Resident Evil (2002)

Director:

Paul W.S. Anderson

Writer (WGA):

Paul W.S. Anderson (written by)

Release Date:

15 March 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

A secret experiment. A deadly virus. A fatal mistake.

Plot:

A special military unit fights a powerful, out-of-control supercomputer and hundreds of scientists who have mutated into flesh-eating creatures after a laboratory accident.

Plot Keywords:

Computer | Virus | Military | Corporation | Mutant

Awards:

4 nominations

Cast

Milla Jovovich	...	Alice
Michelle Rodriguez	...	Rain Ocampo
Eric Mabius	...	Matt Addison
James Purefoy	...	Spence Parks
Martin Crewes	...	Chad Kaplan
Colin Salmon	...	One
Ryan McCluskey	...	Mr. Grey
Oscar Pearce	...	Mr. Red
Indra Ové	...	Ms. Black
Anna Bolt	...	Dr. Green
Joseph May	...	Dr. Blue
Robert Tannion	...	Dr. Brown
Heike Makatsch	...	Dr. Lisa Addison
Jaymes Butler	...	Clarence the Security Guard
Stephen Billington	...	Mr. White

Also Known As:

Resident Evil (France) (Germany)
Resident Evil the Movie (USA) (working title)
Resident Evil: Ground Zero (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sci-fi/horror violence, language and sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

UK | Germany | France

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Malaysia:18SG | Brazil:16 | Iceland:16 | Mexico:C | Portugal:M/16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Chile:14 | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-15 (re-rating) | Finland:K-18 (original rating) | France:-12 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Krampnitz, Brandenburg, Germany

Company:

Constantin Film Produktion

Trivia:

The crew had a hard time dealing with the dogs who kept licking the blood and meat off themselves.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At the beginning of the movie, you can see the floor outside the elevator bending under the woman's weight as she tries to escape the elevator.

Quotes:

Red Queen: I can give you the code, but first you must do something for me.
Alice: What?
Red Queen: One of your group has been infected. I require her life for the code.

Movie Connections:

References The Andromeda Strain (1971)

Soundtrack:

Wall of Death

Good survival horror

I had to sift long and deep for a good comment on this. Why all the hostility? I think there was great chemistry on this production and it shows; the actors and crew involved loved the game and had a good time making this. This movie successfully recreated the feel of the game, and because it kept exposition to a minimum of what you needed to know for this particular story and didn't borrow from or revise any of the original characters or settings, it supported and strengthened the franchise. No story is retold here, no words are wasted, the setting, feel and pace is familiar to fans of Resident Evil and yet it's perfectly accessible to those unfamiliar with the broader storyline. Not giving the fan-boys their favorite characters was a good choice since characters tend to get mangled in adaptation, and yet the fan-boys still complain. With this film you have a good, watchable story that can partake of the Resident Evil cosmology, showing it due respect.

It did an excellent job establishing characters without too much unnecessary background, developing them just enough to make you want to know what they'll do next, to make you care before the sudden and gruesome happens to them. The acting was above par for a Resident Evil, certainly much better than the first game. The plot was no more comic bookish than any of the games. My one complaint was that the characters were too battle-trained, too slick, too good at fighting for them to be sympathetic horror subjects. This could've been balanced out with more reaction shots showing the soldiers wetting themselves. But Alice's over-the-top commando-style action made her too much of a super heroine to really make anyone concerned about her survival; characters made of Teflon make good action but apathetic horror subjects.