Review: Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness

Director: Hiroyuki Kobayashi

Screenplay: Hiroyuki Kobayashi

Year: 2021

Federal agent Leon Kennedy is assigned along with Claire Redfield to investigate a zombie outbreak. The outbreak turns out to be no coincidence, but that there are hidden interests behind it that can change the relations between nations.

Resident Evil is possibly the most profitable franchise in the horror genre. With around ten games, various remakes and spin-offs of the games, and six movies with a remake announced, it's impossible to ignore its influence on the horror genre and specifically on the zombie theme. "Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness" is a new animated Netflix movie based on the popular video games.

"Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness" is not the first animated film in the franchise, which features several of these, some of which occur between the games’ events. In this case, "Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness" seems to take place between the events of the games Resident Evil 4 and 5 and we follow Leon Kennedy, the protagonist of Resident Evil 4. The story is divided into a miniseries style with four episodes of approximately 25 minutes each.

The animation of this new Netflix miniseries is one of its most striking attributes. Although it is not one of the best animations available, it has a crisp and smooth look that recalls scenes from video games, as well as references to them. Zombies make a sporadic appearance and come up with some innovative ideas that should have been further explored.

What affects this movie is the plot. Aside from being confusing, it doesn't have something that hooks the viewer and keeps them interested. Although important in the plot, the zombies, which are a key element of this series, only appear in a limited way. The action elements are also limited and interspersed with long stretches of dialogue. To this must be added some holes in the script and incoherent situations that significantly impair your enjoyment.

"Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness" seeks to continue expanding the history of such a successful franchise but forgets to focus on some of its most important elements, such as action and zombies. On the contrary, we receive a story that feels somewhat repressed for what Resident Evil has been. The animation is one of the best aspects, which fights against a script full of holes and a boring story.