We’re not sure that there’s a single franchise out there that’s cheaper and more joyless than “Resident Evil.” The video-game adaptation is now a decade, and four entries, old, and has continued to add literally nothing to the zombie genre, the action movie genre and the cinematic artform in general. But with the last film, “Resident Evil: Apocalypse,” proving by far the biggest entry in the series, taking nearly $300 million worldwide, there’s no end in sight, and original helmer Paul W.S. Anderson, who also directed the fourth entry, is returning to the series for “Resident Evil: Retribution,” on which shooting is imminent, ahead of a release a year from now.
The film is bringing back several series veterans, with top-liner Milla Jovovich leading Sienna Guillory and Boris Kodjoe, who play…we don’t know, zombie fighters or something. But the cast is going further back than that: Colin Salmon, who was cut into tiny cubes by a laser in the only vaguely memorable scene in the first film, tweeted that he’d be coming back, and now according to Bloody Disgusting, Michelle Rodriguez is returning too.
We confess that we’d forgotten that Rodriguez was in the original, but Wikipedia tells us that she played a commando called Rain Ocampo, who, like Salmon, didn’t make it to the credits, being zombified and killed by heroine Alice. This means one of a number of things in the new installment: either 1) the film is at least in part a prequel to previous entries, 2) the characters are somehow resurrected, perhaps through cloning, which has figured in previous installments, 3) Anderson has forgotten that he cast Rodriguez and Salmon in the original, and has given them new roles, or 4) the realization has been reached that no one gives a flying fuck about the continuity of the “Resident Evil” movie franchise.
So, anyway, a paycheck for Rodriguez and a bone thrown to whoever it is out there who really cares about this series. The globe-trotting film shoots any day now in Toronto, Japan and Russia, again in 3D, and has been set by Screen Gems for a release on September 14, 2012. Our hunch is that it may, at some point, involve some kind of dated “The Matrix“-aping action sequence full of bad CGI. Yeah, some people say we’re psychic. No big deal.
Ha Wow.
This Is Such A Dumbass Article.
Whoever Wrote This Trash Should Be Fired.
It Isn\’t Worthy If It\’s Not Even Correctly Written.
I recognize that these aren\’t very good movie but I love them non the less and Milla looks awesome doing it. I can\’t pass by correcting the several glaring mistakes in this article. The fourth film was subtitled Afterlife, not Apocalypse. Apocalypse was the second film. Paul Anderson has written and produced all of them but only directed the first, fourth, and fifth. Milla will not be leading Sienna Guillory in this flick. Sienna\’s Jill is the primary Antagonist for this film. Rain as a zombie was killed by Matt not Alice in the first film. All the returning actors who\’s characters died in previous films with be in flashback but I wouldn\’t be to surprised if they also got cloned or something. Just saying none of your four suggestions are what they are doing. Lastly, the CGI isn\’t that bad.
I have to agree with Red on this one. Sarcasm is fine but when the article is full of errors or completely false statements, then it\’s not a worthy article, even an opinionated one. RE has brought zombie movies to the mainstream, the biggest zombie movies to date. Someone can dislike them all they want but facts are facts and numbers don\’t lie.
Resident Evil provides female ass-kicking adrenaline. What more could anyone ask for in a B action movie?! Milla Jovovich should be a bigger star really.
Red, the main reason I read the articles on this site is precisely because of their biting sarcasm and highly opinionated coverage, and because they appeal to a slightly more sophisticated cinema-goer than the \”immense fan base\” that will be lining up to see this crap. If you don\’t like it don\’t read it, there are literally hundreds of other sites where you can read unbiased news. The writers here are obviously far more interested in filmmakers that are creating films with artistry, intelligence, original ideas, etc…. a far cry from the Paul W.S. Andersons of this world. I actually like this series of movies, I think they\’re fun, but don\’t kid myself that they\’re anything more than that… I thought the article was appropriately funny.
You should lose your arrogant and negative tone in your article. In all honesty it makes you seem unprofessional. Also the latest film was called Resident Evil: Afterlife not \”Resident Evil: Apocalypse\”. Despite what you have so poorly stated in your article these movies have an immense fan base. People love seeing these movies. That should be evident given the amount of money they make at the box office. I know its so much easier living in denial and trying to convince yourself that nobody watches these movies and they\’re being made for no reason but thats not the case. The latest film makes 300 million dollars worldwide and you think nobody cares about this franchise? Anybody else see the failed logic in that? Its time to wake up. This franchise is more popular than you would like to admit.
A round of lulz on the house! This is the only way you can report on the RE movies and keep your dignity.