This week “Hayley’s Hot Takes” is switching things up. It is with much excitement that I get to introduce Brody McCarley’s brand new column, “The Save Files.”
Much like how in the past Eli’s “Reading Raft” and I have done movie and book crossovers, we felt there was no better movie to introduce a film and videogame crossover with than “Resident Evil.” To start us off I will be diving into “Resident Evil,” the film, giving you my cinematic review per-usual, before passing the torch to Brody, who will give a larger overview of the story’s history, gameplay and end us with his thoughts around the film in comparison to the game series.
With 11 “Resident Evil” films coming before this one, I had some apprehension on how this story would vary from those that came before it, while also sticking to its video game roots. The movie features Zach Creggar, who directed “Weapons,” and stars 30-year-old Austin Abrams, who many may recognize from the television show “Euphoria” or from the films “Papertown,” “Chemical Hearts” and also “Weapons.” I think it is safe to assume Creggar and Abrams developed a strong working relationship on “Weapons” – as I feel Abrams was truly the best pick to play Bryan. Audiences, it seems, would agree, as the film has skyrocketed past all other horror films that have come out this year, earning a mighty 96 and still climbing on Rotten Tomatoes.
The film opens with Bryan, our protagonist, working as a courier to deliver a very important package to Racoon City Hospital. He assumes this package contains a vital organ that will save someone’s life, however it does not take long for Bryan to run into his first of many obstacles. As he makes his way up an embankment during a snow storm he accidently hits a deliriously ill woman, which sets off a chain reaction that unfolds into quite the fast paced, action-horror-comedy.
Immediately, the pacing of this film felt accurate to starting up game play in an action-roleplay, first person shooter type game like “Resident Evil,” “The Last of Us” or even the games in the “Fallout” series. From the moment Bryan gets his first gun, and instantly checks the ammo, I as a viewer felt engaged in the same way I would if I were playing a game. Counting rounds as he battles the monsters, searching the screen for more weapons, escape routes and other options, just as I would if I were in the same situation.
Another tactic I feel led to this movie feeling perfectly adapted from gameplay was the use of comedic timing and the delivery of Abrams lines. Multiple times, the theater of people around me burst into laughter at the dialogue that felt very reminiscent of the dialogue of an NPC in game play.
The special effects in this film were also incredibly effective in delivering both horror and accuracy to the game. In my research around the design of the monsters, I learned Creggar actually used real humans, strapped together, performing flips, cartwheels, and other moves to master the appearance of the conglomerated massive monster.
The only shortcoming of this film was the ending, though upon further digging, Creggar has come out and shared there were two ending possibilities, and after production he chose the second option – leaving fans curious if there will ever be the other version released as a special edition. All in all from a cinematic perspective, this film gets a solid 4 out of 5 on the spicy scale, a must watch for horror and video game fans alike.
Continue? Y/N.
Yes, continuing this collaborative review is me, Brody, writer of the Lutrinae’s new gaming column, “The Save Files.” The column is dedicated to covering what’s new within the world of video games, whether it be reviews of what I’m playing, developments in the industry, or a list of some recommendations from yours truly. I’m very excited to play all kinds of games and report back to let you know if you should boot it up yourself or stay away from your keyboard.
The story of “Resident Evil”— or “Biohazard” if you’re not from America thanks to a New York punk band of the same name — starts from an entirely different video game. Director Shinji Mikami was contacted by Capcom video game designer Tokuro Fujiwara to expand upon the limitations of his previous survival horror game “Sweet Home.”
“Sweet Home” was a Japanese horror movie set inside a mansion that uses ghosts and supernatural monsters to claim a team of filmmakers looking for valuable paintings. The game followed the same plot, laying the foundation of what survival horror and the first “Resident Evil” would become.
Three years, two consoles, and one point of view switch later, the third-person survival horror game was released for the Playstation on March 22, 1996, selling 4 million copies worldwide within a year. It was a critical and financial success so large that its long line of sequels would start just two years after the original’s release.
Now that you know its origins, it’s time to see how well Zach Cregger embodies the spirit of the “Resident Evil” games in his latest directorial effort.
Cregger has spent many of the press junkets and interviews stating how big of a fan he is when it comes to this franchise. It is very apparent that he has spent the thousands of hours he talks about playing these games, as he is able to translate so many elements of the experience into the film excellently.
The film loves to use the occasional first-person shot, literally putting you into the shoes of our protagonist and feeling that same sense of panic and fear. The dark, snowy winter night that Bryan has to navigate to survive is a harrowing atmosphere. Running through pitch black forest and crumbling city streets escaping zombies gives me the same adrenaline rush I felt navigating the decrepit Spencer Mansion.
One of “Resident Evil’s” most defining elements is its resource management system, and it is adapted almost excruciatingly well here. Bryan has multiple points within his journey to Raccoon City General Hospital where he is able to upgrade his weapon, find more ammo, or find an ill-timed key to yet another lock he can’t open. Watching him fire a few bullets trying to disengage the safety on a gun made me start to count how many bullets he had left, a practice I developed a knack for while playing the game.
The only element that I feel doesn’t entirely translate to its fullest potential is the monsters that Cregger chose to use. As a newer player of the series, I am only familiar with the first entry’s array of enemies, but there’s at least eight other games to choose from. Instead, Cregger chose to create mostly original monsters with some of the series’ DNA embedded into them. What I thought was a Cerberus chasing Bryan into the farmhouse was actually a dog monster with tentacles based on a different mutation from a later entry. There were times where I wondered if Cregger was trying to reference some zombies from the “Left 4 Dead” series.
Walking out of this movie, I felt satisfied as a new fan of the video games. Even though it’s an original story without any of the series’ iconic characters, it embodies the same tension of playing one of these games without actually having to pick up a controller. Thankfully it isn’t the same length as one of the games and involves way less backtracking and key hunting.
Up next for “The Save Files” is my review of the first “Resident Evil,” so be on the lookout for my in-depth thoughts and rating of the game very soon!