Resident Evil Review: Brutal Body Horror Meets Tight, Tense Storytelling

Zach Cregger clearly knows his craft. Resident Evil is a very well-made movie built around a simple premise: Brian must overcome increasingly difficult obstacles to deliver a package on time. The pacing is tight and never lags, while a series of effective jump scares—especially early in the film—keeps the tension high without becoming excessive.

Cregger also incorporates a third-person gameplay perspective throughout the movie, giving viewers a sense of what it feels like to play the game. Although the technique could have felt like a gimmick, he seamlessly blends those shots with more traditional objective camerawork.

Resident Evil Balances Horror With Sarcastic Humor

The sarcastic humor is used sparingly, keeping the movie from becoming too bleak without undermining its horror. Much of it comes from Brian’s ignorance and general lack of skill. His repeated encounters with stubborn, old-fashioned padlocks are never quite the same twice.

Cregger told The Hollywood Reporter that his first cut contained more humor. Test audiences found the film too funny, so Cregger removed most of the jokes and the movie improved.

“A little humor goes a long way in a horror movie. None of the jokes we took from this movie are nostalgic,” he said.

Giant Mutant Creatures Steal the Spotlight

Although zombies are present, they are not the main focus of Resident Evil. Instead, the movie delivers a lineup of giant mutant creatures that prove far more effective. As a hybrid zombie chases Brian to Raccoon City, it absorbs more bodies and grows into a massive fusion monster.

The film also features an obese, hairless, naked man in the sewers whose abdomen bursts open to unleash a horde of zombie rats, along with an infected person vomiting acid in a hospital.

Resident Evil Review: Extreme Gore and Unforgettable Body Horror

Fair warning: the body horror in Resident Evil is not for the faint of heart. The gore reaches extreme levels, with plenty of jaw-dropping scenes. The maternity ward sequence is especially disturbing, yet Cregger somehow makes it horrifying and funny at the same time, with a bittersweet edge.

Fans hoping for a more direct adaptation featuring famous playable characters may be disappointed. Still, adapting video games for film and television has proven extremely difficult—until now. Cregger may have finally found a way to solve that challenge.

Resident Evil is currently showing in theaters.