Paul W.S. Anderson's “RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE”

Movie review by Dennis D. McDonald

I loved it. Courtesy of #1 Son we watched it on a 40” HD flatscreen played from a Blu-Ray disc. After some hiccups hooking up the sound — the English DTS surround track wouldn’t decode correctly through my old Yamaha surround system — we got it going.

Visually Resident Evil: Afterlife is a feast. The scenes of the red Russian monoplane flying over the ice are stunning. The opening action sequence inside the Umbrella Corporation underground facility in Tokyo outdoes the lobby scene from Matrix. Ali Larter is fun to watch..

The color and clarity of the visuals make me wish I had seen it in 3D. It appears that Anderson has really put serious thought into how to use 3D technology for a lot lot more than just making things jump off the screen.

Most of all we get to follow Milla Jovovich around as she does her own stunts and appears in nearly every scene. My opinion: she gets better with age and I’m glad she’s involved in movies like this, not just “serious” stuff. 

Basically, if you’re into really well-made sci-fi-action-zombie-post-acopalyptic-action-gorefests, this one’s for you.

Review text copyright (c) 2011 by Dennis D. McDonald