Strangely enough, the closest film I've seen to a quality live-action Resident Evil cinematic experience is actually 2011's The Raid: Redemption. Granted, it goes without saying that its world, plot, characters, and themes greatly differ in context.
It's a martial arts action crime-thriller, NOT meant as horror. And yet, Gareth Evans' execution of its premise & atmosphere draw surprising similarities to the original RE, which I will elaborate on below. Feedback is welcome: 👍
1) Unlikely underdogs- Both stories open with an elite police force on their way to an assignment (The Raid's being pretty self-explanatory) at an isolated location, after which the mission goes horribly wrong and they're trapped.
Finding themselves in way over their heads, surrounded by enemies (residents) who know the environment better, and losing comrades left & right, the police must survive long enough to find an escape while navigating this deathtrap.
2) Rescue- Somewhat like how S.T.A.R.S. Alpha Team's objective was partially to investigate what happened to their friends in Bravo Team, The Raid's Rama has his own additional mission: Find his brother Andi and bring him home.
Granted, the two scenarios differ in that Andi is one of the head-criminals Rama's squad is assigned to capture or kill and Rama keeps their relation a secret. Regardless, Andi plays a crucial role to Rama as Rebecca does to Alpha Team.
3) Isolation- Both experiences (interactive & cinematic) emphasize claustrophobic terror + dread of being lost in a dangerous setting with no way out that isn't rife with danger. Sound, lighting, and line of sight all sell the atmosphere.
The fixed camera angles of the original RE's pre-rendered backgrounds work because, unlike a 3rd or 1st person game, you don't control your character's line of sight. You only ever see what each level's design was made for you to see.
Similarly, the way The Raid's long hallways, rooms, corners, doors, and windows are shot limits what you see compared to the characters' pov, listening for that next life-or-death encounter that may be just out of sight, ready to pounce.
4) Survival-horror- Perhaps even more so than RE, The Raid immediately leaves its leads vulnerable once the suspenseful intro kicks into the conflict. These elite officers are whittled down man by man, bullet by bullet, blow for blow.
Both set up this team of veterans + a couple-few comparatively less experienced rookies entering what is obviously a situation full of unknowns (outside needed exposition), who are then robbed of their power and must take it back.
The pressure rarely lets up. Before long, every weapon found, every resource, every near-death escape, every brief respite between fights feels like a small victory. This professional squad is broken down into scared, desperate people.
This atmosphere is most palpable during the slow-burn sequences of Rama having to hide with wounded fellow officer Bowo, Jaka & company sneaking through bathrooms, and the machete-wielding hunters chasing Rama to a dead end.
Evans' direction of unbearable quiet, timing, and unpredictability make the tension just as thick in its own right as when you're carefully exploring Spencer Mansion's circles of hell with red health and only your knife left to defend yourself.
5) Conspiracy- Both plots reveal that the reasons behind the characters' mission are not what they thought. Something about their task in either case feels off from the start and it becomes clear that their predicament was no accident.
6) Betrayal- Just as Albert Wesker was unveiled as a traitor who set his S.T.A.R.S. comrades up to die, The Raid's Wahyu is revealed as a corrupt cop who (though trapped like everyone else) was out for his own personal gain all along.
7) Salvation- After finally defeating Mad Dog, who could be considered The Raid's equivalent to the Tyrant in context of threat level to the protagonists 🤔, Andi provides an exit for the sole survivors of the failed raid: Rama and Bowo.
Like the sun shining on Chris & jill having survived the night, Rama and his ally live to fight another day (now armed with info. to share about the conspiracy they uncovered). Unlike Rebecca, however, Andi cannot be convinced to leave.
Edit: Comment below, what do you all think? Did The Raid: Redemption unintentionally become the best live-action RE film we've gotten thus far? Would you want a live-action RE reboot to draw from The Raid? 🤷
Submitted May 03, 2019 at 07:56AM by harriskeith29 http://bit.ly/2ZU2gwP