Resident Evil Degeneration: An Overall Analysis

The makers of Resident Evil: Degeneration wanted to make a movie that felt like the game series and kept its animation style instead of live action as with the previous movies. Although the movie has some issues with voice acting and lighting it is able to stay true to the Resident Evil culture. With a plot all too familiar in the movies, animation that makes the viewer feel as if they are there and special features, Degeneration is a nice addition to the series.

The plot follows the same structure as most of the movies and game. Terrible accident, virus spreads, evil people who work for big companies have mysterious motives. So the ones who have dealt with this madness before are sent into the company’s headquarters, which looks like a level in a video game, the virus breaks out there so they must blow it up and escape. Even the trusty advice from the games, “Destroy their brains, shoot em’ in the head” , is present to make the viewer feel more like they are playing the games.

The animation in the movie is visually pleasing and makes the movie really feel like the game. The scene when an airplane crashes into the airport looks extremely realistic. The undead creatures kept the same feel as they did in the game. However since it is a movie they were able to show more personality and wilder actions. The movie tries to keep the dark feel of the games but some scenes feel as if they are too dark and what you are suppose to see is not very clear.

The voice acting is nothing spectacular for a movie but is up to par with most voice acting in games. Some lines do not seem to align with the characters’ lips perhaps due to the translation from Japanese. The dialog also seems a little dull for movies but in the same ballpark as games. The dialog of the little girl in the movie seems very mature for her age and makes it clear that the actress playing her voice is an adult.

The special features on the DVD are loaded with interesting material. A “making of” short film, interviews and trailers let the viewer get deeper into the movie. Voice bloopers are ridiculously funny and are a nice humorous extra. The character profiles give the viewer more insight on the backstory of the characters of Resident Evil and a preview of Resident Evil 5 gives hardcore fans a little extra.

The makers of Degeneration wanted to show that Resident Evil the way it is can be good enough to be a movie. The understood that the hardcore fans would be expecting a lot from them and they did their best to give them what they wanted, more zombies more action and more story to continue from the game world. As a movie Degeneration is nothing special but as a part of the Resident Evil saga it is a very nice touch.