Resident Evil

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Evil</div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="501" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 146 WIDTH="495"><div> <IMG SRC="12bc618c0.jpg" border=0 width="97" height="140" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005JL3A/reelmoviecriticc"> Resident Evil on DVD</A>  </div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="579" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="575"><div> <B>Resident Evil </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Wingdings 2" ><B>êê</B></FONT><B>1/2 R</B></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="575"><div> Reviewed By: David Spielman</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="549" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 23 WIDTH="545"><div> Dinner time</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="580" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Alice/Janus Prospero/Marsha: Milla Jovovich</div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="244"><div> Director: Paul Anderson</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Rain Ocampo: Michelle Rodriguez</div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="244"><div> Matt: Eric Mabius</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="329"><div> Kaplan: Martin Crewes</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="244"><div> Spence: James Purefoy</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <B>30 Second Bottom Line</B>: In the depths of the corrupt Umbrella Corporation, a coil of genetically altered DNA breaks and leaks into the vents of the underground headquarters. As a result, all of the workers mutate into zombies and it is up to a team of high tech investigators to discover what really happened. </div> <bR> <div> <B>Story Line:</B> In the Umbrella Corporation, an underground office building that specializes in high tech weapons and genetic cloning, a coil of genetically altered DNA breaks open and travels through the vents of the building. The factory automatically seals all of its doors, trapping the workers inside the building to be infected by the genetically altered DNA. It turns out the DNA changes people into walking zombies. A team of seven investigators must travel the Umbrella Corporation and find out what happened before it is too late. </div> <bR> <div> Leading the team of investigators is an amnesiac woman named Alice (Milla Jovovich). Alice is not sure how she got to where she is. She was   "gassed" by the Umbrella Corporation and it could take weeks for her to regain her memory. Another member of the high tech team is Rain (Michelle Rodriguez) who seems to be the most violent of the bunch. Both actresses do a surprisingly good job of taking their roles seriously. </div> <bR> <div> Once deep into the underground Umbrella Corporation, the investigators discover that the factory's code-name is `'The Hive." Another plot convenience is that the team has only one hour to find out what happened in the hive and what caused it before the doors are sealed forever; the first time the doors sealed…well, that was fake. Working against the clock, the team, which also includes Matt, Spence, and Kaplan, has quite a choice to make about who or what to trust. There's the laser image of a girl named the `'Red Queen," a representative for the Umbrella corporation, or do they use their instincts to survive the only way they know how; blow stuff up and destroy it by using as much ammunition as possible.</div> <bR> <div> Soon enough the team realizes that they are not involved in a mission to find out what happened anymore, but that they are on a survival mission to escape the wrath of hundreds of zombies whose only purpose is to eat. Yet there are more than just human zombies, the team also has to escape from mutant dogs that have been infected as well as a mutant monster with a nine foot tongue that mutates increasingly the more it feeds. This is the set up for the film, the next hour consists of zombies being shot and decapitated, people being bitten, and corny dialogue that just never seems to end in these kinds of films; `'Go! Go!'' seems to be a great example of this type of dialogue. </div> <bR> <div> <B>Tell Me More About It</B>: Though the premise to <I><B>Resident Evil</B></I> is extremely absurd and has been used many times in the past (see much better films <I><B>Aliens</B></I> and <I><B>Dawn of the Dead</B></I>), there are two things that are good about the film. First, some of the special effects are very good. The second reason, which is more valid than the first, is the number of scary moments this film provides. In all seriousness, this is not a film to be seen by those who cringe or get scared easily. A zombie or creature pops out of a dark corner or corridor at least once every few minutes after the plot is laid out. </div> <bR> <div> Yet even though there are more frights than the usual scary movie here, this film still does not manage to rise above most video game based films such as <I><B>Super Mario Brothers</B></I> or <I><B>Tomb Raider.</B></I> There is little character development and the dialogue, well, that speaks for itself. Since this is a film that works against the clock, a `'command'' is the only form of communication that individuals can give to each other. Don't people ever want to talk anymore?</div> <bR> <div> This film also suffers from its lack of originality. Every action sequence in this movie has been done numerous times in the past. In particular, there is one special effect used in an action sequence, which is really starting to get on my nerves. This is the slow motion bullet, which first became a trend in the groundbreaking film <I>Blade</I>. That's right, <I>Blade</I> came out a year before <I>The Matrix,</I> and is constantly overlooked when people think of the first time mainstream audiences started to recognize this special effect. </div> <bR> <div> The director, Paul Anderson, is very familiar with the video game genre of film. He should not be confused with the extremely talented Paul Thomas Anderson (director of <I>Boogie Nights)</I> and has previously directed the video game movie <I>Mortal Kombat,</I> which was actually enjoyable to a point. He also wrote the script for <I><B>Resident Evil</B></I>, but that is not to his credit. It is obvious that Anderson is trying to start a franchise with this film (see the ending) and if enough audiences go to see this, I'm sure he will. </div> <bR> <div> Overall, I cannot recommend this film. The script is weak and the action is recycled. What I can do, on the other hand, is suggest this film as a great movie to see if you want to be scared. If you are the type of person who can give up hope of a decent plot and script in exchange for a lot of genuine scary moments and a little bit of fun, this film is for you. Movies that actually frighten or startle audiences have decreased in number. I guess sometimes, it just takes a <I>stupid </I>movie to actually scare the audience.</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="591" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Rating R (strong violence and gore; sex; some nudity; language)</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="587"><div> David Spielman © 2002</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="587"><div> <A HREF="mailto:djdave14@aol.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:djdave14@aol.com"><U><U>DavidSpielman@reelmoviecritic.com</U></U></A></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> Mini Filmography </div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="688" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> Milla Jovovich: <B>The Fifth Element</B></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="334"><div> James Purefoy: <B>Feast of July</B></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="347"><div> Michelle Rodriguez: <I><B>Girlfight</B></I></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> Director Paul Anderson: <B>Mortal Kombat</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="347"><div> Eric Mabius: <B>Cruel Intentions</B></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="334"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="20" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="334" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>