For being a film franchise based on a video game series, the Resident Evil films haven’t really been all that bad; cheesy and over-the-top, but entertaining.
The first Resident Evil recounted the birth of the zombie T-virus in a secret Umbrella facility. In Resident Evil Apocalypse, the end of times begins as the outbreak begins to spread throughout Raccoon City. Resident Evil Extinction shows us that the world has indeed been overrun with zombies and society has been exterminated. Resident Evil Afterlife introduced the rebellion against Umbrella and showed humanity might be revived.
See how each film has been a progression of an overall story? And how each title actually gave indication of that film’s theme?
Forget all of that with Resident Evil Retribution, in which the plot takes a step backward and retribution has absolutely nothing to do with it.
The first Resident Evil recounted the birth of the zombie T-virus in a secret Umbrella facility. In Resident Evil Apocalypse, the end of times begins as the outbreak begins to spread throughout Raccoon City. Resident Evil Extinction shows us that the world has indeed been overrun with zombies and society has been exterminated. Resident Evil Afterlife introduced the rebellion against Umbrella and showed humanity might be revived.
See how each film has been a progression of an overall story? And how each title actually gave indication of that film’s theme?
Forget all of that with Resident Evil Retribution, in which the plot takes a step backward and retribution has absolutely nothing to do with it.
The previous film, RE Afterlife, left off with Alice and the rest of her group of survivors about to be attacked by Umbrella forces. RE Retribution shows us a small part of that battle, but only until Alice is knocked out. She wakes up in a secret Umbrella facility and the rest of the film follows her attempts to escape with the help of a strike team.
What happened to the rest of the survivors is never revealed. Why Wesker, previously a primary antagonist from Umbrella, is suddenly on the side of the rebellion is never explained.
Furthermore, the story doesn’t advance the series forward in any way. In the beginning Alice is captured and the film ends after she escapes (and I know that’s not a spoiler, of course she’s going to escape!), so we’re right back to where we started. Literally nothing happens in terms of plot. From start to finish, every character that matters is in the exact same situation as when they began.
For me personally, the best parts of the RE franchise are the more classic horror moments as the characters struggle through the real world, now desolated by the zombie infestation. When the series goes more action/sci-fi, they tend to lose my attention. RE Retribution has one scene of real world horror. The rest of the film doesn’t try to scare you or put characters in situations that could seem real (if zombies could actually exist), but remains fully in futuristic, explosion-mode.
Furthermore, the story doesn’t advance the series forward in any way. In the beginning Alice is captured and the film ends after she escapes (and I know that’s not a spoiler, of course she’s going to escape!), so we’re right back to where we started. Literally nothing happens in terms of plot. From start to finish, every character that matters is in the exact same situation as when they began.
For me personally, the best parts of the RE franchise are the more classic horror moments as the characters struggle through the real world, now desolated by the zombie infestation. When the series goes more action/sci-fi, they tend to lose my attention. RE Retribution has one scene of real world horror. The rest of the film doesn’t try to scare you or put characters in situations that could seem real (if zombies could actually exist), but remains fully in futuristic, explosion-mode.
The cast, led by Milla Jovovich (Stone), do about as well as can be expected; shining more during martial-arts scenes than in the minimal amounts of dramatic dialogue. And visually RE Retribution is very stylistic, taking advantage of some interesting opportunities to pay homage to its video game origins.
But fans of the source material and those who only know the movies seem to agree that RE Retribution is definitely the worst of the series. The battles can hold their own with those in the previous films, but it lacks a coherent narrative which makes the whole venture seem rather pointless.
RE Retribution is kind of like a zombie, it stumbles around and causes some chaos, but doesn’t have the brains or intelligence to guide it toward any worthwhile goal. If the sixth film doesn't redeem the series (RE Redemption???), it may be time to shoot this franchise in the head.
The Final Word: Wait to rent it.
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