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| released = '''[[United States]]''':<br/> September 10, 2004<br />'''[[United Kingdom]]''':<br/> October 8, 2004<br />'''[[Japan]]''':<br/>September 17, 2004
| released = '''[[United States]]''':<br/> September 10, 2004<br />'''[[United Kingdom]]''':<br/> October 8, 2004<br />'''[[Japan]]''':<br/>September 17, 2004
| runtime = 98 minutes
| runtime = 98 minutes
| country = United Kingdom<br />United States<br />Canada
| country = {{UK}}<br/>{{USA}}<br/>{{CAN}}
| language = English
| language = English
| budget = $43,000,000 <ref name = "gross">{{cite web |url= http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=residentevilapocalypse.htm |title= Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004) |publisher=''Box Office Mojo''}}</ref>
| budget = $43,000,000 <ref name = "gross">{{cite web |url= http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=residentevilapocalypse.htm |title= Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004) |publisher=''Box Office Mojo''}}</ref>

Revision as of 18:20, 23 March 2009

Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Theatrical poster
Directed byAlexander Witt
Written byScreenplay:
Paul Anderson
Original Story:
Shinji Mikami
Produced byPaul Anderson
Jeremy Bolt
Don Carmody
StarringMilla Jovovich
Sienna Guillory
Oded Fehr
Mike Epps
Sandrine Holt
Thomas Kretschmann
Jared Harris
Iain Glen
CinematographyDerek Rogers
Christian Sebaldt
Edited byEddie Hamilton
Music byJeff Danna
Distributed byScreen Gems
Summit Entertainment
Alliance Films (distribution from Summit Entertainment B.V)
Release dates
United States:
September 10, 2004
United Kingdom:
October 8, 2004
Japan:
September 17, 2004
Running time
98 minutes
Countries United Kingdom
 United States
 Canada
LanguageEnglish
Budget$43,000,000 [1]
Box office$129,394,835 [1]

Resident Evil: Apocalypse or Biohazard: Apocalypse (バイオハザード: アポカリプス Baiohazādo: Apokaripusu) is a 2004 science fiction action horror film. It is the second installment in the series of film adaptations based on the Capcom survival horror game series Resident Evil. Borrowing elements from the video games Resident Evil 2, 3: Nemesis, and Code: Veronica, the film follows the heroine Alice, who has escaped the underground Umbrella facility, and must band with other survivors including Jill Valentine and escape Raccoon City, before it's too late. The film was directed by Alexander Witt and produced by Paul W. S. Anderson.

Plot summary

The film begins with Alice (Milla Jovovich) recalling the key events from the first film. The Umbrella Corporation sends in a research team to re-open the complex. The entire team is slaughtered by zombies and Lickers who have been sealed within the complex. The virus and infectious zombies will make their way to the surface, Umbrella establishes a security perimeter around the city to keep the citizens in a quarantined area.

Alice wakes up in a downtown hospital, recalling her recent memories. As she awakes she finds herself in a hospital room. She rips IVs and various probes, wires and tubes from her body. As she exits the hospital, she recognizes the virus has escaped causing devastation in the streets and makes her way to a police car where she grabs a shotgun from the front seat.

As civilians reach the checkpoints, Umbrella operatives screen them for traces of any infection, until Major Timothy Cain (Thomas Kretschmann), orders all checkpoints to be closed, as the infection already reached the gates, and then he informs the remaining citizens to return to their homes. No one responds to the order, and the military threatens them after hoaxing a shoot-out.

Dr. Charles Ashford (Jared Harris), a key Umbrella scientist and creator of the T-Virus, has refused extraction by Umbrella until he has his daughter Angela (Sophie Vavasseur). As he hacks into Raccoon City's network of closed circuit cameras, he determines she is hiding out in her school and contacts Alice and her group.

Elsewhere, Carlos Olivera (Oded Fehr) and two other Umbrella soldiers Nicholai Ginovaef (Zack Ward) and Yuri Loginov link up with multiple Special Tactics And Rescue Service units. Jill Valentine (Sienna Guillory) (a S.T.A.R.S. unit member) together with former Raccoon News weatherwoman Terri Morales (Sandrine Holt) and Peyton Wells (Razaaq Adoti) retreat to a church, where they are attacked by Lickers before being saved by Alice. In the church Terri is recording their encounters with the zombies and other monsters.

When the infection reached critical stages, Umbrella dispatched their Nemesis program (Matthew G. Taylor) to kill all remaining Special Tactics And Rescue Service operatives and as many of the undead as possible. However when he encounters L.J. Wayne (Mike Epps), and thirteen other members of S.T.A.R.S, they open fire on him, before he guns them down, sparing only L.J.'s life. The Nemesis subsequently killed Peyton, who mutated afterward and was shot in the head by Jill.

Ashford revealed Umbrella's plan for sanitizing Raccoon City: obliteration via nuclear bomb. Inside the school, the group encounter Carlos and his team, who have also been given the same offer. Terri Morales was mauled by the mutated schoolchildren when she mistook one of the mutated children for Angela. Her death was recorded with the camcorder that she had used.

Jill managed to find Angela in the very classroom where Terri was killed. While trying to escape, Jill Valentine was attacked by the mutated K-9 Unit dogs. Umbrella soldier Nicholai Ginovaef came to her rescue, but was eventually killed by the dogs. Alice met up with both Jill Valentine and Angela Ashford after saving them from the attacks of the dogs.

The group then found out that Ashford created the T-Virus in order to prevent Angela from being paralyzed. But the Umbrella Corp took his invention for the corporation's usage. The group used the antivirus in Angela's bag to inject into those who are infected. They got into contact with Ashford and he gives them the location of the extraction point, and tells them that "it's lightly guarded." Alice records her story with Terri's video camera as they travel to the extraction point

Alice and the other survivors are confronted by Major Cain. Cain had been aware of Ashford's plan, captured him, and kills him, forcing Alice to fight Nemesis for her friends' lives. She realizes his true identity (her friend, Matt Addison) and refuses to deliver the killing blow. Her mercy appears to rekindle a trace of Nemesis's former humanity, and they join forces and attack the Umbrella troops. While Nemesis is killed in the fight, Alice and the others escape in the helicopter piloted by L.J.. Major Cain was thrown off the helicopter by Alice, and was eaten alive by the rest of the zombies after his attempt to commit suicide failed (with, ironically, the reanimated Dr. Ashford being the first to get to him).

The N-2 Missile flies above Raccoon City, reaching the towers, and then obliterates the whole city. The shock wave dislodges a piece of metal that hurtles towards Angela. Alice leaps in front of her and is impaled by it. The helicopter then crashes into the Arklay Mountains. Alice is recovered by Umbrella, the rest of the occupants escape before the crash site is located. Terri's video is recovered and released, and flashes of news scenes appear. At first the scenes show a public suspicious of Umbrella, but it is soon revealed that Umbrella hushed up the incident by explaining that the nuclear explosion was caused by a failed reactor. By the end of the series of news clips, Terri's video seems to have been regarded as a hoax, and those featured in it are called in by the police for questioning.

Alice is taken to an Umbrella research station, after several weeks she awakens in a water tank, completely regenerated from her injuries. Led by Umbrella scientist Dr. Isaacs (Iain Glen), the doctors query her. She says with contempt "My name is Alice… and I remember everything." She fights her way out of the facility showing some of her darkest powers yet, only to be surrounded by dozens of armed guards. Jill, Carlos and L.J., disguised as Umbrella employees, pull up in an SUV. Carlos shows the guards a written order placing Alice in his custody. The guards stand down and Alice enters the waiting vehicle only to see Angela in the back seat. Angela asks Alice if she is alright, to which Alice doesn't respond. Dr. Isaacs is shown announcing "Program Alice Activated," and the film comes to an end.

Cast

Main article: Characters in the Resident Evil films
Actor/Actress Role
Milla Jovovich Alice
Sienna Guillory Jill Valentine
Oded Fehr Carlos Olivera
Thomas Kretschmann Major Timothy Cain
Sandrine Holt Terri Morales
Jared Harris Dr. Charles Ashford
Mike Epps L.J.
Sophie Vavasseur Angela Ashford
Zack Ward Nicholai Ginovaef
Iain Glen Dr. Sam Isaacs
Matthew G. Taylor The Nemesis

Production

Pre-production

Resident Evil: Apocalypse was first discussed by Milla Jovovich and Paul W. S. Anderson while promoting Resident Evil. Anderson stated that he began writing the screenplay for the second film after completing the first. He revealed an idea to have Jill Valentine meeting up with Alice,[2] however this idea was scrapped as he wanted two separate stories occurring at the same time.[3] Anderson mentioned the film would go ahead if the first film was a success and promised that "the sequel will be even better" stating that "there is more of the story to be told."[4] The sequel was officially greenlit by Sony in mid 2002,[5] however Anderson chose not to direct but rather stay on as the film's producer and writer due to commitments to Alien vs. Predator.[6]

Alexander Witt was hired by Sony to direct the sequel.[7] Milla Jovovich confirmed her character would return in the sequel if the first film was successful,[2] and when the film was greenlit, Jovovich officially signed on.[8] In March 2002, Eric Mabius (who played Matt Addison in the first film), confirmed the story would revolve around his character becoming Nemesis. He also revealed he would portray the character and study his movements whilst playing Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, however before production began he pulled out[5] and Matthew G. Taylor was cast as Nemesis.[6] It was reported that Gina Philips would appear as Claire Redfield and Natasha Henstridge as Jill Valentine, however both actresses left before production began.[9][6] Sienna Guillory was cast to portray Jill Valentine and Oded Fehr was cast as Carlos Olivera,[10] while Claire Redfield's role was scrapped after Emily Bergl dropped the role.[11] The role was later offered to Ali Larter in the film's sequel Extinction. Jason Isaacs was originally intended to return and portray Dr. William Birkin,[12] however passed on the role and the characters name was changed to Dr. Isaacs, with Iain Glen being cast in the role.[6]

Jack Noseworthy was originally rumored to portray Brad Vickers, however this was later revealed as a rumor.[13] Two weeks before production began, Jared Harris was cast as a new character called Dr. Ashford who developed and produced the T-Virus.[14]

Story development

In March 2002, it was revealed the film would borrow plot elements from Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, as the film's subtitle was revealed as being "Resident Evil: Nemesis".[5] It was also revealed the film would include new characters from the video game series such as Jill Valentine, Claire Redfield, Carlos Olivera, Dr. William Birkin and Nemesis.[15][9][3] In April 2003, it was confirmed that the story would begin minutes after the ending of the first film, where Alice is a survivor lurking amongst the ruins of Raccoon City.[16]

The film borrowed numerous elements from the game series including re-enactments of certain scenes from the games, such as Alice running through a building with an Umbrella helicopter firing at her, up to the point where she drops her gun, falls, re-grabs it and fires, which is reminiscent to the introduction scene of Resident Evil Code: Veronica.[6] Another scene involves where Raccoon City is overrun by zombies, and the police and Umbrella mercenaries are fighting back, up to the point in which a zombie reflects off a fallen police helmet, which is reminiscent to the introduction scene of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis.[6] Other scenes involve the launching a missile to destroy Raccoon City and the attack at the graveyard scene.[6]

The film references Resident Evil such as the crash site of the helicopter being located in the Arklay Forest near the Arklay Mountains, where the Resident Evil series first began.[6] Other similarities include Jill basing her moves from the first game.[6] The recording of Terri's death is similar to Kenneth's death which is also recorded.[6] A white goddess statue can be seen in the church as artwork of goddesses has a large role within the puzzles in the Resident Evil series.[6] Whilst walking on the Arklay Overpass, Jill speculates that there is no way out, and that Ashford may just be watching them on the cameras, as if the whole thing were some sort of sick game. The games themselves use a fixed camera perspective, and in most of the earlier games resembles a mounted camera's perspective.[6] Another similarity includes where Jill finds a gun under a pew, mirroring the game when you find ammo or weapons in certain areas.[6]

The film references Resident Evil 2 such as when Alice visits the gun shop which is similar to Kendo's Gun Shop.[6] Angela Ashford's character is based on Sherry Birkin, as they are both children, dressed in school uniforms, and in need of rescue. Both of their fathers are also researchers working for Umbrella.[6] The Ashford name, however, comes from the founders of Umbrella revealed in Resident Evil : Code Veronica. The film also references Resident Evil 3: Nemesis such as Jill wearing the same outfit. Nemesis is a character taken directly from the game, and also mentions "S.T.A.R.S." on numerous occasions.[6]

Production

Actors portraying zombies were trained at a zombie "boot camp" where they were coached to act as zen-zombies and liquid zombies. Anderson and other crew members intended to make the zombies move faster but decided that it would be breaking a fundamental element of the games.[6] The design for Nemesis was to include an actor in a suit (Matthew G. Taylor) with only special-effects applied to certain parts of the character's body, such as the eye.[6] The Lickers were fully computer-generated, though the use of physical puppets was originally considered.[6]To avert issues faced during production, the CGI work of the lickers began early.[6] The film was filmed on location in Canada, with the film entering pre-production stages in mid 2003. Principal photography was slated to originally begin in July 2003,[16] before being bumped up to August 6, 2003.[8]

The film was shot in Ontario, Canada, with Toronto and its surrounding suburbs being a stand-in for Raccoon City.[17] Toronto City Hall and Exhibition Place (namely the National Trade Centre) were used as Umbrella's worldwide headquarters, while the logos of Canada's largest banks feature prominently in the skyline shots of the city, and the Prince Edward Viaduct was used to represent Ravens' Gate.[18] It was originally feared that production would be shut down due to the 2003 SARS outbreak in Toronto[19]; however, production resumed, with filming ending in October 2003.[20] The film was also shot at the Hamilton cemetery in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.[21]

Marketing and release

The film was planned for a October 31, 2003 release,[22] although was pushed back to September 10, 2004 due to the 2003 SARS outbreak.[23] In late 2003, a teaser trailer was released titled Regenerate[24] and was directed by Marcus Nispel. The preview was noted for being reminiscent of the Olay product Regenerist advertisements and can be viewed in RealMedia[25] and Windows Media formats.[26] In May 2004 It was later revealed the trailer would actually be part of the film.[27] Milla Jovovich's official website later released promotional images that showed Alice in several scenes from the film.[28]

The theatrical trailer was released on Yahoo! Movies on July 7, 2004[29] and prior to the film's release, two albums for Resident Evil: Apocalypse were released. The first was the soundtrack which was released August 31, 2004 and featured music from the film.[30] The second was the film's score, which was released in late 2004 and was composed by Jeff Danna[31] and performed by the London Philharmonia Orchestra. A day before the film's release, numerous props from the film were auctioned on the website Premiere Props.[32] The film opened at number one in North America on September 10, 2004 and received an estimated $23.7 million on its opening weekend[33] and $129,394,835 worldwide,[1]

Critical reaction

Reaction among critics was poor, with Apocalypse holding a rating of 21% on Rotten Tomatoes[34] and a score of out of 35 out of 100 on Metacritic[35]. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film a score of one half star out of four, saying: "The movie is an utterly meaningless waste of time. There was no reason to produce it, except to make money, and there is no reason to see it, except to spend money. It is a dead zone, a film without interest, wit, imagination or even entertaining violence and special effects. [...] Parents: If you encounter teenagers who say they liked this movie, do not let them date your children."[36]

Dave Kehr of The New York Times gave the film a positive review, saying: "Anderson's screenplay provides a steady series of inventive action situations, and the director, Alexander Witt, makes the most of them. His work is fast, funny, smart and highly satisfying in terms of visceral impact."[37] M. E. Russell of the Portland Oregonian said: "The bad news? The movie is monumentally stupid. The good news? It's a fun kind of stupid."[38] Nathan Rabin of The Onion's A.V. Club said that the film "takes too long to get going to qualify unequivocally as a good movie, but when Jovovich finally starts kicking zombified ass, it becomes good enough."[39]

Gregory Kirschling of Entertainment Weekly praised Jovovich but felt that "the rest of the cast is strictly straight-to-DVD."[40] Ben Kenigsberg of the Village Voice said the film is "not without its moments of elemental dread [but] also obviously padded, too long on action, and painfully short on irony. The satirical element still packs a minor jolt."[41] Carrie Rickey of the Philadelphia Inquirer said that "those who want something more substantial from a movie than a vid-game script with centerfold appeal will not find it in this noisy, bone-crushing survivalist flick."[42]

DVD releases

The film was released on DVD in North America on December 28, 2004. Releases on UMD and Blu-ray Disc formats followed on April 19, 2005 and January 16, 2007, respectively. The film was released in Australia and New Zealand on March 16, 2005 and February 2005 in UK. The release included an audio commentary by the director Alexander Witt, producer Paul W.S. Anderson, and actress Milla Jovovich. The release included 20 deleted scenes with numerous outtakes and a featurette titled "Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated". 6 other featurettes were included which covered behind the scenes of the film's production. The blooper reel included on the DVD edition is not included on the Blu-Ray edition of the film.

A special "Resurrection Edition" of both Resident Evil and Resident Evil: Apocalypse were released in a two-disc set on September 4, 2007. An exclusive sneak peek scene for Resident Evil: Extinction was included, along with several other bonus features including Diary of an Apocalypse and The Evolution of Resident Evil: Bridge to Extinction.[43][44]

Music tracks

Music tracks Artist Genre
The End of Heartache Killswitch Engage Metal-Hardcore
Nymphetimine Cradle of Filth Metal-Black
Vermillion Slipknot Metal-Nu
Just a Little The Used Metal
Us or Them The Cure Gothic
Join Me In Death HIM Gothic
Mein Teil Rammstein Metal

References

  1. ^ a b c "Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)". Box Office Mojo. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b "MSN Talks to Director Paul Anderson and Actress Milla Jovovich". Spring 2002. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  3. ^ a b "Director Paul Anderson's Update on Casting". Spring 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  4. ^ "Second Resident Evil in the Works". Spring 2002. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  5. ^ a b c "Eric Mabius Talks Resident Evil 2". 2002. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Paul W.S. Anderson (2004). Resident Evil: Apocalypse Commentary (DVD). Sony Entertainment.
  7. ^ "Resident Evil: Apocalypse Production Notes" (PDF). movieweb.com. Spring 2004. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  8. ^ a b "Milla Jovovich To Return With New Director". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  9. ^ a b "Director Paul Anderson Announces New Cast Members". countingdown.com. Spring 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  10. ^ "Oded Fehr and Sienna Guillory Join the Cast". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  11. ^ "Emily Bergl Joins the Cast". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  12. ^ "Jason Isaacs Playing The Villain?". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  13. ^ "Jack Noseworthy Joins The Cast". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  14. ^ "Jared Harris Joins the Cast". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  15. ^ "Resident Evil 2 has a Subtitle". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  16. ^ a b "Production To Begin In July". countingdown.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  17. ^ DAVE KEHR, "Call to Arms, With Trouble Right Here in Zombie City: Review of RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE," The New York Times (September 10, 2004).
  18. ^ "Filming Locations". imdb.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  19. ^ "SARS alert: Toronto-based Resident Evil sequel at risk". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  20. ^ "Filming Dates". imdb.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  21. ^ "Internet Movie Database - List of Films shot in Hamilton, Ontario". Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  22. ^ "Release Date for Nemesis". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  23. ^ "Release Date Changed". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  24. ^ "See the RE2 Trailer Online!". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  25. ^ "Real Media Player Trailer". sonypictures.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  26. ^ "Windows Media Player Trailer". sonypictures.com. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  27. ^ "Teaser Trailer TO Be Part of Film". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  28. ^ "Behind the scenes photos from Resident Evil 2!". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  29. ^ "Resident Evil: Apocalypse Trailer Online". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  30. ^ "Resident Evil: Apocalypse Soundtrack Info". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  31. ^ "Jeff Danna To Score Apocalypse". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  32. ^ "Props and Wardrobe Auctions!". countingdown.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  33. ^ "Resident Evil Sequel Infects Weekend Box Office". countingdown.com. 2004. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  34. ^ Resident Evil: Apocalypse reviews, Publication
  35. ^ Resident Evil: Apocalypse reviews, Metacritic
  36. ^ Review, Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times, September 10, 2004
  37. ^ Review, Dave Kehr, The New York Times
  38. ^ Review by M. E. Russell, Portland Oregonian, September 2004
  39. ^ Review, Nathan Rabin, The A.V. Club
  40. ^ Review, Gregory Kirschling, Entertainment Weekly
  41. ^ Review, Ben Kenigsberg, Village Voice
  42. ^ Review, Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer
  43. ^ Resident Evil/Resident Evil: Apocalypse (Double Feature)
  44. ^ Deadly Bundle: Resident Evil Flicks Resurrected
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