I'm back, and this week I'm talking about Resident Evil (2026). This new film from Zach Cregger was a triumph for me personally. It's the first time I have actually liked any of his movies. This notion had me skeptical going into the film because I love Resident Evil, yet I couldn't stand his writing especially. But that was mostly satiated this time around. Aside from some stumbling here and there, Cregger and his team were able to make a damn solid movie. So for this piece, I'm going to go through the film and give my thoughts on what I liked and disliked. Where else to begin than with our main character, Bryan (Played by Austin Abrams).
Right out the gate we're introduced to Bryan, a skittish Hospital Courier who seems to be having trouble at home. Both of these aspects would really define the character throughout the film, and it's one of the things I thought about as he would make decisions. Many of them would be out of desperation, or for the sake of himself. It's why the ending plays out the way it does. But, there's a bit of movie to get through before talking about that. So, Bryan's first desperate and selfish decision came in the form of the priority package, I think they described it as Category "A" or something.
What made this desperate was the fact that Bryan was already worn out from his previous delivery, and decided to take this new one because the pay was double. This also played into the selfish aspect as he only thought of the money. And this choice could be seen as avoiding his partner and the troubles at home. There's layers to Bryan's decision making, and he does it all with a smile, at first. As the smile washed away, the existential dread would take over and loom over him over the course of the journey that he was not prepared or qualified for.
Driving through the extreme cold in the dead of night on the iciest roads imaginable would be enough to drive anyone mad. But then you couple that with the isolation, and you have a recipe for disaster. And that's exactly what Bryan was cooking up. So, I ended up liking a lot of the decisions that Bryan made because they were mostly off the cuff. Showcasing the true intentions of the character when thrust into a dilemma.
So, it became interesting when Bryan would do something for someone other than himself. Not because it was out of character for him, but because you got to see more sides. A strong example of this could be seen when he went through the tunnel and ended up in the RV (Recreational Vehicle).
At this point, Bryan was exhausted and anxious from his road and farmhouse ventures. Being introduced to this Plagas-like Virus, Bryan reasonably had no idea what to expect. So, coming into this tight space with no real options of escape has him ready to strike. However, he didn't find a ravenous, infected adult. He had found a child. Instinctually, he let his guard down, even after noticing her infection. In his attempt to help her, he got bit and ended the skirmish by blowing her head off with a double-barrel shotgun. A somber moment that almost immediately got broken up by some jokey lines. A real problem that the beginning of the second act, and other tender moments, would have later on.
It's a real shame because there's weight to the death of this child, and the tension got broken up for some nonsense that didn't really fit the scene. And then to follow it up with the worst section of the movie was quite the combo. Like, Resident Evil does strive to be goofy and serious to an extent, yet there needs to be an actual balance to it. In this film specifically, Bryan got scooped up by Paul (Played by Paul Walter Hauser) and Maxine (Played by Kali Reis) because of the package that Bryan was carrying. As it happened to be a sample that was needed to make a serum that would cure the infection spreading throughout Racoon City.
While Maxine was cool and badass, Paul was annoying. Simple as that. A complete tonal shift mixed in with some exposition. We needed to find out what the package was eventually, yet I didn't think Paul was necessary to figure this aspect out. The character felt like he was doing a comedy routine and breaking up the flow. It's one of those elements where I think you could cut him completely and let Maxine do the explanation while still having the rest of the movie play out the same way. Aside from Maxine's pointless off-screen death of course. Another baffling bit.
Overall, the point of this critique was to explain why Paul felt like a needless injection. He's in the movie for like 5-10 minutes and actively made me dislike every bit of it. What made this funnier, was that Paul's death was followed up by this insane track that had some sick base to it. I'll talk a bit about the music later, but that part stood out to me, shit was bumping.
So, to get back on track. I'll talk about two more definable Bryan moments. The first being his arrival at the Hospital. With the pain and dread of the infection overtaking him, he started to come to terms with his imminent death. And in the midst of this, he recorded his parting message. A heartfelt, genuine monologue to his partner, Michelle (Voiced by Sara Paxton). Just like with the little girl, we got to see Bryan at a moment unlike the others. One where he was thinking of others and not himself. Only to once again be interrupted by Cregger and Shay Hatten's ill-timed comedy. Like, it really was a shame that these impactful moments would get deflated by some bullshit. Alas, there's not much to be done.
On the other hand, at the end of the journey we came to a pivotal moment with Bryan. He did it. He brought the sample to the Hospital after fending off the hordes of infected, as well as the Katamari Ball from Hell. However, this came at a cost. The infection had now advanced into a state of mutation. The monsters that Bryan had fought off before were now mirroring his own reflection. In his desperation to become human once more, Bryan chose to ignore this and hope he could get a cure in time. Alas, this was not in the cards. Bryan's desperate and selfish decision wiped away the whole point of this journey.
While I understand why this ending would make people upset, I liked it because it felt like something Bryan would do. Many of his choices derived from his impulses. So, Bryan ruining the whole thing at the end made sense. He was always living in the moment and not thinking of the repercussions. It's why he picked up the package in the first place. And unfortunately, it meant that Bryan would get the bad ending. Never going home, and damning Racoon City in the process.
Overall, the narrative of Resident Evil (2026) was solid for the most part. Bryan's an interesting character, even if some of the supporting cast can't quite keep up. So, before I talk about some other hang-ups. I want to talk about the music and cinematography to the best of my ability.
With the music, I thought that Hays and Ryan Holladay killed that shit. Really helped to elevate the film. RE as a series has always done well when it came to music. And this film slotted in nicely with rest of them. Just a good sense of timing and tonal reads on what a particular scene or sequence needed. A Horror Film's score is a vital organ and the Holladays understood what that meant, and made sure it was working at full capacity.
Alongside the incredible music was the cinematography from Dariusz Wolski. While I am not an expert in this field, I was just so enamored by some of the shot choices in this movie. Especially when there were narrow corridors. They felt claustrophobic like the games, and they would even try to mimic that style further by using First-Person Points-of-Views or Third-Person Over-the-Shoulder POVs. It was really crazy to see how well that element could work outside of the games and not come off as goofy or gimmicky. Obviously, it's a combination of elements, but I can't get over how great this movie looked in certain scenes. It's one of those things that I notice from time-to-time, yet never latch onto unless it really strikes me.
While the good times were rolling, not everything in RE (2026) was smooth sailing. Since I have already talked about some of my gripes, I'll focus on the others. The first being the lack of Resident Evil identity. The only definable elements seemed to be Racoon City, Arklay Mountains, the Umbrella Corporation (in-name) and the Plagas-esque Virus. Other than names and a vaguely similar virus, there's not much here. An argument could be made about RE not sticking to a single virus or location, yet the problem derives from using Racoon City. A place that has history, and many games attached to it.
So, instead of following a structure that was already built. Cregger and his team simply decided to make a modern version of that RE 2 and 3 story without any of the connecting bits. It's odd that something this avoidable could've been prevented if they had just put the location somewhere else. It's just odd and infuriating when something so definable clearly got misused. But alas, that's not all.
My other main gripe came in the form of influence. One of the most well-known influences not just on RE, but Horror in general, was George A. Romero's "Of The Dead" films. To see none of that in RE (2026) was so off-putting. Like, fast zombies are scary, but the shambling movement was that secret sauce. Seeing the personality in the undead through their mannerisms was what it's all about. This critique was definitely more of a nitpick, but I think it made sense when discussing something like RE. Like, Capcom still does this in the most recent RE game as well as Pragmata. A game with similar design ideas. So, it doesn't seem too crazy for me to feel this way. I have a good reason dammit.
Overall, Resident Evil (2026) was a good movie. Not the best, but it's better than what I was expecting. And it made me finally see the potential in Zach Cregger as a filmmaker after not liking his first two movies. Like, he really just needs to tighten up on the writing and he's golden. Regardless, watch this movie. It's a good step in the right direction and I hope to see more of these adaptations have confidence in the source material and not just using them as a springboard. Because at the end of the day, you can still make something your own while showing respect to those that came before.
And remember to Free Palestine, Free Congo, Free Sudan, Free Venezuela and to Free Lebanon from the onslaught of their oppressors. Never stop talking about them. They think that we don't care, but we see everything. Never forget that. They are trying to suppress our voices because they matter, remember that. There may have been a ceasefire in Gaza, but Palestine still needs to be completely free.
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