Five years after the unique “Resident Evil” movie collection concluded with “The Final Chapter,” filmmaker Johannes Roberts rebooted the cinematic franchise with 2021’s “Resident Evil: Welcome to Racoon City.” Roberts caught nearer to the video games, particularly the primary two mainline installments, chronicling a police squad investigating an ominous mansion on the outskirts of city whereas zombies swarm Raccoon City. Also, reasonably than depend on a brand-new protagonist like the flicks earlier than his, Roberts targeted on basic characters from the video games, who’ve all been recast for his adaptation.
“Welcome to Raccoon City” actually feels acquainted to any followers of the video games and is loaded with Easter eggs associated to the franchise, but it surely simply tries to perform an excessive amount of in its 107-minute runtime. The new solid is earnest sufficient, with Kaya Scodelario’s Claire Redfield being the spotlight, and it is the primary “Resident Evil” film shortly that feels scary at occasions, however the entire thing is a noticeably rushed affair. With such a stable solid and constancy to the supply materials, hopefully, these sensibilities shall be retained in potential follow-ups as a result of, for all its flaws, “Welcome to Raccoon City” feels extra like a franchise love letter than prior diversifications.