Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

There's a very specific kind of bad film that somehow becomes a good time anyway, and Resident Evil: Apocalypse is one of them. I want to be clear: it's not a good film. Not even close. Two stars, and I'm being generous. But stick it on with a group of mates, a bowl of crisps, and absolutely no faith in what you're about to watch, and there's something almost enjoyable buried in the wreckage.

The plot, such as it is, collapses under its own weight the moment you start paying attention. Every time the script tries to explain itself, it raises three new questions it has no intention of answering. Characters appear, do things, and vanish. Motivations evaporate. Logic takes an early exit and doesn't bother coming back. I genuinely think the more effort you put into following the story, the worse a time you'll have. The trick is to let it wash over you like a warm, stupid bath.

Milla Jovovich is back as Alice, and she has the look of someone counting down the days until this shoot wraps. I don't blame her. She's clearly capable of carrying an action film, but nobody here seems interested in giving her anything worth doing beyond posing in doorways and kicking things. The supporting cast commits to the material with a kind of fearless hamminess that, honestly, I found endearing in its own strange way. Nobody's winning any awards, but a few of them are clearly having a laugh, and that energy is infectious.

The zombies, meanwhile, are more baffling than frightening. They lumber and groan and occasionally look genuinely confused about what film they've wandered into, which is fair enough really. The action sequences are where things get particularly odd. There's a video game logic to the choreography, like each set piece was designed as a cutscene first and a film scene second. Enemies wait their turn. Explosions happen on cue. It's less tense thriller and more interactive entertainment stripped of the interactivity.

The one-liners deserve a special mention. They're delivered with a straight face and land with a magnificent thud every single time. I found myself laughing not at the film exactly, but alongside it, which is a distinction that probably says everything about the experience. This is a franchise that started with a genuinely fun first entry and immediately began sprinting in the wrong direction. Having also sat through Resident Evil: Retribution (2012) and Resident Evil: Afterlife, I can report that the series keeps finding new ways to be baffling, though Apocalypse has a particular kind of low-budget, high-confidence swagger that at least makes it its own thing.

If you're a fan of so-bad-it's-good cinema, the kind of film that rewards a rowdy room and a low bar, this scratches that itch. It's cheesy, it's daft, and it is almost completely hollow. But there's a version of watching this where you have a genuinely good night. Just don't mistake that for the film being good. It isn't. The games it's based on remain far more frightening, far more atmospheric, and far more coherent. If you want Raccoon City done properly, the controller is right there.

Two stars, and at least one of those is for the audacity.

Rating: ★★  | Year: 2004  | Watched: 2025-07-20

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Related on Movies With Macca

More with Milla Jovovich: Resident Evil: Retribution (2012) · Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016) · Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010) · The Fourth Kind (2009)
More from Canada: History of the World in Three Minutes Flat (1980) · Resident Evil: Retribution (2012) · Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016) · Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
More from the 2000s: Kirikou and the Wild Beasts (2005) · Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) · Daredevil (2003) · Apocalypto (2006)
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