Sunday 6 June 2021

Netflix And Chill: Resident Evil: Vendetta (2017)

Every time we view any movie can be a different experience. If you're in a bad mood then a great film can really lift your spirits, or a terrible movie can make you feel even worse. If you've recently been revisiting films in a series before a new sequel then that new release can either be great or awful, depending on how it compares to the rest of the films that came before it. People being twats in a cinema can make any film unbearable. Memories you cannot detach from films (some stuff you first saw as a child, a favourite film you would watch with an ex-partner, etc) become part of the fabric of your own big cinematic patchwork quilt. And I am just starting this review with that statement because, well, I've been able to dive back into the world of gaming lately, and that means I've been able to get back into the world of Resident Evil: a world of zombies, shady business practices by Umbrella, and heroes trying to stop the world being consumed by a number of deadly viruses and creations. Which brought me to this, the latest CG-animated movie making use of the world of Resident Evil. 

The main villain here is Glenn Arias, a man who wants revenge on the world because of a deadly drone strike that killed pretty much everyone he loved on his wedding day. That kind of thing would, admittedly, put you in quite a bad mood. His method of revenge is, yep, zombiefying virus, which means it ends up being up to  Chris Redfield and Rebecca Chambers to stop his plan, and they need the help of Leon Kennedy. Whether or not he'll agree to help them is another matter.

Directed by Takanori Tsujimoto, and written by Makoto Fukami (with Joe McClean adapting it into English), Resident Evil: Vendetta is a big step up from the two previous CG movies. But, and that's why I started with everything mentioned in my opening paragraph, that might be partially down to the fact that I have been able to get back into this world, and to start exploring it even more than I ever did before (I like gaming, I'm not that good at it though). Or maybe this is more enjoyable because, despite the evolution of the series, the is mostly content to throw the main characters in situations that have them dealing with hordes of familiar zombies, including zombie dogs and one or two bigger "tyrant" villains.

The talented voice cast all fit their roles well enough, with Kevin Dorman and Matthew Mercer suitably tough and focused as, respectively, Redfield and Kennedy, and John DeMita has fun as the main baddie. Erin Cahill is equally good in the role of Chambers, the scientist who might be able to save everyone with a potential vaccine.

I'm not going to pretend this is great though, in terms of the dialogue and plotting. It still feels like a videogame storyline, which isn't meant as a major insult. It fits well in the RE universe, and the storylines in the game series have always been more enjoyable and interesting than most, as far as I'm concerned. What is great, however, is the action. When the zombies attack then you get some great thrills and gore, and the third act throws in better undead-killing carnage than you see in most zombie movies, with a sequence featuring an overwhelmed Redfield being an absolute highlight of the sub-genre.

Far from essential, which you could say about any of the films in this series (even - especially? - the ones starring Milla Jovovich), Resident Evil: Vendetta is actually a fun mix of action and bloodshed, and fans of the game series should be very happy with it. 

7/10

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