Video games have become more prevalent in the film world, as recreating many of the special effects is now possible with advanced CGI. From Tomb Raider to Mortal Kombat, no video game is seemingly off-limits. Resident Evil is a franchise that has been revisited time after time. Based on the original game released in 1996, the films have seen commercial success from the fans of the video games. With the many reboots that have been done of the game, from the Milla Jovovich’s movies to the animated films, Hollywood has tried its best to bring out the best of the games, bringing to life all of the elements that made the games so popular. Last year, the franchise came back with a new reboot Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City which took the storyline of the first and second video game for the plot of the film.
While having a new addition can be exciting to see how the concepts will be changed or improved, reboots can often be trickier to get right. Filmmakers must take a new approach to the plot and content without compromising the quality of the original concepts, in this case, the video game. Many fans of the Resident Evil franchise were anxious about Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City as its focus was on two games rather than one; however, Welcome to Raccoon City kicks off with a decent cast and many solid Easter eggs from the games scattered throughout the film. Here are some of the best moments from Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City.
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5 Spencer Mansion Zombie
The introduction to the Spencer Mansion in Welcome to Raccoon City is an Easter egg of the appearance of the very first zombie in the first Resident Evil video game. The camera only shows the back of the zombie at first, but then the zombie realizes someone is behind him. As a result, we get the iconic, horrifying head turn to see the zombie look at the main character with blood and guts dripping from its mouth. The mansion is an exceedingly creepy recreation of the mansion within the games and has been praised by fans as one of the best aspects of the film altogether, as it pulls the uneasy feeling of wandering an abandoned mansion in the dark, with only a flashlight directly from the game, returning to its horror roots.
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4 The Licker’s Horrifying Introduction
The Licker is a creature that makes its first appearance in the second Resident Evil game known for its disgusting appearance and its ability to crawl on the ceiling before tearing apart its victims. While the Licker’s appearance is quick, it leaves an impact on the audience. Claire and Leon stumble upon the Licker by chance, first seeing the damage it did to its last victim, leaving behind nothing but a mangled head. From its ear-piercing scream to its inhuman movements, the Licker is probably one of the most unsettling monsters in the Resident Evil franchise. Thanks to the use of modern CGI, the Licker in Welcome to Raccoon City is beyond horrifying as its flesh is exposed and its movements are twice as fast as any humans—the recreation of the monster is top-notch. It’s hard to imagine what horrors were left out as displayed in the concept art.
3 William Birkin’s Transformation
One of the best scenes throughout the entire film is the process of William Birkin’s transformation from his human form into what is referred to as his G1 form as the Birkin. After William Birkin (played by Neal McDonagh_ injected himself with the virus, his body begins to change, as does his mind. The films portray his different forms from G1, his first form to his final form G4. When his body first begins to change, he sprouts what appears to be horns on his body as his limbs and extremities extend, and he begins to lose his humanoid figure. He follows the group around threateningly with deep-toned chuckles and growls as he attacks the survivors, his humanity slowly leaving him. While not as impressive as his final form as the Birkin, being able to see the process of the transformation from human to a monster is a different level of horrifying. Seeing a human become a monster beyond which you could ever imagine is indescribable.
2 Birkin’s Final Form
Towards the end of the film, the main characters encounter a massive beast that appears and blocks the group’s path—this creature is referred to as the Tyrant. This grotesque beast is a direct result of Birkin injecting himself with the virus in order to save himself from death, but it turns him into a disgusting beast in the process. As the virus takes over his body, he eventually turns into this horrifying beast, the only part of Birkin’s normal appearance left is his face which can be seen on the body of the beast, a unique feature to the Birkin. Welcome to Raccoon City does a good job showing the monster without getting a clear view of it through the use of minimal lighting and colored lighting used throughout the film, especially when monsters like the Birkin appear. The lack of detail able to be seen is meant to rouse the fear of the unknown in the audience.
1 Truck Driver on Fire
After being bitten by his loyal Doberman, the truck driver finds himself in trouble. His body begins to fail him as he starts to change. After driving his truck into a multitude of cars, the truck eventually rolls over, and, being full of fuel, the rig leaks and explodes in front of the Police Department. Leon looks up at the sound to see the truck driver walk into the building, completely on fire, without reacting to it whatsoever, and he doesn’t stop until Leon shoots him and proceeds to put the fire out, leaving the truck driver’s body charred. This scene is not only shocking to the audience but is yet again another recreation of the Resident Evil 2 video game in which an unnamed truck driver is a victim of the outbreak, suffering from a dog bite, but this is the first version in which he leaves the flames and enters the building.
