Movie Review: Resident Evil (2002)

Resident Evil (2002) written and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson

A secret underground laboratory called "The Hive" goes into lockdown because a virus is released. The workers and scientists panic but don't escape. Up on the surface, a woman (Milla Jovovich) and a man (James Purefoy) wake up in a mansion with no memory of who they are. Some commandos break into the mansion, kidnap the couple, and take them into a secret basement that has a subway train to The Hive. The commandos are going in to find out what happened; the couple were a pair of operatives who were supposed to keep the mansion secure but they were dosed with nerve gas which caused temporary amnesia. They still don't have their memories back. The group sneaks into the facility and shuts down the artificial intelligence running everything, only to release all the workers and the lab experiments (mostly dogs) who have mutated into zombie-like horrors. A lot of action and mayhem follows (or continues).

The movie is based on the video game series. The plot moves along at a brisk pace with some more or less obvious holes. Information is given on a need-to-know basis with the A.I. providing most of the exposition. A lot of jump scares are sprinkled throughout the film. The boss zombie at the end looks very CGI and thereby less menacing. Also, it's highly flammable for some reason? Even with its flaws, the movie is entertaining as a summer popcorn horror flick. The ending is a bit bleak but fits with overall tone and naturally sets up a sequel.

Mildly recommended.