Resident Evil is a film series loosely based upon the Capcom video games of the same name.
Constantin Film bought rights to the first film in January 1997 with Alan B. McElroy
and George A. Romero as potential writers. In 2001, Sony acquired distribution rights
to the film and hired Paul W. S. Anderson as writer and director for the first film.
Anderson continued on as writer and producer for the sequels, Resident Evil: Apocalypse
and Resident Evil: Extinction, and returned as the director for Resident Evil: Afterlife
and Resident Evil: Retribution. The Umbrella Corporation acts as the main
antagonist in the series, a bioengineering pharmaceutical company responsible for the
zombie apocalypse as a result of creating the T-virus. The films follow protagonist
Alice, an original character created for the films portrayed by Milla Jovovich, who was
once a security operative working for Umbrella and became the enemy of the corporation.
Characters from the Resident Evil video games also make an appearance in the film series,
including Jill Valentine, Carlos Olivera, Claire Redfield, Albert Wesker, Chris Redfield,
Barry Burton, Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong. With five films released, the Resident Evil
film series is the highest grossing film series to be based on video games of all time, having
grossed US$915 million worldwide. It is set to continue with a sixth and final film, written
by Anderson.
Films Resident Evil
In January 1997, Constantin Film acquired the rights to the Resident Evil franchise
with Alan B. McElroy writing the script. By 2001, Columbia TriStar was in final negotiations
to acquire North American distribution rights to Resident Evil and budgeted the movie at
$40 million. George A. Romero was hired by Sony and Capcom to direct and write Resident
Evil. His script was later rejected and he was ultimately dropped. Capcom producer Yoshiki
Okamoto stated that "Romero's script wasn't good, so Romero was fired". Paul W. S. Anderson
was then hired by Sony to write a screenplay and in late 2000, Anderson was announced as
director and writer. Anderson stated the film would not include any tie-ins with the video
game series as "under-performing movie tie-ins are too common and Resident Evil, of all games,
deserved a good celluloid representation". In 2001, Milla Jovovich was cast as Alice,
the protagonist of the film. In the film, the Umbrella Corporation operates
a top-secret genetic research facility named The Hive. Located deep beneath Raccoon City,
The Hive has been sealed by The Red Queen due to the release of the T-Virus into the
facility. The Red Queen kills every living thing in the facility to ensure the T-Virus
doesn't reach the surface, but the T-Virus reanimates them, transforming the humans into
ravenous zombies and the animals into highly aggressive mutants. Alice was once a security
operative working for the Corporation until her memory was wiped by the Red Queen's nerve
gas. As the team attempts to escape The Hive, an Umbrella test subject called the Licker
escapes and pursues the team. When they reach the train that leads them to the exit, the
Licker attacks and scratches Matt before Alice can kill it. When they reach the surface,
Matt is taken away by Umbrella workers and he eventually transforms into Nemesis. Alice
wakes from a coma to a ravaged Raccoon City after a T-Virus outbreak.
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
The sequel to the first film began production in 2003 after the success of the first film.
Anderson returned as the writer but due to his work on Alien vs. Predator, he did not
direct the film. In the film, the viral outbreak reaches the
surface and in an effort to contain the infection, Mayor Timothy Cain seals all exits to and
from Raccoon City. Among the people trapped in the city are Jill Valentine and her partner
Peyton Wells. After Alice awakens from her coma, she rescues Jill and Peyton from a group
of Lickers who escaped The Hive. They are then contacted by Dr. Charles Ashford who
claims to know of an evacuation point in the city in exchange for the rescue of his daughter
Angela Ashford, who is trapped in Raccoon City. The group also learns Umbrella plans
to incinerate Raccoon City to get rid of the T-Virus. On their way to rescue Angela, Nemesis
attacks the team after it is commanded by Cain to kill all STARS members. After Angela's
rescue, they then make their way to the evacuation helicopter with Carlos Olivera, who has been
dropped into Raccoon City and abandoned by Umbrella. After Alice's confrontation with
Cain and Nemesis, which leaves the latter two dead, the team flies away from Raccoon
City as it is being sanitized by a nuclear bomb. The helicopter crashes in the Arklay
Mountains. A wounded Alice is the only person found by an Umbrella search team. She is taken
to the Detroit Umbrella research station. When Alice awakens, she escapes the facility
and displays extraordinary powers, she is then driven away by Jill and Carlos who are
disguised as Umbrella employees. As they drive away, the Umbrella logo flashes in Alice's
eyes and Isaacs's computer states "Project Alice Activated".
Resident Evil: Extinction
In November 2005, Screen Gems gained the rights for the third film in the franchise, which
was then named Resident Evil: Afterlife. Anderson returned as a writer and filming took place
in Mexico. The film was released on September 21, 2007.
In the film, the world has been consumed by the T-Virus and Umbrella develops clones of
Alice in hopes of finding one who displays Alice's powers. Elsewhere, Claire Redfield
leads a convoy of survivors across the Nevada desert, including Raccoon City survivors Oliviera
and L.J. Wayne. Alice roams the country for survivors. After failing to find any living
people, she comes into contact with Redfield's convoy after she rescues them from crows using
her super-human abilities. The convoy, along with Alice, heads to Las Vegas to gather supplies
so they can reach Alaska in an effort to get to a place called Arcadia, thought to be a
safe haven. While there, they are attacked by super zombies who kill most of the convoy.
After Wayne is bitten and hides his infection from the rest of the group, he transforms
and bites Oliviera. Isaacs himself is bitten and in an effort to cure himself, injects
himself with large doses of the anti-virus which causes him to transform into a Tyrant.
Redfield leaves for Alaska, while Alice stays behind to confront Isaacs. While searching
the facility for Isaacs, she discovers that she was cloned. After Alice defeats Isaacs,
contacts Umbrella and warns them that she is coming for them and that she will be bringing
the clones with her to fight them. Resident Evil: Afterlife
Before the third installment had been released, Constantin prepared to release a fourth film
in the series. The film was set in Japan and filmed in 3D with the Fusion Camera System
developed by James Cameron and Vince Pace for the 2009 film Avatar.
Set after the events of Extinction, Alice and her clones attack the Umbrella station
in Tokyo. Wesker escapes and destroys the facility, killing the clones. Wesker is confronted
by Alice aboard his helicopter. He injects Alice with a serum that removes her super-human
abilities. The helicopter crashes, and only Alice is seen emerging from the rubble. After
months of a failed aerial search for other survivors, Alice heads toward the supposed
location of Arcadia. She lands on an airfield in Alaska, where she finds Claire in a different
state. Claire has an Umbrella device attached to her chest and her memory has been wiped.
Claire and Alice fly to Los Angeles where they stumble upon a prison where they met
Luther West and Chris Redfield, Claire's brother. The survivors explain that Arcadia is a tanker
off the coast which has been broadcasting a looped message and is picking up survivors.
During an attempted escape, Alice, Claire and Chris are the only ones to emerge and
they reach the tanker only to find it abandoned. Claire's memory begins to return when she
remembers Umbrella workers attacking her group of survivors and removing them to the tanker.
The ship is an Umbrella research facility which is conducting experiments on the survivors.
The three then meet Wesker, who has been granted super-human abilities due to the T-Virus.
After the fight, Alice transmits a message to survivors calling them to the tanker and
hopes to create a new and true safe haven. A fleet of Umbrella Corporation aircraft led
by Valentine prepares to lead an assault on the survivors.
Resident Evil: Retribution
Written and directed by Anderson, Retribution was planned to be filmed back to back with
the sixth installment, but Anderson decided to focus on the fifth film.. Filming took
place in Toronto, Ontario from mid-October to December 23, 2011. Colin Salmon who played
One and Michelle Rodriguez who played Rain Ocampo in the first film returned. Oded Fehr
who portrayed Carlos Olivera in the second and third film also returned. Three characters
from the video games made their debut in the film series, Johann Urb as Leon S. Kennedy,
Kevin Durand as Barry Burton and Li Bingbing as Ada Wong. It was released internationally
on September 14, 2012. In the film, after having been captured at
the Arcadia, Alice experiences a dream sequence or hallucination where she is the wife of
Carlos Olivera and has daughter named Becky, and their suburban home is overrun by zombies.
Alice awakens in an Umbrella base. Jill Valentine interrogates Alice, who unsuccessfully pleads
with her to remember her true identity. During a power failure orchestrated by Ada Wong,
Alice escapes from her cell and encounters her. Ada explains that she and Wesker are
no longer working for Umbrella. Wesker plans to aid Alice's escape and battle the base's
supercomputer Red Queen, in order to save what's left of mankind. Wesker has organized
a team of freelance operatives to infiltrate the base and help Alice and Ada escape, including
Leon S. Kennedy, Barry Burton, and Luther West. Along the way, Alice finds a clone of
a young girl named Becky, who believes Alice is her mother. They also face clone versions
of Carlos Olivera, One, and Rain Ocampo, who are all under the direction of Valentine.
After Alice meets up with the rescue team, Valentine's soldiers catch up to them, causing
a shootout that kills Burton, Oliviera and One. Alice, West, Kennedy, and Becky reach
the surface and are met by a submarine, from which Valentine, the clone Rain, and a captured
Ada emerge. With new orders from the Red Queen to kill Alice, Valentine battles Alice while
Rain fights Kennedy and West. Alice manages to remove the scarab device from Valentine,
returning her back to normal. Alice joins Kennedy in defeating Rain. Alice, Ada, Becky,
Leon, and Valentine travel to Wesker's base. Wesker injects Alice with the T-virus, returning
her former superhuman powers in order to enact his plan, then tells her that she is responsible
for saving the remaining humans from extinction. Upcoming sixth film
Anderson has been confirmed to direct and write the sixth film in the series and has
stated that it will be the final film in the series. Jovovich stated that the film will
come out in 2015. According to Anderson, the film is tentatively titled as Resident Evil:
The Final Chapter and it will follow Alice and her crew as they rush to the Hive, where
the Red Queen plots total destruction over the human race. The film will be filmed in
3D. Jovovich and Li are set to reprise their roles as Alice and Wong.
Cast and characters Crew
Reception Box office performance
Except for the first film, all the Resident Evil films opened at #1 at North American
box office. The series holds the record for the "most live-action film adaptations of
a video game" in the 2012 Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition. It is also the highest grossing
film series to be based on a video game. Critical response
All films received negative response from the critics. However, The Chicago Tribune
declare the first film as "one of the few video game movies to truly re-create the gaming
experience" and The Austin Chronicle calling it "an absolute wreck. But what an ambitiously
mind-blowing wreck it is, bursting with dazzlingly sordid cinematography". The Seattle Times
marked the second film an improvement from the original, saying the film "makes up for
the wretched mess that was 2002's "Resident Evil"". The Hollywood Reporter gave the third
film a positive review stating "Fast-paced and filled with brisk action sequences -- the
film should reasonably satisfy the devotees." Michael Ordoña of The Los Angeles Times gave
the fourth film a positive review, claiming that "the action is easier to read than in
most films of the genre, and therefore more enjoyable. Anderson makes particular use of
sets and locations to wring out more bang for the stereoscopic buck."
Novelizations The novelizations for the first three Resident
Evil films were written by Keith R. A. DeCandido. The novelization for the fifth film was written
by John Shirley. The fourth film did not receive a novelization.
The novel for the first film titled Resident Evil: Genesis was published over two years
after that film's release while the Extinction novel was released in late July 2007, two
months before the film's release. There was also a Japanese novelization of the first
film, unrelated to DeCandido's version, written by Osamu Makino. Makino also wrote two novels
based on the game Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles.
Capcom films Aside from the American-produced live-action
film series, Capcom have also produced CGI films which are tied to the video game series.
Biohazard 4D-Executer
Biohazard 4D-Executer features Raccoon City, but none of the characters from the video
game series are present. The short film was released in November 2000.
Resident Evil: Degeneration
Resident Evil: Degeneration is Capcom's first full-length feature film set in the video
game series. Taking place between the events of the video games Resident Evil 4 and Resident
Evil 5, follows Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield. It was released on October 18, 2008.
Resident Evil: Damnation
Resident Evil: Damnation is Capcom's second full-length feature film set in the video
game series. Taking place between the events of the video games Resident Evil 5 and Resident
Evil 6, follows Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong. It was released on September 15, 2012.
References
External links Resident Evil: Retribution Official Website
Resident Evil at Box Office Mojo Resident Evil film series at AllMovie