Overall, despite some inconsistencies, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City dishes up plenty of garishly gory scares, sure to satisfy devout horror fanatics while offering just about enough familiarity lore-wise to fulfill faithful followers of the franchise.
It's just a shame its visual effects sometimes lessen the scare factor.
By rebooting the Resident Evil series in line with its video game origins, Writer-Director Johannes Roberts, alongside executive producer Paul W.S Anderson, has sought to loyally repackage the first two games into one blood-soaked, blockbuster spectacle.
Essentially speaking, it's an action-heavy attempt to stitch together memorable moments, iconic scenes, and of course, that comically cheesy, janky dialogue reminiscent of Capcom's source material.
Plotwise, I'm sure you all know the underlying premise. Upon the mysterious disappearance of the Bravo Team, the S.T.A.R.S Alpha team is sworn in to investigate a series of strange occurrences surrounding the iconic Spencer mansion.
The action pivots around franchise-favorites rookie police officer Leon S. Kennedy (Avan Jogia) and Claire Redfield (Kaya Scoledario), who eventually team up to tackle a lethal viral outbreak hellbent on wreaking havoc throughout Raccoon City - a highly infectious plague that transforms the inflicted into blood-feasting fiends.
Many of these reimagined scenes, often painstakingly crafted, have been designed with a precise eye for fidelity, but do expect some unscripted tweaks that may or may not sit well with some.
In terms of faithful portrayal, character personalities and their driving motivations have been tinkered with a little too much for my desired tastes. For instance, Kennedy is, for all intents and purposes, a blundering lout, only able to bag a job through pure nepotism.
Meanwhile, a detached but largely unexplored bond brews between Chris Redfield and distant relative Claire, while Jill Valentine's heart flutters for the beefy but nonbelligerent Albert Wesker.
While some of the tweaks introduced do raise the emotional stakes to a certain degree, the film's suspenseful horror sections and adrenaline-surging action sequences, though perhaps more fleeting than desirable, deserve considerably more praise.
Elsewhere, fans will enjoy the odd easter-egg reference and subtle homage, in conjunction with nerve-shredding atmospherics, in places, alongside some unsettlingly claustrophobic camera work—those tightly enclosed spaces shot within the slim corridors of the Raccoon City's police station, in particular, triggering plenty of internal tension.
Dialogue can, at times, be stiffly delivered, especially for incoming characters. Furthermore, it seems as though condensing the bulky subject matter into one feature-length film has brought with it the jarring presence of intermittent plot holes.
At this point, I should also say that the VFX can be a little underwhelming. Not least, when depicting the rapid, flesh-feasting creatures. Undoubtedly an area of disappointment. Thus, the film's more exhilarating set-pieces lose their visceral sting as a side effect.
Despite its rough edges, this faithful adaptation delivers a series of suspenseful scenes while keeping the action front and center. However, those without prior affection for the games may feel slightly out of sorts.
Overall, there are enough freakish flavors of horror here to get fans of apocalyptic disaster flicks firmly occupying their seats -just perhaps not dangling over the edge. But, in the end, it may just require a premium box of popcorn, non-critical specs, and some narrative patience.
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