Resident Evil: Retribution Review

I think it's worth prefacing this review with this; I like the previous Resident Evil films. I saw the first three when I was reasonably young, and I thought the fourth one was a lot of fun, albeit a guilty pleasure. So just know that all of this is coming from someone who really wanted to enjoy this film. I did not. At all.

Resident Evil: Retribution is hands down the worst film in the series. If you like the games, or the movies, avoid this film. Retribution feels more like a video game than any of the other films, but more in the sense of a multi-player mode rather than an actual campaign with a story. There is basically no story. It's set entirely inside of a underwater complex with various different rooms, each with different generated scenarios.

The film also acts as a best-of, as they fill the screen with familiar faces. None of these are the characters you knew though. They are all clones. What's interesting about Michelle Rodriguez's character being a cloned bad guy? Absolutely nothing. The only likeable character in the whole movie is a clone of Michelle Rodriguez that is a civilian. It's because she is a normal person. How are we supposed to relate to Milla Jovovich as Alice by now. She walks around practically expressionless shooting CGI monsters.

Also, be warned any fan of the games. Leon is in this. His role in the squad is the unlikeable guy who does and says dumb things that you want to die. They went beyond ruining his character. He is completely unlikeable.

Normally everything above can sometimes be brushed off and forgiven if the special effects and action are good enough to warrant the ticket price. However, Retribution features some of the most poorly shot action sequences I've ever seen. Early on in the film, Alice fights a horde of zombies inside of a CGI white hallway. The slow-motion and then ramping of speed became immediately tiresome, and the choreography was uninspired, and completely boring. This happens scene after scene, and then you start wondering why you are sitting in the theatre, watching an action movie where you want them to stop the godawful fighting, just because hearing the horrendous dialogue is less painful.

I struggled to find something to like about Retribution, but if there was one thing it's definitely the music. It felt like old school electro mixed with dubstep. There were one or two shots that looked visually spectacular too.

Bottom-line is, don't see this movie. Even if you liked the last films, this one isn't worth the watch. The acting is horrible, the action is boring and the plot is absent. You could easily skip over this one and go straight to the sixth. Oh, and yes, it looks like there will be a sixth...

By Brodie Marchant