Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

Another Resident Evil film in my marathon. Yet again this one was cheese but it is fun cheese. They brought in Jill Valentine from the game series and dressed her correctly. They also brought in Nemesis which was both good and bad in regards to practical effects.

This story picks up where the first one left off and Raccoon City is under siege from the zombie hoard. Things are looking grim for the city and the Umbrella Corporation is making it even more difficult for anyone to get out of town. (Since apparently the town is walled off and there is only one entry/exit point). This one focuses on three different groups of survivors including Alice (Milla Jovovich), Jill Valentine and her group, and a group of S.T.A.R.S. officers. They have to get Dr. Ashford's daughter to get out of town and it's their tale of survival.

This one also had Scut Farkas from A Christmas Story and I couldn't unsee him as that character. :)

There were some solid action sequences in this one. The zombies, like most of these Resident Evil films, just kinda occupy space. In this one, Nemesis was the big baddie. In some scenes his practical effects were decent and he was menacing but in others he kept the same facial pose for so long it became silly. Once again, I do like what they did with the zombie dogs (although, are Dobermans the only dogs that can be infected?). Even the CGI on the Lickers was better this time around.

I will say that outside of Jovovich, the acting was pretty, pretty, pretty, bad. It was on the level of a B-film and the lines were just so bad. I think the director wanted over the top caricatures and he got them. One thing I do love, however, is Jovovich as she has such great facial tics, especially in her smart ass smile.

Overall it was cheese but I know to expect that with this series. I'm not watching them for a deep philosophical experiment but instead to see some silliness and fun with the genre. It doesn't hurt that Jovovich is the star.

Again, I'll recommend it but mainly for the cheesy popcorn film factor. If you want to think about zombies and their implications, look elsewhere.

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