DVD reviews: Resident Evil: Extinction – Tone Issue 68

Like anyone with an abiding interest in film, I love the way it can reflect back on our culture and tell us something about ourselves. I love the fact that motion pictures can give us insights on the human condition, and wrap these up in a canvas that’s pure art.

I also like a movie that’s kick-ass.

There are lots of snobs out there who think they’re somehow superior, who look down on films like Resident Evil: Extinction. I think they’re missing out.

No living person (apart from a few Hollywood executives, maybe) would claim that the Resident Evil series even aspired to the top echelon of zombie flicks. But the fact that it was spawned by a video game (rather than the other way around) has brought out all those critical ghouls who love to chide certain kinds of films (notably horror) for their lack of certain qualities (character development, intelligent scripts, decent acting).

In fact, the first two instalments of the Resident Evil series were kick-ass. And so is this one. And just to go against the grain of diminishing returns in sequels, Resident Evil: Extinction is just as good as the first two. While the first film was pretty much set in a secret underground laboratory, and the second during one night of madness, the third finds the lovely Milla Jovovich in a desert setting – and she loses none of her charm in the harsh desert light.

Russell Mulcahy is the director this time round, and pop culture vultures will know his background as the breakthrough pop video guy (remember those infamous Duran Duran vids?) whose movies are generally overly pyrotechnic and filmically virtuosic but tend to lack in the content department. I’m not suggesting that Resident Evil: Extinction is a departure into good taste, but he never puts a foot wrong in this high-octane action ride.

This apocalyptic setting combines Mad Max-inspired desert survivalists with utterly convincing crazed zombies (two different types!) and, of course, the girl power represented by Jovovich. And somehow she’s now developed the ability to inflict carnage merely with her thought processes, in addition to her striking physical prowess.

It’s a winning combination that’s hardly original, but who cares when it’s so entertaining? I’m almost scared to suggest that the film has any merits outside of its action scenarios, its extraordinary zombie makeup jobs and its innovative use of CG and visual technology, but I will, anyway. The desert setting means that there’s more binding of characters than in previous films, more dialogue and yes… even some good lines.

Extras are pretty good, including a reasonably interesting ‘making of’, and producer/writer and star commentaries, along with some pointless deleted scenes. The second disc has yet another, extended ‘making of’ that proved too much for even me. The sound kicks ass, the visuals kick ass, the movie kicks ass. And I’ll have forgotten it in a week. That’s Hollywood: it was good at the time.

GARY STEEL