RATING:*** (3 stars)
A few months after helping some survivors escape to Alaska, where there are rumors of a city untouched by the T-virus, Alice (Milla Jovovich) continues her vengeance against the Umbrella Corporation--the ones responsible for the biological weapon that turns people into zombies and has all but destroyed the human race in the process.
Resident Evil: Afterlife picks up pretty much right where Resident Evil: Extinction (2007) left off. The film starts then with a small army of Alices assaulting an Umbrella facility in Tokyo which also leads to her being injected with a kind of T-virus antibody that strips her of the strange psychic powers she had developed in the last film. This really pays off overall because it lets the film set the pace at a more traditional pacing for a zombie/action film instead of the incredibly fast-paced opening sequence that shows off said psychic powers. Eventually Alice finds Claire Redfield (Ali Larter), presumably the only survivor of the survivors she helped, alone in Alaska and having lost her memory. Together they make their way down to Los Angeles where they find some survivors who have been holed up in an abandoned prison--the main location for the story this time around.
The big buzz with RE:Afterlife has been that contrary to many 3D films this summer, this one was shot with the Fusion camera system pioneered by James Cameron in Avatar. And it really pays off. Just like in the sci-fi film, there is much less of random things jumping out of the screen and more of a feeling of immersion in the film--as if you were actually the person holding the camera and actually in the middle of the action. Another way to think of it would be to take the high quality of a Blu-Ray DVD and watch it on the big screen. It also works very well for the high-intensity action sequences peppered throughout the film, which seemed reminiscent of earlier Resident Evil films with a mix of the different but equally intense action sequences in The Matrix and Blade. Overall a solid addition to the series and one that shouldn't disappoint.
However, where this film really falls short is on the storytelling. Plenty of action to keep you glued to the seat and well-shot, but there is surprisingly little in terms of explaining the various homages to the video games that the movie crowd will not understand. This can really be broken down into two areas: characters and zombies. In terms of characters, the most notable is Chris Redfield, brother to Claire. We get a little of his backstory when he is first introduced, but we are given zero information on how the two of them were separated at the beginning of the crisis or why they happen to fight so surprising well together. There are two notable zombies in this film that are given absolutely no explanation at all. The first is one that appears to be able to burrow through the ground and whose entire face splits to reveal a huge mouth. The other is a GIANT zombie with a massive axe. No explanation, even suggestive by the characters, is given for how or why these two zombies exist. Really just boils down to a script that feels a little rushed in order to focus more on the action sequences (which are quite well done).
Most certainly a fun film, but not one to worry too much about seeing in the theater unless you either (A) really want to see it in 3D, or (B) do not have the convenience of watching films on Blu-Ray at home.
Trailer
