Resident Evil: Retribution 3D (2012/Sony Blu-ray 3D w/Blu-ray 2D Set)
3D
Picture: B 2D Picture: B Sound: B+ Extras: C+ Film: C
When we
last left Alice (Milla Jovovich) in Resident Evil: Afterlife 3-D (see
link below for review on Blu-ray 3D), she was in the middle of a full all out
war battle against minions of the Umbrella Corporation with very little
back-up. It was an exciting set-up that
I was hoping might pay off in the next live action feature. Now, that is here in Paul W.S. Anderson’s Resident Evil: Retribution 3D (2012) but
sadly, the script cops out and throws some slick tricks, then post-modern split
screen graphics at us, taking us somewhere else that is so contrived, it seems
more like a bad set of plot devices to prolong the franchise than entertain the
viewer.
We do get
some interesting action sequences, but also more filler than expected and the
return of more than a few of the characters from a few live action films ago
that makes this more of a fans-only affair than it should have been or needed
to be. Still, the money is often up on
the screen and the fight sequences are at the least amusingly
choreographed. There are also guns with
almost endless bullets and along with the big-enough budget, it is obvious
beyond any dollar amount that Miss Jovovich by the most professional standards
has not cut back on her weekly hours in her local gymnasium!
With that
said, this is just too much of being more of the same, then the latter half of
the script repeats James Cameron’s Aliens
(1986, Blu-ray reviewed elsewhere on this site) to the point that I was stunned
how out of ideas the whole thing landed up with. It is short at 96 minutes and that still felt
a bit too long, with only its cast and sou8nd design on top of the nicer set-ups
being any reason to watch. Including a
few CG animated features (also see below), I don’t know how long they can keep
this up until they have to introduce something new, but coasting is working for
the for now as this did do business, yet we advise our readers to not have high
hopes if you grab this one.
The 2.35
X 1, 1080p full HD MVC-encoded 3-D – Full Resolution digital High Definition
image on the Blu-ray 3D version is not bad and has some good effects, yet it
also overdoes the corny ones (like throwing sharp objects at the audience one
too many times), but this looks solid for the most part and as much as the
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition Blu-ray 3D image. This was shot in 3D and on all digital HD
cameras, something Anderson and Jovovich have grown accustomed to after the
preceding film and their Three
Musketeers remake (reviewed on Blu-ray 3D elsewhere on this site). Still, some of the digital work is too
obvious and other work is flat and even lame.
The
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix is the same on the 3D and 2D
Blu-rays, but it is the highlight of the whole release with a fine soundfield
throughout with healthy, active surrounds throughout and editing that is top
rate throughout. Only the Resident Evil: Extinction Blu-ray
tended to have even more dynamic sound, but only narrowly so, impressive as
this is. Tomandandy’s music score is not
bad either.
Extras
include Ultraviolet Copy, while this needed two Blu-rays for all the bonus
features. We get two Filmmakers/Cast feature
length audio commentary tracks and the featurette Drop (Un) Dead, plus Blu-ray exclusive Outtakes, Deleted &
Extended Scenes in both 3D and 2D, plus six more making of featurettes and
Project Alice: The Interactive Database to round out a very ambitious set.
For more Resident Evil, try these links to our
previous Blu-ray coverage:
Resident Evil + Resident Evil:
Extinction
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6469/Resident+Evil+(Blu-ray)+++Resident
Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D on Blu-ray 3D
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/10826/Resident+Evil:+Afterlife+3-D+(Sony
Resident Evil: Degeneration CG Animated Feature
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/8195/Resident+Evil+%E2%80%93+Degener
Resident Evil: Damnation CG Animated Feature plus Retribution paperback book
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/11836/Resident+Evil:+Damnation+(2012/Co
- Nicholas Sheffo
