Resident Evil’s Rotten Tomatoes scores prove Zach Cregger understood one crucial thing about the franchise that most people miss
Cregger's Resident Evil has the secret sauce
Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil movie is 96% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, and he’s isolated one part of the franchise that numerous creatives might have missed. His biggest strength in Resident Evil is understanding that while this horror property might be heavy on the gore and the scares, it’s also deliriously funny at certain moments. Multiple reviews point out how much humor Cregger managed to stuff into this film without sacrificing the harrowing tone or the horror of being trapped in a zombie apocalypse.
This version of Resident Evil centers on Austin Abrams as Bryan. This everyman thrusts himself into an obscenely dangerous situation. Bryan’s medical courier job leads to an organ delivery in the heart of Raccoon City, and chaos ensues. This guy isn’t a Resident Evil mainstay like Leon Scott Kennedy or Chris Redfield. Poor Bryan is in over his head at every single turn, and he reacts accordingly. The result is endearing for the audience and terrifying in equal measure. Cregger really drags the boat out on questions like: “How would a normal person react to the concept of a zombie dog?” Or, “How do you keep running full speed while exploding corpses are making the ground slippery with blood?”
Collider’s Perri Nemiroff was in disbelief. She posted on Threads, “Far and away one of the best video game adaptations I’ve ever seen, and also one of the best horror comedies I’ve ever seen. Cannot believe how many hilarious beats this movie has without ever diminishing the stakes or sheer terror of the situation.”
Zach Cregger understands Resident Evil can be funny
Cregger and Abrams are Resident Evil’s main tag team at the heart of this comedy. Every moment with Bryan in the midst of this chaos reads like someone who has barely seen a zombie movie before. He reacts like a Resident Evil fan going through a new save file on release weekend. What’s behind that door? Nothing good! When Bryan inevitably shoots himself out of danger badly, it endears him to the audience even more. He’s not a super soldier, but instead a normal guy coming face-to-face with nightmares. Humor is the ultimate coping mechanism.
Nerds of Color’s Michael Lee got at the delicate dance in Resident Evil. He argues, “Abrams plays those frustrations with an exasperated, profanity-laced sense of humor, making Bryan feel less like a typical Resident Evil protagonist and more like the person holding the controller for the first time.”
From the first game’s mentions of “Jill Sandwiches” to Resident Evil 4’s camp extravaganza, the series has maintained a comedic through-line. Yes, everything wants to kill the player. That danger does not negate how silly this deadly zombie virus can be. Some fans lamented Cregger’s approach to the source material when Resident Evil dropped its trailer. These first impressions show that the director understands the source material better than people realized. Resident Evil hits theaters this weekend, and that will be the ultimate test of how fans react to this wild swing from the Weapons director. Those Rotten Tomatoes numbers are encouraging to see for longtime gamers.
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