Is
it ever a good idea to use a video game as the basis for a movie? The
question is still up for debate, but in my opinion, it is a hit or miss
proposition- just like transcribing any other source material to the silver
screen. Video games do not have the depth of novels, plays, histories
or even biographies, but if one were setting out to make an action/horror
movie- Resident Evil seems to be the perfect springboard
for such an enterprise. But then again, a movie version of House
Of The Dead is currently in the works- and it too would seem to
be the ideal basis to start up a new action/horror movie franchise.
RESIDENT
EVIL ($28) is a slick, fast paced movie that incorporates elements
of the science fiction, horror and action movie genres. Set in a high
tech underground corporate research facility known as The Hive, RESIDENT
EVIL tells the story of what happens when the Red Queen, The Hive’s
computer system, kills everyone on the inside of the facility. A corporate
commando team is dispatched to infiltrate The Hive and shut down the Red
Queen, so they can discover just what went wrong. As it turns out, a genetically
engineered virus infected The Hive and the Red Queen was only following
the quarantine protocol when she exterminated all the employees.
Unfortunately,
the commandos learn the truth too late, and by shutting down the Red Queen,
they unleash a hoard flesh-eating zombies- the dead employees, who have
been transformed by the virus. This leaves the commandos to fight off
the ravenous dead, while trying to escape the labyrinthine facility before
the corporation permanently seals The Hive. The cast of RESIDENT EVIL
features Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Eric Mabius, James Purefoy,
Martin Crewes, Pasquale Aleardi, Colin Salmon, Heike Makatsch, Liz May
Brice, Jaymes Butler and Michaela Dicker.
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made RESIDENT EVIL available on
DVD in a 1.85:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic
enhancement for 16:9 displays. There is no doubt about it; this is a dynamite
transfer of difficult material. Cinematographer David Johnson has pulled
out all the stops, utilizing colored lighting, filters and various printing
techniques to create a number of different moods throughout the course
of the film. I really like how the film’s production design and cinematography
mesh the austere antiseptic world of The Hive with the grittiness of the
facility’s underbelly, once it becomes populated with the living dead.
The
transfer renders every bit of RESIDENT EVIL with wonderful clarity
and generous detail. Colors range from fully saturated to subdued- depending
on the desired mood, all of which is reproduced without chroma noise or
smearing. Flesh tones almost never look natural, but that is attributable
to the film’s lighting. Blacks are perfectly inky and shadow detail is
usually excellent. Whites become blown out much of the time and contrast
is generally harsh by design. The film element used for the transfer is
free from blemishes, although a grain structure is noticeable in many
of the films darker sequences. The dual layer DVD keeps digital compression
artifacts very well concealed.
RESIDENT
EVIL sports a really kicking Dolby
Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack that immediately goes to the top of demo
quality pile. To say that this soundtrack is aggressively mixed is an
understatement. Sounds come from everywhere, plus individual effects can
move effortlessly in any direction. The mix perfectly creates sonic environments
that are filled with sounds; yet never seem cluttered. Dialogue is crisp,
clean and always fully understandable. The bass channel is guaranteed
to give your subwoofer a workout, so if you crank the volume, better take
the breakables off the shelves. Marco Beltrami and Marilyn Manson collaborated
on the film’s score, and the end result produces something reminiscent
of Goblin’s music on Dario Argento’s SUSPIRIA. Of course, the end
result of the collaboration creates something that works perfectly on
a movie like RESIDENT EVIL. As for how the music sounds, in a word,
incredible. A French 5.1 channel soundtrack has also been encoded onto
the DVD, as have English and French subtitles.
Animation
and sound serve to enhanced the very cool interface of the DVD’s interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as the supplemental materials. Starting things
off is a running audio commentary featuring director Paul W.S. Anderson,
producer Jeremy Bolt and actors Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriquez.
This track is a must listen for entertainment value alone- this is one
funny commentary. However, anyone looking for a serious discussion of
the movie making process had better try another commentary on another
DVD.
There
are five programs listed under featurette, although only two of the programs
truly qualify for that description. Running almost thirty minutes is The
Making of Resident Evil, which has a bit more depth than the typical
fluffy PR piece. The program does feature a reasonably detailed look behind-the-scenes,
as well as the usual interviews with cast and crew. Clocking in at ten
minutes is Scoring Resident Evil, which provides interesting
interview footage with Marco Beltrami and Marilyn Manson, who discuss
their collaboration. The other three programs are entitled Costumes,
Set Design, and Zombie Make-Up Tests have
a combined running time of approximately ten minutes- and the titles give
the gist of their content. A Slipknot music video for the song My
Plague, a theatrical trailer and cast & crew filmographies
close out the supplements.
RESIDENT
EVIL proves to be a very good video
game to movie adaptation- it is fast moving, loud and provides plenty
of violence. If you like horror movies or action movies or even the video
game that inspired it, you will want to check out RESIDENT EVIL
on DVD. Of course, if you are looking for a new demo quality DVD to give
you sound system a workout, they you will definitely want to pick up a
copy of RESIDENT EVIL. However, with a two disc, even more special
edition of RESIDENT EVIL on the way, fans may just want to rent
this DVD and buy the next one when it is released.
Is
it ever a good idea to use a video game as the basis for a movie? The
question is still up for debate, but in my opinion, it is a hit or miss
proposition- just like transcribing any other source material to the silver
screen. Video games do not have the depth of novels, plays, histories
or even biographies, but if one were setting out to make an action/horror
movie- Resident Evil seems to be the perfect springboard
for such an enterprise. But then again, a movie version of House
Of The Dead is currently in the works- and it too would seem to
be the ideal basis to start up a new action/horror movie franchise.
RESIDENT
EVIL ($28) is a slick, fast paced movie that incorporates elements
of the science fiction, horror and action movie genres. Set in a high
tech underground corporate research facility known as The Hive, RESIDENT
EVIL tells the story of what happens when the Red Queen, The Hive’s
computer system, kills everyone on the inside of the facility. A corporate
commando team is dispatched to infiltrate The Hive and shut down the Red
Queen, so they can discover just what went wrong. As it turns out, a genetically
engineered virus infected The Hive and the Red Queen was only following
the quarantine protocol when she exterminated all the employees.
Unfortunately,
the commandos learn the truth too late, and by shutting down the Red Queen,
they unleash a hoard flesh-eating zombies- the dead employees, who have
been transformed by the virus. This leaves the commandos to fight off
the ravenous dead, while trying to escape the labyrinthine facility before
the corporation permanently seals The Hive. The cast of RESIDENT EVIL
features Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Eric Mabius, James Purefoy,
Martin Crewes, Pasquale Aleardi, Colin Salmon, Heike Makatsch, Liz May
Brice, Jaymes Butler and Michaela Dicker.
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made RESIDENT EVIL available on
DVD in a 1.85:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic
enhancement for 16:9 displays. There is no doubt about it; this is a dynamite
transfer of difficult material. Cinematographer David Johnson has pulled
out all the stops, utilizing colored lighting, filters and various printing
techniques to create a number of different moods throughout the course
of the film. I really like how the film’s production design and cinematography
mesh the austere antiseptic world of The Hive with the grittiness of the
facility’s underbelly, once it becomes populated with the living dead.
The
transfer renders every bit of RESIDENT EVIL with wonderful clarity
and generous detail. Colors range from fully saturated to subdued- depending
on the desired mood, all of which is reproduced without chroma noise or
smearing. Flesh tones almost never look natural, but that is attributable
to the film’s lighting. Blacks are perfectly inky and shadow detail is
usually excellent. Whites become blown out much of the time and contrast
is generally harsh by design. The film element used for the transfer is
free from blemishes, although a grain structure is noticeable in many
of the films darker sequences. The dual layer DVD keeps digital compression
artifacts very well concealed.
RESIDENT
EVIL sports a really kicking Dolby
Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack that immediately goes to the top of demo
quality pile. To say that this soundtrack is aggressively mixed is an
understatement. Sounds come from everywhere, plus individual effects can
move effortlessly in any direction. The mix perfectly creates sonic environments
that are filled with sounds; yet never seem cluttered. Dialogue is crisp,
clean and always fully understandable. The bass channel is guaranteed
to give your subwoofer a workout, so if you crank the volume, better take
the breakables off the shelves. Marco Beltrami and Marilyn Manson collaborated
on the film’s score, and the end result produces something reminiscent
of Goblin’s music on Dario Argento’s SUSPIRIA. Of course, the end
result of the collaboration creates something that works perfectly on
a movie like RESIDENT EVIL. As for how the music sounds, in a word,
incredible. A French 5.1 channel soundtrack has also been encoded onto
the DVD, as have English and French subtitles.
Animation
and sound serve to enhanced the very cool interface of the DVD’s interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection
and set up features, as well as the supplemental materials. Starting things
off is a running audio commentary featuring director Paul W.S. Anderson,
producer Jeremy Bolt and actors Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriquez.
This track is a must listen for entertainment value alone- this is one
funny commentary. However, anyone looking for a serious discussion of
the movie making process had better try another commentary on another
DVD.
There
are five programs listed under featurette, although only two of the programs
truly qualify for that description. Running almost thirty minutes is The
Making of Resident Evil, which has a bit more depth than the typical
fluffy PR piece. The program does feature a reasonably detailed look behind-the-scenes,
as well as the usual interviews with cast and crew. Clocking in at ten
minutes is Scoring Resident Evil, which provides interesting
interview footage with Marco Beltrami and Marilyn Manson, who discuss
their collaboration. The other three programs are entitled Costumes,
Set Design, and Zombie Make-Up Tests have
a combined running time of approximately ten minutes- and the titles give
the gist of their content. A Slipknot music video for the song My
Plague, a theatrical trailer and cast & crew filmographies
close out the supplements.
RESIDENT
EVIL proves to be a very good video
game to movie adaptation- it is fast moving, loud and provides plenty
of violence. If you like horror movies or action movies or even the video
game that inspired it, you will want to check out RESIDENT EVIL
on DVD. Of course, if you are looking for a new demo quality DVD to give
you sound system a workout, they you will definitely want to pick up a
copy of RESIDENT EVIL. However, with a two disc, even more special
edition of RESIDENT EVIL on the way, fans may just want to rent
this DVD and buy the next one when it is released.
