Resident Evil Damnation (15)
Directed by: Makoto Kamiya
Running time: 96mins
Released: 24 Sep 12
Resident Evil Damnation is an animated feature produced by Capcom and Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan. Unlike the Paul W. S. Anderson live action movies, Damnation is produced by Capcom and fits straight in to the Resident Evil timeline.
Resident Evil Damnation is a sequel to the animated Resident Evil Degeneration released in 2008. Where Degeneration slotted in between the video games Resident Evil 4 and 5, Damnation fits in-between Resident Evil 5 and 6.
The movie follows Leon S Kennedy (of Resident Evil 2, 4 and 6) as he investigates rumours of Bio-Organic Weapons (BOWs) in Eastern Europe. Ada Wong (also of Resident Evil 2,4 and 6) makes a strong appearance during the movie and fans of her will be extremely happy with her scenes.
The animation itself runs like a long Resident Evil game cut-sequence, which you would expect from the company pushing out Resident Evil titles for nearly seventeen years. The animation isn’t as strong as some of the products coming out of the mainstream production companies, but it works. For a movie bridging the gap between two games, it makes sense to preserve the feel of that. There are some exceptional animated scenes and fans of the game will be happy with the way the characters and enemies are handled.
The plot does let the movie down a little though and like most of the games and Degeneration, it feels like it loses its way in the middle somewhat. Those who have never played a Resident Evil game, or are coming at this from the live action movies side will probably be confused from the start. There’s no recap or introduction to the characters, you’re simply thrown in and taken along for the ride. For those that are simply carried along, the gore, action and amusing characters should be enough to entertain you. For fans, this does fit well within the ongoing series, Leon and Ada are captured and portrayed well and the relentless swarm of enemies you know and love from the franchise are handled as you would expect from the game’s producers.
The DVD also includes three special features:
- Las Plagas: Organisms of War (7 min short)
- The DNA of Damnation Featurette (30 min making of documentary)
- Gag Reel (6 min reel)
All of the special features are worth watching, especially the gag reel. It is awesome to see that Capcom have retained their sense of humour through it all and joking at their fan service and moody characters lightens the mood of what is quite a sombre genre.
3.5 out of 5 Nerds
Competition
FTN have three copies of Resident Evil Damnation to give away. To enter, simply send us a picture of you holding at least one Resident Evil Game or animated movie (not the Live Action films) and we will pick the best three to win.
E-mail your entries, along with your name and postal address here.
The competition closes at 12:00 on Saturday 26 Jan 13 and the winners will be notified on Sunday 27 Jan 13. The competition is only open to residents of the UK and Ireland.
Irwin Fletcher
I'm an LA journalist who really lives for his profession. I have also published work as Jane Doe in various mags and newspapers across the globe. I normally write articles that can cause trouble but now I write for FTN because Nerds are never angry, so I feel safe.
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