like that they attempted to make a zombie action film, but obviously the zombie action format isn’t quite working in this format.
It is too bad that she often is placed in poor movies, because Milla Jovovich seems genuinely interesting. Other than The Fifth Element and Dazed and Confused, the films that she’s been in have generally been destroyed by critics. I do admire her ability to keep relevant which is difficult especially for female stars…and action female stars face an even bigger challenge. The movie is pretty much Milla jumping around in this film that provides the fun in scenes, but unfortunately, with no script, it feels rather pointless.
He has nice teeth…I wonder what toothpaste Nemesis uses
Visually, I think the movie did look a little better than the previous entry. Taking the action out of the generic underground structure of the Hive at least gave the movie a different look. The Nemesis monster is not as intimidating its video game counterpart, but it does get the bulkiness of the video game right…so that is a plus.
Resident Evil: Apocalypse is bad but entertaining…it is about in line nearly with the first film. I don’t know if that is a bad thing that it maintained (and didn’t lose any of its lack of quality) or it is a good thing that it managed to keep a steady feel. It is one of those films that just does not know when to end. Regardless, Resident Evil: Apocalypse was followed by the slightly better Resident Evil: Extinction in 2007.
Related Links:
Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
