Resident Evil: The Final Chapter

I enjoyed the apocalyptic exteriors, even the flying zombie-dragon and the pack of zombie-wolves. Just like I enjoyed the trailer. But watching those dusty and dark landscapes and later mostly gray interiors for more than 20 minutes is only for the very thick-skinned, and for fans who still go to the cinemas and make this the only successful movie series based on a computer game. What will Paul W.S. Anderson do now? (08.02.2017)

A lobotomy of taste and a stimulant of regret. The idiocy is driven to such absurdity that there is no point in being angry at the film. Attempts at iconic moments (the dragon) come to naught, and anything pretending to be plot tightens the corkscrew in your skull. Surprisingly, the expected unplugging does not take place, and not even the dumbest zombie believes that this is the "Final" one. Milla is over forty and Avon doesn't work forever. There will be a reboot in four years. (07.04.2017)

Absolutely nothing and I'm surprised anyone is still into this. The story is completely lame and it seems to me that every episode deals with exactly the same thing: Racoon City, Alice, over and over again. Instead of zombies, there are dragons flying and the bad guys are human, so instead of a zombie horror movie, we have a fantasy action movie that takes place entirely in the dark where you can't see a thing, with about 20 cuts in each shot, making it almost unwatchable. The visuals look like something out of a very cheap horror C-movie and the repetitive laser scene is downright shameful. The gore is also almost non-existent. Shit. 15%. (16.03.2017)

It draws you in with its fateful subtitle, but stumbles over its own feet already with the main character's initial wandering. There are so many fake jump scares (a can, a printer) that I don't even flinch anymore at the real ones hiding some cunning creature. When it tries to get more intense, the action remains desperately sterile, lacking atmosphere, and even promising moments end up sadly forgettable. However, the dozens of logical errors are the most tragic part, tearing apart an otherwise more than decent pace. It's not surprising that the unexpectedly successful attempt at a grand finale is brought down by silly twists, but in the end, thanks to Iain Glen's appealingly frantic performance, I'm almost okay with it. The expectations were, after all, in the negative. (26.03.2017)

It's stupid, but I didn't really expect anything else. I'd have preferred to have more fun, which didn't happen either. The Mad Max introduction was rather awkwardly in the B-movie style, and although it flashed slightly more horror-like at times with the arrival to the Hive (to which the closed environment of Resident Evil testifies), in the finale it was again only trash with an awfully cluttered edit of the action scenes. There's no point in thinking about the errors in logic (if I was the bad guy, I'd just leave that fan on and see what happens...), it's just a crappy video game that you can't even play, anyway. The final chapter? I wish. (01.02.2019)

Not much has changed since the last installment—Paul W.S. Anderson no longer prioritizes the story, so it’s not particularly imaginative, but even so, he’s moved a few steps up from Retribution. I’m disappointed that the film didn’t start where Retribution left off. A battle for Washington and Wesker’s betrayal wouldn’t have been a bad premise, but it was probably too expensive. The Final Chapter once again boasts great visuals and well-crafted exterior scenes (for a $40 million budget, don’t expect a massive spectacle, but some scenes are still well above average), with few flaws to be found. It bothers me a little that, unlike the games, there are fewer recurring characters, but I’ve gotten used to that by now. The opening scene with the dragon felt both fun and over-the-top (which is pretty standard for this series). The story wasn’t amazing, but it had a decent enough plot that didn’t really hurt the film, and overall, it didn’t require too much thought. I’d criticize the occasionally confusing camera work, where the viewer doesn’t get to fully enjoy the fights, along with the rapid cuts. Otherwise, it’s another spectacle that’s visually appealing. Although the title suggests it’s the final chapter, the ending didn’t really close things off. We’ll see what happens next. I give it 66%. (04.08.2017)