Resident Evil on DVD

Ladies and gentlemen, we'd like to present "Night of the Living Dead: The Action Movie."

A deadly virus has been unleashed in a secret underground laboratory, causing people to turn into zombies. So it's up to a team of paramilitary commandos to infiltrate the base and find the antivirus before the virus escapes into the city, zombie-izing every living thing.

Milla Jovovich is Alice, a sexy amnesiac who wakes up without a clue. A team of commandos breaks into her house and claims she's one of them, and she needs to come with them on their mission. But rather than give her a chance to suit up, they drag her along in her red dress, which would be more suitable for clubbing. When they reach the base, one by one the team is killed off by the security system and zombies, leaving only the main characters to fight the effects of the virus.

To say any more would be to spoil the fun of the movie, which should go down in history as one of the best bad movies ever made.

The plot is tough to follow and completely inane, but it doesn't matter. You watch a movie like this to see sexy babes kick zombie butt, and that's exactly what you get. It has some good jumpy moments, cheap but cool action, and plenty of gore.

Just what you expect from a B-movie.

Director Paul W.S. Anderson (Mortal Kombat, Event Horizon), has done a good job, not trying to make the film anything more than it is.

Resident Evil will probably appeal more to fans of the video game, or those who have a high tolerance for bad but fun movies. It's not the kind you'd want to watch with the kids, but it's great to watch with friends.

Columbia Tristar has done a pretty good job here. Though within a year they'll undoubtedly be releasing a 2-disc version with plenty more extras, that didn't stop them from giving this version the "Special Edition" treatment.

The top-notch picture is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, and the quality is outstanding. Colors are rich, picture is clear, and there is no trace of foreign objects anywhere. This kind of movie cries out for this kind of video, so it's nice to see. The audio is equally impressive, with the 5.1 Dolby Digital making great use of the surrounds. Especially during the action scenes and "jump points," the sound effects surround you, and you even get some of the music from behind. Both the picture and sound are great, which in a way is unfortunate, since we know we'll be getting the same transfers on the 2-disc version. It'll just have some extra supplements and nothing more.

Or maybe it'll be a Superbit title...

Speaking of supplements, first up is an audio commentary with director Paul W.S. Anderson, producer Jeremy Bolt and actors Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriquez. This is the best kind of commentary, as it's a bunch of friends getting together to watch something they've done. They enjoy each other's company and play off each other very well. The Making of Resident Evil is a half hour behind-the-scenes gig that features the usual interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. Although, it must be mentioned that this is much, much better than most "making-of" featurettes.

There are four other featurettes, called "Scoring Resident Evil," "Costumes," "Set Design" and "Zombie Make-up Tests." They run about 20 minutes total, and are not as in-depth as they should be (except for Scoring Resident Evil, which features more of Marilyn Manson than anyone should be subjected to).

Finally, there is a Slipknot music video, filmographies, production notes, and trailers.

This is a fun movie and a great DVD, but it's probably only worth a rental if you plan on waiting for and buying the inevitable 2-disc version.

Resident Evil, from Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment
101 minutes, anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) 16X9 enhanced, 5.1 Dolby Digital
Starring Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Eric Mabius, James Purefoy
Produced by Bernd Eichinger, Samuel Hadida, Jeremy Bolt, Paul W.S. Anderson
Written and Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson

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