Rotten Tomatoes describes Resident Evil as "loud, violent, formulaic, and cheesy." On Resident Evil: Apocalypse, Peter T. Chattaway from Chrisitianity Today wrote, "Just because a film is about the undead, that doesn't mean the film itself has to feel like it was made by the undead or for the undead." Resident Evil: Extinction recieved similar comments from Kyle Smith of the New York Post: " [it's] no more interesting than watching someone else play with his Playstation". Resident Evil may not be the greatest cinematic movie in history, but it does execute a good concept for adapting a video game to film.

When word got out in 2001 that Resident Evil would be adapted to film, one of my friends, a die-hard fan of the video games, hated the departure the movie would make from the original game. He insisted they include Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield instead of introducing Alice as the protagonist. Visions of the awful opening live action sequence in the Resident Evil filled my head when my friend said that. A movie that covers the events of the video game its based on ceases to be an adaptation. An adaptation is making a video game, book, play, etc. suitable for the big screen but within the advantages and disadvantages of the medium. You must lose components from the source material for the adaptation to work.

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation failed because it included too many characters--Liu Kang, Raiden, Jax, Cyrax, Nightwolf, Jade, Kitana, Sonya Blade, smoke, Rain--there wasn't room for characterization. Resident Evil has a host of monsters that Paul Anderson, director, writer, and producers of the films, could have used, but his movies use a select number. Resident Evil video games need a lot of monsters to keep 25 hours of gamplay engaging and fun. Plus, the writer has time to explain where the creatures came from and why they exist.

However, a 90-minute movie doesn't give the writer that luxury; the monsters have to be sparse and th audience's interest need to be held; throwing in monsters at random can be confusing if there's not explanation. I can understand the argument that movie adaptations need to stay close to their source material, but movies, like anything else, are a business. Unless its the intention of the studio to appeal to a section of the public, you want to draw in as many moviegoers as possible. That's the crux of gamers who want their medium to gain respect from mainstream culture--create a foothold that has universal appeal. As movies are for everyone, so too should games. All that's left is the genre you like.

The Resident Evil movies are not horror films per se; action is the focus with less attention to horror. This concept works because its a different approach to danger. In the horror films I've seen, there's a strong sense of helplessness--you can't do anything with the monster or person you're faced with. Everyone runs away, thinking they are in control of their survival, but they aren't. A character hides in an old barn. They think they're safe until an axe is tossed in their face. You know what that is? That's the villain planning where the victim will die. The villain didn't get lucky; they knew exactly where the character was.

When I watch movies like My Bloody Valentine, I can't understand why large groups of characters refuse to fight the villain. Six of you and one of him, but everyone is frozen with fear. I say grab swords, knives, guns, and sticks, and beat the crap out of him. The worst case scenerio is that one of you die. I was pleased with the scene in Resident Evil: Extinction when Alice and the gang reach Las Vegas and Dr. Isaacs releases the new zombies on them. Everyone takes a gun and shoots. Most of the characters aren't helpless. They're afraid, yes, but they also take control. Not many horror films give characters that option, and it's a nice take on the genre.

I don't think what these movies have is a formula other video game movie adaptation should follow. I think the concept is unique to the movie itself and may not work in all cases. You can't mistake a concept for basic priniciples--the compents needed to make a story like a main character, their goal, their obstacle, supporting cast, exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, etc. Or the principles of writing a good essay: introduction with thesis, topics, supporting evidence, conclusion, and so on. Anyone can get the principles down, but style and concept is unique to the author and their work.