It’s very rare that I see a movie in the theater, given my busy schedule and how expensive tickets have gotten. So when the film department dropped a free advance screening in my lap, I had to seize the opportunity.
Two weeks ago, my boyfriend and I attended an early screening of Zach Cregger’s latest horror film Resident Evil, inspired by the long-running survival video game series of the same name. This movie follows Bryan, a medical courier who is tasked with bringing a mysterious, high-level package to Raccoon City, encountering many heavily mutated individuals along the way.
I won’t beat around the bush: This is the grossest movie I have ever seen. I can enjoy some horror movies, and while I get scared and don’t mind suspense, this movie has its fair share of gore. I commend its practical effects for the most part (there isn’t much CGI unless necessary), but I had to cover my eyes for most of the film.
On the flip side, I enjoyed this from a filmmaking perspective. While I’m not familiar with Cregger’s other works (Barbarian and Weapons), this is a beautiful film with really clever camera work and some excellent lighting choices (particularly in the first few minutes as shown in the trailer). It’s also well-paced at a surprisingly brisk 90 minutes.
The film structure feels very video game-y, which I really appreciated as someone who’s not very familiar with the games. The weapons get upgraded, the audience pays attention to the bullet count, Bryan has to get past locks, and he moves around locations to confront a big scary creature. It’s a simple premise, but it’s very fun to watch and keeps you invested in Bryan’s safety.
I also thought this movie was hilarious. The plot — “guy has the worst day ever, and it just keeps getting worse” — works extremely well when Bryan is a doofus and physically and mentally unequipped for the challenges he faces. The dialogue is quippy without being annoying, and there are some great physical gags (my favorite is a failed jump over an electric fence).
Austin Abrams (who I know best from Netflix’s Christmas darling Dash and Lily) plays Bryan with a strong leading-man quality you wouldn’t expect from a character like this. He’s funny, relatable, maybe a little bit of a bad person too, and it’s incredibly entertaining to watch him evolve over the course of the film and survive these crazy events.
My only critique of Resident Evil is the ending. Not to spoil, but it ends with a little more nihilism than I was hoping for, and the last 30 minutes, while entertaining, have significantly weaker visuals and dialogue than the rest of the film. I may come around to it on the second viewing, but I was sad it didn’t wrap up nice and happy.
All in all, I enjoyed my first advanced screening experience, and I’ll be excited to rewatch Resident Evil to see if it strikes me as more impressive the second time.
Happy this one has been getting its roses!
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