Resident Evil: Afterlife

Paul W.S. Anderson’s return to the Resident Evil franchise with its first 3-D installment is cause for excitement. Damn near every shot is carefully framed to take advantage of the technology, with plenty of slo-mo to savor the experience. As far as the narrative … Afterlife is pretty much just a video game with the characters taking on the bosses and leveling up from the last film. Alice (Milla Jovovich) is back as our guide down the zombie-infested rabbit hole of the Umbrella Corporation, which, due to a miscalculation on the company’s part, is the whole of Earth. So, Alice is looking for survivors to act as zombie bait as she steps front and center to go all Matrix-y on some undead ass. She finds a handful in the smoking ruins of Los Angeles hiding out in an urban prison complex, an island in a sea of zombie Angelenos pawing at the gates. It’s just enough plot to string the badassery together, but it looks good. Real good. Anderson maintains a kinetic energy to the action and delivers some beautifully structured set pieces. That said—not enough zombie action. Feather River Cinemas and Tinseltown. Rated R