One of the better video game movies.

Rating: 7/10 (19 March 2002)

More and more, studios are turning popular video game titles into movies. Unfortunately, more often than not, these films tend to turn out between mediocre and awful. The one film that rose above the norm in my opinion was Final Fantasy, which, despite its shortcomings, still provided some wonderful entertainment.
Resident Evil is much like Final Fantasy in that respect. For one thing, it never pretends to be anything more than it is, a film based on a video game that already has a B-movie plotline. Naturally, it's not going to win any academy awards, but Paul Anderson managed to make a film that should leave most viewers satisfied as long as they aren't too condescending in their opinion.
The action sequences are energetic, which is an accomplishment when you consider that the vast majority of the monsters in the film shuffle along at about two miles an hour. Some of the scenes with the zombies massed together resembled a literal mosh pit of the damned.
While the film doesn't contain any characters from the video games, it's obvious that Anderson did his homework when he wrote the script. The movie functions well as a prequel and to my knowledge doesn't contradict plotline of the games. In many respects, the movie was tailored a bit more to the fans of the games than the general viewing public. Perfectly setting up room for a sequel, fans may yet get a chance to see some of the game series's heroes in living color. It certainly deserves a sequel more than Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, in any case.
To sum up, while Resident Evil is most certainly a popcorn flick, that doesn't necessarily make it a bad film. It has its entertaining moments, and if it's given the benefit of the doubt, it has its rewards as well.