Runtime: 95 minutes
Okay, this is my very first post to give critic about movie, and that's September's most-waited movie, Resident Evil: Retribution. Well, there's many posts about this movie, but let me get this straight for you.
While fans was waiting to see how great the movie with all massive promotions, people outside the fan club likely started curious about the movie. Well, seriously, when I first saw the poster and teaser trailer, I screamed in my heart and trusted that this movie was going to crush the world. This is October guys, and I still don't know why I can't forget all badness about this movie. So basically, about the story, this movie is the worst story in Resident Evil franchise!
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| The very first poster |
Before you scrolling this down, my favorite review is at The Film Connoisseur (click here to read). So this post will be in my own way. First of all, Resident Evil franchise is likely my favorite zombie franchise. Well, actually, the franchise didn't get good critics, it still makes my day with all actions it has. But this time, Paul W.S. Anderson shows his laziness in making the story, no improvement in writing story. Lot of scenes are duplicated from several well-known movies. Well the trailer was really intriguing for me, but the fact the story is a bit "huh?". Well, let's see the things that make this movie a failure.
The first scene was the the continue of the last scene in Resident Evil: Afterlife where Alice's crews reached a ship called "Arcadia" which carries lot of survivors. The first scene, I think, was the coolest scene in the movie with cool slow motion and reversed-action. Then, I believed this movie was going to be super fun. But, after an introduction about the whole franchise that was actually useless, the same scene showed up in a very fast runtime! Then, Alice's eyes showed up on screen and everything was totally different. A scene where Alice as a mother in a Suburbia house and continued with zombie chaos reminds me of the scene in Dawn of the Dead (2004)! But with the always charming Milla Jovovich, the scene was felt really fun. The next, Alice's eyes opened again, this time the real Alice awaken in Umbrella's prison. She got up and then bad Jill Valentine showed up and began the interrogation. Well, personally, with Alice's see-through outfit, made the scene into "not too bad".
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| You must have recognized this outfit! |
But, Umbrella's facility/prison lost its power. Suddenly, a pair of shoes and outfit showed up with the correct size for Alice! Then she got out from her prison with the ridiculous outfit. Well, the system rebooted and Jill commands her team to catch Alice. The laser showed up in the corridor and Alice tried to get away from it. Actually, the movie's action scenes are a real fun, what make the movie has its goodness. Just the story, in the fourth installment, Albert Wesker is Umbrella's leader, he took Alice's superpower and tried to kill her. The weird thing is that in Afterlife, Wesker died because of the plane crash with Alice, but actually he survived. Then, he suddenly showed up in the "Arcadia" ship when Alice arrived. Alice with Chris and Claire managed to kill him. But then, he got up and left the ship!! Oh my Lord!! Before he tried to bombed the ship, Alice put the bomb in the plane he drove. And he died with the rest of the plane. In this fifth installment, he's back again with a very different self-character, a very 360 degree from his character in Afterlife! He's not the leader of Umbrella anymore, Red Queen is the leader!? What the hell? So weird the story Paul W.S. Anderson made.
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| Alice got new outfit design that she loves! |
Well, here, Wesker is a good guy that is trying to save the world and need Alice to help her! Huh? He explained all about Umbrella's facility and arranged her way out with the team he sent! And that's it, the whole story is about how Alice get out from Umbrella's facility. Oh my God!! Everyone is the victim of this movie, the movie tricked us with cool trailer and amazing posters!! And how not creative Paul W.S. Anderson is. He got his idea from most of past films! Obviously, with the meeting of Alice and little Becky where Becky thought Alice was her mother. This is seriously like James Cameron's Aliens (1986) with the relationship between Ripley and Newt!
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| Where's this scene? |
With the addition of past characters that have died, such as Michelle Rodriguez as Rain and a clone and Oded Fehr as Carlos and also a clone, or even Colin Salmon as One, things look like the same one. Likely the movie has those actors to make the more income, such as Michelle Rodriguez. This was actually showed clearly in the scene where Alice, Ada, and Becky left the Suburbia house and the war started. During that scenes, also, there was no struggling and a sense of a real fighting. There was only shooting, shooting then exploding. Everything seems a bit weird after Alice and Becky got away from the house with the staying Ada in the house, and then Alice suddenly got a wound on her stomach with no feeling of pain before! I think that's acceptable. The team that was actually to save Alice, turned into saved by Alice, where the crews (Luther West, Leon S. Kennedy, Barry Burton) saw the licker monster that killed the other crew member. Alice saved them by a Rolls Royce Phantom, and where the car came from?
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| At least, Alice kicks asses very well! |
The same scene from Aliens (1986) looks clear when Alice saved Becky that was kidnapped by the licker and placed in a cocoon, just as Ripley saved Newt. In Aliens, Ripley and Newt tried to get out but they found the Queen. Same here, Alice and Becky tried to get out and then found the cloning place and the licker that Alice shot was still alive. That was the last thing I know about things that are so not creative in this fifth installment. After my sad about the movie's story, there goes the end where the facility going down with the flood that killed everyone. With its great effects, there's still a plus for this movie. There goes the other one end where the battle started. When the team with only Alice, Becky, Luther, and Leon got out from the facility, a tank came from the ice. Then bad Jill, bad Rain, and Ada Wong as hostage came out from the tank. I think that was going to super fun for a battle, and it worked. I love the action, I love how those girls kick asses. While Alice and Jill started their battle, the bad Rain made Ada fainted and started to fight with the boys. Wohoo!! After the battle, closed with the bad Rain drowned into the ice and surrounded by the zombies, all of them were picked up by Wesker and there goes the open ending at the White House that may continued in the sixth installment.
As a conclusion, this movie is disappointing for the story that crossing the original. But, the action and effects still can be tolerated. And I think what Mr. Anderson said isn't the same as the movie. At least, the lovely Milla Jovovich still holds her best that made the movie better. And the movie has less threats, there was no real trouble that made a real thrill, some of jokes are felt to be lame, monsters seems to be just an addition without a good part in the movie. One zombie movie I like is Night of the Living Dead (1968), even though the movie doesn't have awesome effects, the threats seem to be so great that made the movie into a piece of art. If there will be any continuation, I hope Paul work it in deep thought and be creative. I want there will be a promising end of the franchise, the real ending! Apart of all, the promotion and most of Resident Evil posters seem to be not the same as the movie. Here's an example:
Alice and Ada run in the city full of chaos. But the movie doesn't have it! For at least one scene! Well, I put my hope in the next sixth installment (if there'll be) to be the last humanity stand and the improvement of Resident Evil franchise. For addition, I hope Paul W.S. Anderson to improve his movie writing skill and not to be lazy in filmmaking. Resident Evil: Retribution definitely needs to be repaired.
Rating: C+
