Zach Cregger might not be your cup of tea, but his incredible gift behind the camera cannot be ignored.
uncertain
gift → ignore → camera
The writer/director comes armed with absolute terror and hilarity, two things that seem incompatible on the surface, yet he's able to blend seamlessly.
asserted
he → come → surface
If "Resident Evil" sounds familiar, that's because it's a long-running video game franchise that turned into a long-running movie franchise starring Milla Jovovich.
asserted
that → sound → Jovovich
In this version of "Resident Evil," her character Alice is nowhere to be found.
asserted
character → find → Evil
Instead, it stars Austin Abrams, who plays a medical courier named Bryan urgently tasked with delivering what he believes is a vital organ to a hospital in Raccoon City.
asserted
he → star → City
What was supposed to be a quiet, uneventful drive devolves into a series of unfortunate events for Bryan, the cause of which stems from a lab leak of a virus (we all know how easily this can happen, right?) developed by the Umbrella Corporation that transforms organisms into what can only be described as ungodly monsters from the darkest of nightmares.
asserted
what → suppose → nightmares
The "Resident Evil" movies we've been used to feature Jovovich being a gun-slinging badass with a zombie body count in the thousands.
asserted
Jovovich → use → thousands
Here, the scrawny Bryan can barely figure out how to turn the safety off.
asserted
Bryan → figure → safety
It was a bold choice for Cregger to cast Abrams as Bryan.
asserted
Cregger → cast → Bryan
You may recognize Abrams for his stints in "Euphoria" and "This Is Us" or various movies, like Cregger's 2025 Oscar-winning breakout "Weapons," but he hasn't been the star of such a high-profile project, particularly as big as this.
uncertain
he → recognize → this
His performance is able to generate big laughs as he maintains such seriousness (after all, Bryan is literally fighting for survival).
asserted
Bryan → generate → survival
"Resident Evil" should hopefully mark a new chapter in Abrams' career as a leading man — because he's certainly capable.
asserted
he → mark → man
Abrams is essentially a one-man show, but Paul Walter Hauser ("Richard Jewell," "I, Tonya"), Kali Reis ("True Detective") and Zach Cherry ("Severance") make memorable, albeit brief, appearances.
asserted
Hauser → make → appearances
As a fan of the original source material, Cregger brings the video game experience to life, playing around with first-person angles as we see from Bryan's view of where he's aiming his gun, or the tracking shot as we follow him in the snowy terrain or an eerily quiet house.
asserted
we → bring → terrain
He and co-writer Shay Hatten (who wrote the more recent "John Wick" installments) were able to stick the landing by juggling bloody thrills with gallows humor.
asserted
who → write → humor
And no offense to Cregger's franchise predecessor Paul W.S. Anderson, but the production value is just far superior in this "Resident Evil" between the cinematography from Oscar nominee Dariusz Wolski ("The Martian"), the score from brothers Hays and Ryan Holladay and the editing from Joe Murphy (all of whom worked on "Weapons" and Cregger's solo feature debut "Barbarian") as well as the gruesome special effects and makeup work.
asserted
all → work → Weapons
While it's difficult to rank this higher than "Barbarian" and "Weapons" ("Barbarian" is still my favorite of the three), Cregger is flexing his muscles taking on a Hollywood franchise and has cemented his status among the small elite group of rising filmmakers who have had such a strong streak so early in their careers (think Jordan Peele or Yorgos Lanthimos).
asserted
who → rank → Peele
And if he keeps it up, perhaps he can reach Christopher Nolan's status where audiences flock to see his movies because the man in the director's chair has become the real star.
asserted
man → keep → chair
The Verdict
"Resident Evil" comes back to life in this fun, infectious reboot thanks to Zach Cregger's brilliance behind the camera and Austin Abrams' charming performance as an unlikely lead in front of it.
asserted
Evil → come → it
If you can't stomach the gore, this isn't for you.
asserted
this → stomach → you
But for those who get a kick out of it, get that bucket of popcorn ready.
asserted
bucket → get → popcorn
"Resident Evil" is rated R for strong bloody violence, gore and language throughout.
asserted
Evil → rat → violence
The Aporia
