RESIDENT EVIL Has Fans Debating Its Comedy, Game Connections, and Shocking Ending

The new Resident Evil movie has finally infected theaters, and fans have plenty to say about it. While some viewers are loving director Zach Cregger’s weird, funny, vicious trip through the world of Resident Evil, others are hung up on its comedy, limited connections to the games, and especially that ending.

Personally, I had a blast with it! The film stars Austin Abrams as Bryan, a medical courier who gets thrown into a nightmare unfolding on the periphery of the events of Resident Evil 2.

Rather than adapting one of the games or following familiar characters such as Leon Kennedy or Claire Redfield, Cregger tells his own story within the Resident Evil universe.

That approach was always going to divide fans, and now that people have seen the movie, that’s exactly what’s happening.

Spoilers ahead for Resident Evil. If you haven’t seen it yet, turn back now.

Over on Reddit, fans have been debating whether the movie captures what they love about Resident Evil despite largely doing its own thing.

"Feels like someone slapped a random dude in an RE game, absolutely loved it," says one fan, while another had a more mixed reaction: "I think it's perfectly good as a standalone horror movie, but it left me wanting a bit more in terms of Resident Evil stuff.

“Also felt that the humour was a bit excessive in a Marvel-esque way that weakens a few scenes for me but that might just be [Zach] Cregger's style"

Another viewer thought Cregger found a pretty great way to capture the games without simply recreating them: "It was highly enjoyable with plenty of Easter eggs and references to mechanics in the game. The monster designs were both grotesque and cool.

“The way the movie was structured felt very faithful to the game's, it could easily be adapted into a video game with minimal changes and it would make a good side story game for RE," the fan explained. "I'm glad he stayed away from direct adaptations or shoehorning established RE characters."

That’s closer to where I landed. I enjoyed that Cregger made something that felt like Resident Evil without turning it into a checklist of recognizable characters, monsters, locations, and references. I don’t get caught up in every minor detail when a movie is giving me a good story and I’m having so much fun experiencing it!

The comedy is another major point of debate. Cregger previously revealed that jokes were removed after test audiences thought the movie was too funny, but some fans still think he could have cut more.

"Glad they toned down the comedy, it's already a lot in the final release," one viewer said. "Zach Cregger's definition of less jokes is very different than mine," another joked.

I’m on the other side of that argument. The comedy worked for me, and the movie definitely carries Cregger’s flavor. I loved that aspect of it. The humor plays nicely against the gruesome horror, and I thought the movie did a great job bouncing between laughs and legitimate scares without either one killing the other.

Then we get to the ending, which seems to be where the biggest battle is happening. After watching Bryan bumble his way through an increasingly insane nightmare, the movie pulls the rug out from under the audience when he transforms into a monster rather than escaping with a traditional heroic victory.

One frustrated fan said: "I was so bought into this movie as a 8/10 until the final 10 minutes where every scientist does the dumbest thing possible and Brian transforms into a monster and it just cuts to credits. Also, I can't get the 'VIDEO GAMES, YEAH!' line out of mind,"

That particular bit of comedy also didn’t work for another viewer: "The YAY VIDEOGAMES!! line made me physically cringe, but movie wasn't bad per say but way too much on the nose comedy was in the movie they could of toned it back a lot more than what they put out,"

The ending took an even bigger beating from several fans. "Really really not a fan of the ending, the rest of the movie is a solid 8-9 out of 10 but that ending brings it down to a 6-7/10 for me, harsh maybe but I just really don't like the ending," one viewer said.

Another agreed: "Loved the movie. Hated the ending. Brought it down from a 9/10 to 6/10. Really was rooting for him to cure himself which follows all the Resident Evil games with Leon,"

Another fan was considerably more direct: "I'm pissed off by the ending bro it should have been him surviving,"

For some viewers, the frustration goes beyond Bryan’s fate and back to the movie’s limited use of recognizable Resident Evil creatures.

"The ending sucked. I also think there should've been more creatures that were true to the games. I'm fine with the director making his own story, however don't smack the Resident Evil title on it if you're not even going to include any of the iconic creatures," another person said.

One fan understood the decision while still wishing things had gone differently: "I thought it was really great, felt bad about the ending though. I guess considering it's a horror movie.. It makes sense for it to end that way... But I guess watching the dude bumble and survive through everything, just to bite it so close to the end, felt sad."

I actually loved that the movie went there. Bryan’s fate surprised the hell out of me, and I wasn’t expecting Cregger to end his story that way. It made the finale more memorable for me. It was different, painful, tragic, and still felt very Resident Evil. It the story of a person that became one of the monster you encounter in the game!

That’s really what I enjoyed about the whole movie. Cregger brought his own personality to Resident Evil rather than trying to imitate what came before. I thought it had a strong story, great character development, hilarious comedy, some great scares, and enough Resident Evil DNA running through it to make the whole thing work.

Fans will continue arguing about whether it needed more game lore, fewer jokes, more iconic creatures, or a completely different ending. That debate comes with adapting a franchise that people have been invested in for decades. I went along for Cregger’s crazy ride and had a great time doing it.