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Don't get it twisted, you won't find Milla Jovovich anywhere in RESIDENT EVIL: DEGENERATION as this full-on CG animation, canon-wise, is definitely more in sync with the video game series than the live-action film franchise. If you dig the visual graphics in animated films like FINAL FANTASY: THE SPIRITS WITHIN, FINAL FANTASY VII: ADVENT CHILDREN, POLAR EXPRESS and BEOWULF, then this one's up your alley, brother. In continuity, the events in RESIDENT EVIL: DEGENERATION take place in between the two games, Resident Evil 4 and the upcoming Resident Evil 5 (March '09).
The story keeps it simple, basically planting its characters in treacherous environments and then throwing undead creatures at them. Seven years had elapsed since the Raccoon City outbreak (as fleshed out in the Resident Evil 2 video game). The Umbrella Corporation may have been shut down, but the T-virus is still making its rounds in the black market. The story starts with Claire Redfield (a survivor of doomed Raccoon City and a recurring lead character in the game) becoming trapped in a wrecked airport terminal during a zombie infestation, while she minds a little girl and a scuzzy senator.
A rescue team is deployed, comprising two members of the Special Response Team unit and ramrodded by government special agent Leon S. Kennedy (another fan favorite, also survived Raccoon City). The first half hour deals with how the rescue mission falls out, and if zombie kills get your jollies going, then this'll do ya. Once the survivors make it out of the airport, there's a bit of a lull, and then the next big act is introduced as the key characters make their way to yet another creepy multi-level research facility, this one run by an entity called the WilPharma Corporation. There, the survivors not only have to deal with a saboteur who intends to out the truth about the Raccoon City cover-up, but also with a frightening Gene-virus mutate who'll never lose a staring contest and who could absolutely palm a basketball (or ten basketballs).
So, fans of the best survival horror video games ever will get more out of this flick, whereas newcomers or those who've only peeped the Milla Jovovich trilogy will probably like it but, then again, may end up lost in places and may even wonder what the big deal is. The story is pretty generic; the voice acting is wooden; the dialogue is dang cheesy (Check out this dude, just before he turns into a Biohazard freakfest: "In a moment, I'll reveal the irrefutable truth... in my own... personal way. And all of you will be the very first... witnesses!!"). Yet I found all that forgiveable. I'm just glad there's a movie out that actually honors the internal continuity of the games. And the film looks very good. The animators make good use of motion capture technology, and the awesome visual graphics end up being slicker than my buddy Vito's pompadour. I wish, though, that the characters' faces had been even more expressive.
Okay, feel free to ignore this paragraph, which I call Things-In-The-Movie-Which-Aggravated-The-Crap-Out-Of-Me. It's just me nitpicking. But, man alive, cry me a river with the horror movie cliches! To start with, there's always one yahoo who's always late getting with the program. The two S.R.T. members who went with Agent Kennedy had been briefed regarding the infecteds' tendencies, yet one of them, full of good wholesome samaritanship but also what can only be some sort of stupid DNA, abandons all caution and approaches a prone body point blank and, without even checking out the person, wraps an arm around him to help him up. I realize that this S.R.T. grunt had never faced anything like this before, but, still, it is so damn aggravating. Come to think of it, you'd think special agent Leon would've shown up on scene already with his own specially trained crew, instead of having to pick out two unknowns. Earlier on, Claire Redfield had become separated from the young girl she was with, as mass panic erupted at the terminal (zombies and a plane coming fast at your grill will do that). And yet the next scene with Claire finds her already reunited with the little girl. Obviously, they must've reconnected earlier offscreen, but the effect was still a bit jarring, as if a scene had been cut out. And one more, off the top of my head: later, when Claire and the little girl find themselves isolated and cornered by zombies, who by the way are slow as molasses, instead of summarily getting the eff outta there, Claire opts to crouch down and protectively hug the little girl. In the scheme of things, these minor quibbles can't change the fact that I enjoyed the film tremendously. Yet they did kill a bit of the fun for me.
On a happier note, while there's not much humor in the movie, there is one pretty cool, ironic moment which drew an appreciative grin out of me. It's the one at the airport in which Claire finally finds a weapon with which to combat zombies. "Never saw this coming," she mutters.
The film ends with an ominous scene which suggests that history is doomed to repeat itself - yet one more time. It also supposedly leads into the Resident Evil 5 video game, so that's pretty sweet. Going by RE: DEGENERATION, I absolutely will shell out for more Resident Evil animated features which follow game continuity. And I wouldn't mind at all if the next one featured Jill Valentine or Chris Redfield. Or, hell, bring Alice into this universe. How's that for shaking things up, huh?
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Customer reviews
Came in on time. These movies are amazing and I can't wait for the third one to release. Can't find in stores so ordered and received pretty fast. Waiting on Damnation to come in tomorrow. Only thing that would make this perfect is if it had UV code but i can live without it.
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