More of the same... so I'm happy.

Rating: 7/10 (7 July 2012)

Having sat it out for parts two and three, Paul W.S. Anderson returns to the director's chair for Afterlife, the fourth film in the Resident Evil series; rather unsurprisingly, his film is another slick, effects packed horror/sci-fi hybrid with the emphasis on glossy 3D action set-pieces rather than character development or plot progression. As such, the film is unlikely to alter the opinions of those who haven't enjoyed the series thus far, but the rest should have a blast...
Anderson occasionally goes a bit over the top with his Matrix-style visuals, particularly in the film's opening scene, which utilises an excess of bullet-time effects and gravity defying acrobatics, but for the most part his handling of the action is pretty impressive. There are loads of effective scares, the slow motion gives Jovovich and Larter fans plenty of time to appreciate the stars' physical form, and what the film lacks in originality, it sure makes up for in energy.
The film might owe a lot to other genre classics for inspiration, but once the action kicks in, Afterlife proves to be a very entertaining time-waster indeed. Not all of it makes sense, but with survivors of the zombie apocalypse seemingly comprising of at least 50% hot women capable of kicking major butt (check out that shower room scene with the massive monster vs Alice and Claire for sheer awesomeness) this proves to be another satisfying entry in a consistently fun franchise.