For the better part of the 2000s, the Resident Evil film series dominated the zombie apocalypse and video game adaptation box office numbers. With six films under its belt, Resident Evil still reigns as the highest-grossing video game adaptation films of all time, despite none of the films being met with critical acclaim. Helmed primarily by Paul W. S. Anderson with his now-wife Milla Jovovich in the starring role of all six films, the series still found financial success primarily in overseas markets.
However, Netflix recently announced a series that would be a “more faithful adaptation” of the video game franchise and serve as an origin story set in 1998. The series has already cast actors in the roles of video game characters Chris Redfield, Claire Redfield, Jill Valentine, Albert Wesker and Leon Kennedy. So, in preparation, let’s revisit the zombie horror/action franchise that helped launch the zombie genre for a new generation.
6. Resident Evil: Retribution
It’s difficult to think of a polite way to say this, but the fifth installment in the franchise is an absolute trainwreck. Despite a heavily marketed 3-D element, several returning characters (hello again, Jill Valentine), and elements from the video game franchise, director Paul W. S. Anderson had zero idea how to balance these elements into a cohesive story. Star Milla Jovovich even phoned it in, so much so that she received a Worst Actress nomination at the Golden Raspberry Awards.
The biggest problem with Retribution is that it feels like there’s too much going on with very little stakes after the events of the previous film. The majority of it takes place inside of an Umbrella Corporation compound, with most encounters being simulations of zombie attacks in major cities and clones of heroes past. While it was nice to see Sienna Guillory’s Jill Valentine and Michelle Rodriguez’s Rain Ocampo from previous films, neither character was herself, with Rodriguez playing a clone and Guillory being mind-controlled by Umbrella. The film also shoves in video game fan-favorite characters Leon Kennedy and Ada Wong, but it felt like a cheap ploy to fill seats rather than actually servicing the overall plot. Overall, the most skippable and least enjoyable film of the franchise.
Directed: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Sienna Guillory, Michelle Rodriguez, Li Bingbing, Johann Urb, Boris Kodjoe, Kevin Durand, Oded Fehr, Colin Salmon & Shawn Roberts
Release Date: September 14, 2012
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5. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
In 2017, Paul W. S. Anderson decided to wrap up the six-film saga that is the Resident Evil franchise. While the film itself is a perfectly serviceable conclusion, and actually holds the highest Rotten Tomatoes score of the series, there are just a few too many problems that make this conclusion less enjoyable to watch than the others. For one, the promising cliffhanger at the end of Retribution that showed Milla Jovovich’s Alice, with her powers restored, standing atop of the White House alongside several video game-accurate characters preparing for a final showdown was all but ignored in this film. With everyone, except for Alice and Albert Wesker, the series antagonist, said to have died. This film also suffers from some of the absolute worst editing that has ever been seen in a modern movie, with so many jump-cuts that it may actually induce a migraine or seizure. It also doesn’t help that fans had to wait five years, the longest between any films, for this conclusion either.
Otherwise, The Final Chapter is a satisfying conclusion to a rather clunky film franchise. The audience gets all the major questions answered, though there’s still big enough plot holes to drive a semi-truck through. It’s refreshing to see Ali Larter’s Claire Redfield and Iain Glen’s Dr. Isaacs return to the series as well, for an action-packed finale that gives fans exactly what they should expect from the Resident Evil series at this point.
Directed: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Iain Glen, Shawn Roberts, Eoin Macken, Fraser James, Ruby Rose, William Levy, Rola & Ever Gabo Anderson
Release Date: January 27, 2017
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4. Resident Evil: Afterlife
The series fourth installment saw the return of Paul W. S. Anderson to the franchise following a two-film absence, and he would later go on to direct the remainder of the series from here. With Afterlife, he promised a more accurate adaptation of the video games, and in some regards he wasn’t kidding. So much so that even one of the fight scenes in the finale, which sees brother-sister duo Chris and Claire Redfield take on series antagonist Albert Wesker, seemingly pulled straight from a scene in Playstation 3’s Resident Evil 5.
Sadly, for fans of the more horror-centric approach to the zombie apocalypse, Afterlife firmly makes a change in series toward a more action-centric approach to the story. Because of this, and a firm reliance on James Cameron’s newly developed 3-D technology, of which Afterlife was the first film to use post-Avatar, the film feels slightly dated and a little tedious to watch. There’s enough slow-motion action scenes to exhaust even the most die-hard Matrix fan. The story flows well enough and, unlike The Final Chapter, it does follow through on the finale of the previous installment’s cliffhanger. Ali Larter remains likeable as Claire Redfield and Wentworth Miller is a welcome addition to the series, though the character would never again appear in the series. All in all, Afterlife feels like the most neutral Resident Evil film of the series and is the most financially successful in the franchise.
Directed: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Wentworth Miller, Shawn Roberts, Kim Coates, Boris Kodjoe, Spencer Locke, Sergio Peris-Mencheta, Kacey Clarke & Norman Yeung
Release Date: September 10, 2010
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3. Resident Evil: Extinction
Following the first two entries in the franchise, Extinction was really the first film to stray from the horror path into the action one, blurring the lines between. But, at the same time, it offered a new and larger scope of this world in the aftermath of the zombie apocalypse. Up to this point, this was something audiences hadn’t really seen, with the first two films being much more claustrophobic. The director, newcomer Russell Mulcahy, also chooses to create a more Mad Max-like world with most of the resources tapped out and most major Western U.S. cities turned into desert wastelands.
While these changes might not have worked for everyone, they certainly give Extinction arguably the most unique atmosphere of any of the films in the franchise. Audiences get to revisit several characters from the previous installment, such Oded Fehr’s Carlos Olivera and Mike Epps’ L.J., the introduction of series antagonist Albert Wesker (though portrayed by a different actor) and there is the welcome addition of Ali Larter’s Claire Redfield, who would go on to appear in two of the film’s sequels. Sure, Alice’s new psychic powers were a somewhat ridiculous addition, they did provide a new layer to the fight sequences that is entertaining to watch.
Directed: Russell Mulcahy
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Oded Fehr, Iain Glen, Ashanti, Mike Epps, Spencer Locke, Christopher Egan & Jason O’Mara
Release Date: September 21, 2007
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2. Resident Evil
The one that started it all, 2002’s Resident Evil was met with instant excitement. Director Paul W. S. Anderson chose to start in a very claustrophobic environment by having the majority of the film take place in The Hive, a secret underground Umbrella Corporation facility, which has been exposed to the zombie virus. Among his creative decisions, he also chose to have the series protagonist be a completely unique character not featured in the video games, Milla Jovovich’s Alice. Though this did ultimately upset fans of the games, it’s hard to say that Jovovich does not do a great job with the character. Her, alongside Michelle Rodriguez’s Rain Ocampo, give us a female-led zombie adventure unlike any seen prior.
This first film is far from perfect, but does have its fair share of positives. Aside from good performances and a very claustrophobic atmosphere, there’s also the video game’s infamous zombie dogs, a homicide computer program trying to flush them all out and a great tease to a follow-up. It may not have satisfied everyone, but it’s hard to deny that this first Resident Evil film holds a special place in the zombie hall of fame.
Directed: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Eric Mabius, James Purefoy, Martin Crewes & Colin Salmon
Release Date: March 12, 2002
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1. Resident Evil: Apocalypse
After Paul W. S. Anderson was hired to write Alien vs. Predator, series newcomer Alexander Witt took over as director, though Anderson was still a credited writer on this second installment. Nonetheless, Witt managed to create an amazingly accurate depiction of the video games that still serviced the unique story being told through the films. This is mostly due, in part, to incorporating more characters and locations from the video games. Rather than taking place in an underground facility, Apocalypse takes place in Racoon City, which most Resident Evil fans will recognize as being the setting for some of the early games. The film also introduces Sienna Guillory’s Jill Valentine, the video game series’ leading female protagonist, and Nemesis, a relentless Umbrella creation that hunts Jill throughout the third game.
Apocalypse feels the most like a Resident Evil movie, despite still telling a unique story. Milla Jovovich’s Alice remains the focal point here, but having her surrounded by more familiar characters and in the zombified Racoon City, along with taking heavily from elements of the second and third games, makes it feel more like the source material. While it’s likely still not the best zombie film ever created, it’s definitely the best Resident Evil film that ever been put to the silver screen so far.
Directed: Alexander Witt
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Sienna Guillory, Oded Fehr, Thomas Kretschmann, Jared Harris, Sandrine Holt, Sophie Vavasseur, Mike Epps & Iain Glen
Release Date: September 10, 2004
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