Resident Evil: Afterlife

“Resident Evil: Afterlife” is the fourth installment in the movie series based on the Resident Evil games and the first in the franchise to be in 3D. If you are a fan of the games, you may or may not be interested in seeing this for varying reasons, usually one in particular: That it is loosely based on the games. If you’re a fan of the last three Resident Evil films, you’ll feel right at home. If you’re not any of these you might feel a little lost, but I’ll try to sum up the series thus far…

A zombie apocalypse wiped out most of humanity, and civilization as we know it has collapsed. The cause was a virus manufactured by the Umbrella Corporation. One person in particular, an ex-Umbrella employee named Alice managed to bond with the virus after being experimented on by the company. Instead of becoming a zombie, she gained superhuman qualities from the T-Virus such as superhuman strength, invincibility, and so on. Although Alice sorely resents these powers she uses them to fight against the Umbrella Corporation. I believe that Alice is driven by guilt for her involvement in Umbrella. In one scene, while continuing to search for survivors she asks herself if being alone on Earth is her punishment.

The movie contains many nods to the games Code Veronica and “Resident Evil 5.” A majority of the references are from “Resident Evil 5,” which was released as recently as March 2009. This Resident Evil movie contains probably the most references to the games than the previous movies, which may or may not make it a must see for fans of the games.

The movie was very true to the trailer that advertised it. The trailer reveals some of the best moments from the movie that reference “Resident Evil 5.” If you liked the trailer you’ll probably enjoy this movie. The movie is in essence a horror/action film. It’s full of moments that may frighten some, but excite others. The movie includes gratuitous bullet time showing damage caused to enemies, both human and monsters.

The two major issues that Christian viewers may have with the movie is the violence and language. The violence consists of horror/action type violence. There is a fair amount of blood and gore involved. People are shot, sliced apart, and stabbed, and of course attacked by zombies and other monsters. In one scene a major enemy is killed by a gory head shot. Although the movie is not overly saturated in foul language like many other R-rated films, swear words are used a handful of times. The F-word and variations of it are used at least two or three times. God’s name is taken in vain at least once or twice. Other words used include s*** and d**n. Unlike the other films, there is no overt nudity in this one. However, there is a scene where a survivor seems to be looking at an adult magazine and later tries to peak at Alice who is about to shower, but she quickly finds him hiding, gets angry and tells him to get out.

The movie, like the games, does have a very strong theme of good vs. evil. The villains are portrayed as selfish and twisted while the heroes are shown to work together and care for each other, even in the worst of situations. The movies also have had a consistent theme of guilt for ones past actions. However, forgiveness isn’t earned, it’s a free gift that just needs to be acknowledged.

Overall, the purpose of the Resident Evil movies is to bring the games to a more mainstream audience. If you do decide to see the movie, make sure to stay after the credits for a surprise scene that helps fill in some of the movie series' prior plot holes.

Violence: Extreme / Profanity: Heavy / Sex/Nudity: Moderate

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.

• Positive
• Negative
• Young people