‘Resident Evil’ Movie Review – Is It Worth Watching?

Taking things back to square one, Resident Evil is the reboot from Zach Cregger and the filmmakers behind Barbarian and Weapons, ditching bloated mythology to follow a simple courier guy caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. After dropping off a routine package at a local hospital, Bryan is commissioned to undertake a critical delivery to a laboratory in Raccoon City. Knowing full well that he cannot afford to make stops – and gradually discovering the grave importance of his cargo – he embarks on the trip despite being equipped with the wrong car for wintry conditions and shirking his family responsibilities in favour of an easy payday. What begins as a straightforward drive spirals down a rabbit hole of disturbing events following a sudden accident.

As a video game adaptation, the film flirts with a first-person perspective, establishing a character who serves as an effective vessel for vicarious emotion. Rather than milking the gimmick, the narrative favours a grounded approach centred on Bryan’s unassuming shoulders, watching his journey unfold as each encounter escalates the scale of the outbreak and coaxingly unleashes one increasingly grotesque mutant threat to dwarf the last. There’s a welcome comedic slant to the dread, poking fun at Bryan’s incredulous reactions as things spin wildly out of control. Moving from rural countryside happenings toward the infected urban sprawl, his struggle to deliver the consignment forces him closer to the horrifying truth.

Visually, the production channels a graphic-novel intensity with a comic-book edge that keeps the terror tethered to reality before steadily tipping into full-blown horror fantasy. It operates as a smart survival adventure, cleverly engineering set-pieces where Bryan must solve one desperate problem after the next just to “level up”. The script’s tongue-in-cheek streak works wonders; the levity never undercuts the stakes, but instead provides an entertaining, deeply human anchor. Leaning into self-deprecation while keenly aware of his limitations, our unlikely hero swings between foolish decisions and moments of genuine bravery.

“Uh, excuse me mam.”

Dialogue is kept remarkably sparse, avoiding unnecessary self-talk despite the solo trek, letting powerful visual storytelling do the heavy lifting. Nuance emerges organically through Austin Abrams’s candid performance, balancing comedy and drama with an off-handed, likeable charm. Much like District 9 turned Wikus van de Merwe’s bureaucratic everyman into the emotional heart of an alien nightmare, Abrams anchors the chaos through an almost naïve, admirable impulse to make the best of a terrible hand.

The road-trip structure lends an immersive, game-like rhythm without feeling contrived. The tension of scrounging for scarce ammunition and improvised weaponry makes a single undead encounter far more nerve-wracking than an endless horde. From sterile hospital corridors and frozen farmsteads to snow-blanketed city streets, the transition between locations feels seamless. Backed by commendable visual effects, the creatures remain creatively staged, genuinely terrifying and mercifully free of over-exposition.

While one or two moments could have benefited from sharper polish regarding situational thinking, the film builds toward an imaginative, punchy climax. Where the original Paul W.S. Anderson films anchored themselves around an untouchable, superheroic Milla Jovovich as Alice, this version lets the environment take centre stage. Cregger delivers an underdog triumph that refuses to overburden itself with lore, setting an exciting benchmark for future sequels.

The bottom line: Reinvigorating