‘Resident Evil’ Review: Raccoon City Is Finally Scary Again

Resident Evil has spent years getting turned into a brand name instead of a horror movie. Hollywood kept chasing leather outfits, slow-motion gunplay, and winks at fans who just wanted one thing: a film that understands why the games worked in the first place. I’m happy to report that Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil finally gets it. This is perhaps the best Resident Evil movie since Paul W. S. Anderson’s 2002 original, because it remembers that Capcom built this franchise on fear, limited ammo, locked doors, bad choices, and monsters that only get worse the longer you stay alive. Cregger, who co-wrote the script with Shay Hatten, doesn’t try to copy the game plots beat for beat. He also doesn’t drag out familiar heroes so fans can clap when somebody says a famous name. That restraint pays off. The movie tells an original story in Raccoon City during the early days of an outbreak, but it feels built from the same survival-horror rules that made the games a hit. RESIDENT EVIL – Official Trailer (4K) Austin Abrams plays Bryan, a medical courier having a lousy day before it becomes a living nightmare. He’s dealing with trouble at home when he takes a rush delivery into snowy mountain coun...