There has been about 10 "Resident Evil" films or animations over the past two decades. That's a) a blistering pace if the same production team were used, b) the most exploited "franchise" audiovisual product of the 21st Century.
The GOOD. The CGI renditions are the closest to realistic to date; in some ways, the characters look no less "plastic" than actors/actresses in full make-up and benefitting from digital makeovers, or even some misguided performers whose face is pulled into tautness, in contrast to their mature hands. The next steps to make them truly realistic (Hollywood style) would be asymmetries, imperfections, less "flowing" motion, and more nuanced facial expression. Hell, in time, actors won't even have to turn up on set if their CGI animated heads can be stitched onto body doubles and stuntmen, and the dialog is introduced post-production.
The MEDIOCRE. I HATE "franchises"; it smacks of purely milking a concept for profit at the expense of creativity, originality, and performance. Do we need ANOTHER Die Hard, Matrix, Superman...? Why do studios have to focus energies on productions of hundreds of millions, tie into absurdly paid "stars", and not take "risks" with novel concepts? At least the streaming media producers (Amazon, Apple, Netflix, some cable) have given a new boost to "independent" productions AT A GLOBAL LEVEL.
CONCLUSION. Fine action entertainment, neat and packaged for brain-dead adults, or bored teenagers. Suspension of reality, physics, and two-dimensional personalities.
The GOOD. The CGI renditions are the closest to realistic to date; in some ways, the characters look no less "plastic" than actors/actresses in full make-up and benefitting from digital makeovers, or even some misguided performers whose face is pulled into tautness, in contrast to their mature hands. The next steps to make them truly realistic (Hollywood style) would be asymmetries, imperfections, less "flowing" motion, and more nuanced facial expression. Hell, in time, actors won't even have to turn up on set if their CGI animated heads can be stitched onto body doubles and stuntmen, and the dialog is introduced post-production.
The MEDIOCRE. I HATE "franchises"; it smacks of purely milking a concept for profit at the expense of creativity, originality, and performance. Do we need ANOTHER Die Hard, Matrix, Superman...? Why do studios have to focus energies on productions of hundreds of millions, tie into absurdly paid "stars", and not take "risks" with novel concepts? At least the streaming media producers (Amazon, Apple, Netflix, some cable) have given a new boost to "independent" productions AT A GLOBAL LEVEL.
CONCLUSION. Fine action entertainment, neat and packaged for brain-dead adults, or bored teenagers. Suspension of reality, physics, and two-dimensional personalities.