#robbie amell

Just got back from watching Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City and I have thoughts… (Spoiler free!)

Firstly, yes the film isn’t the best when you look at it solely as a film. But if you’re a lifelong Resident Evil fan who is *cough* old enough to have played the original first time around *cough* then it was bloody brilliant. I spent the entire film grinning like an idiot when I should’ve been sat there horrified as some poor sod was having his throat ripped out but instead I was still coming down off the giddy high from one of the many subtle references to the games or trying not to squeal at seeing the Spencer mansion faithfully replicated.

Now, I do have some beef with this film. Mainly that Leon is not Leon. It had nothing to do with his looks and everything to do with his personality. He’s gone from being a by the book, whip smart police officer to a bumbling idiot. I understand why they had to do this because, if we’re being honest, game Leon would be insufferable in real life but it feels like they went too far the other way. I liked the character…but he’s not Leon.

Second on my very small beef list is Chris Redfield, or the lack of. When you have someone like Robbie Amell, who is so perfectly cast as Chris Redfield, and underutilise him this much, well frankly it’s a crime! I loved every second of Chris that we had on screen but it was never enough.

If you’re a fan of the games and have any reservations about seeing Welcome to Raccoon City, please don’t…have any reservations, I mean. That this film has been made with so much love and adoration for the franchise shines off the screen. It’s wholly enjoyable, genuinely funny in parts and a true love letter to a beloved series of games.

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