I was hesitant in writing a complete review for Resident Evil: Retribution as I had not seen any of the other movies in the series. It was completely unexpected that I watched it on its opening day. I would have chosen Finding Nemo instead, but the person I went to the theater with was a huge Resident Evil fan. I will just go over my impressions of the film.
Along with never watching the movies, I have not taken the time to do a full play through of any of the games. One day I will play through Resident Evil 4 which I hear is brilliant. I have a small understanding of RE lore and was concerned that the plot for Retribution would have been convoluted. Oddly enough, almost the first five minutes of the film are spent recapping all of the major events in the previous movies. I had never seen a movie do this before. It was useful, but it did not feel like all of the background information was needed. The plot was very easy to follow and was just showing an execution of an escape plan.
The length of the film is what bothered me the most. I think I have just gotten used to long movies but 96 minutes felt short, especially when you take into account the giant cliffhanger ending. It felt like they accidentally a second half (Yes, accidentally a second half). A lot of scenes were done in slow motion. It really makes me wonder how much actual content they had.
In the end there were some satisfying kills, but there really was not anything special about it. Wesker did not look like a real person. The dubstep that was played at the end bothered me; at least it had the wobble bass. I find it hard to recommend to a person who is not familiar with the other movies. Now I have to watch the next one just to see what happens.
On a semi-related note, the theater was completely empty by the time the movie finished. Not a single employee in sight. It was creepy. It felt like a zombie apocalypse was about to happen.
Laneous Missile 