Resident Evil: Six Movie Collection (Australian Import) (4K UHD Review)

Reviewed by: Tim Salmons
Review Date: Oct 05, 2021
Format: Blu-ray Disc

Director

Paul W.S. Anderson, Alexander Witt, Russell Mulcahy

Release Date(s)

2002-2016 (September 1, 2021)

Studio(s)

Sony Pictures/Universal Pictures (Random Space Media)

Film/Program Grade: See Below
Video Grade: See Below
Audio Grade: See Below
Extras Grade: A-
Overall Grade: A-

randomspacemedia.com

Review

[Editor’s Note: This is an Australian import 4K set, but both the UHD and Blu-ray Discs are REGION FREE.]

The Paul W.S. Anderson/Milla Jovovich Resident Evil series has seen many home video releases and re-releases over the years on multiple formats with varying degrees of A/V standards and bonus materials. Recently, Sony released a 4K Ultra HD Six Movie Collection for US territories, and now through Random Space Media (utilizing Sony's 4K and Blu-ray masters), Australian collectors can have all six films in one package.

Let’s take a look at the individual films in this set in 4K one by one...

Unfortunately for fans of the first couple of video games, the Resident Evil film franchise started off on the wrong foot. What was once a promising and possibly suspenseful horror film with George A. Romero at the helm turned into horror-inspired action schlock directed by Paul W.S. Anderson instead, complete with dated CGI, tonal inconsistencies, a clashing mix of hard rock and electronic dance music, and terrible dialogue. It doesn’t help much that the series lifted ideas and imagery from the games wholesale, reluctantly adding in fan favorite characters in the sequels. But that initial error, which spread throughout the rest of the series, can now be overlooked in retrospect. Looking back at the six films (who’d have ever thought they would get to six), they’re easier to appreciate now, no matter how laughably awful they can be.

In 2002’s Resident Evil, Alice (Milla Jovovich) wakes up in the shower suffering from amnesia. After getting dressed, her house is infiltrated by a Special Forces team, including Rain (Michelle Rodriguez). The Hive, an underground laboratory run by the international pharmaceutical corporation Umbrella, is set up under the house where experimentation with biological weapons has been taking place. The artificial intelligence agent that runs The Hive, the Red Queen, shut it down and killed everyone inside to prevent a possible virus from spreading. The team, Alice, a cop (Eric Mabius), and another amnesiac (James Purefoy) make their way inside and discover that it’s overrun by creatures infected with the T-Virus, including zombies, dogs, and other monsters. As Alice slowly regains her memories, they must try and find a way to survive.

Much of Resident Evil isn’t too badly put together at times. Alice is a blank slate and Milla Jovovich is not up to the task of actually acting, but discovering who she is in the midst of the chaos is at least intriguing enough to keep you going. There’s also decent atmosphere in spots, particularly above ground before getting into The Hive. Characters are thinly-drawn and dialogue is either expository or throwaway, but the story gets to the point and moves pretty quickly. Despite tedious visuals, speed up/slow down action, nonsensical logistics, and dodgy CGI (which even in 2002, didn’t look good), Resident Evil hangs together well enough, if only by a thread.

Resident Evil was shot on 35 mm photochemical film by cinematographer David Johnson, using Arriflex and Moviecam cameras with Cooke and Angenieux spherical lenses, and finished on film at the 1.85:1 aspect ratio. For its release on Ultra HD, Sony scanned the original camera negative to create a new 4K Digital Intermediate and graded the image for high dynamic range (HDR10 is the only available option). It’s a surprisingly robust transfer that appears accurate to its source, with an obvious uptick in clarity and detail over its 1080p counterpart. The image isn’t perfectly crisp, as there’s still a touch of softness, but it’s organic and film-like, particularly in its grain structure. Textures inside The Hive and above ground are more nuanced, especially in the shadows where more detail is visible. The cool color palette is boosted by the HDR grade, offering deeper and more natural blacks, as well as richer swatches of red, blue, and green. The image is also stable and clean with good contrast, but the extremely dated CGI stands out just as much as it did in 2002. All in all, this is a nice improvement over the previous Blu-ray.

The main audio options include English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible) and English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. The Dolby Atmos mix is a powerhouse track, offering fantastic fidelity and an extremely active sound environment. The variety of biting sound effects sweep back and forth from speaker to speaker, while dialogue reproduction is perfectly audible. Low frequency activity is used often and effectively, aiding the film’s score and music selection. Other audio options include French, French (Canada), Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish (Voiceover), Portuguese, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Tamil, and Turkish 5.1 Dolby Digital. Subtitle options include English, English SDH, Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, Greek, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, Romania, Russian, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Swedish, Thai, and Turkish.

RESIDENT EVIL (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): C+/A/A+

Resident Evil: Apocalypse followed in 2004. Alice wakes up in an Umbrella laboratory, and after making her way outside, realizes that she’s in the middle of Raccoon City, which has been overrun with zombies and other T-Virus mutations. Attempting to contain the situation, Umbrella closes the city off and orders a nuclear strike to wipe everything out. Former S.T.A.R.S. police officer Jill Valentine (Sienna Guillory), Umbrella soldier Carlos Olivera (Oded Fehr), S.T.A.R.S. sergeant Peyton Wells (Razaaq Adoti), and a civilian named L.J. (Mike Epps) team up with Alice to get out of the city. But they soon realize they’re being hunted by Umbrella’s latest creation, Nemesis, an overgrown killing machine sent to kill all S.T.A.R.S. officers, and Alice.

The sequel takes a drastic dip in quality. (Let’s be honest, it didn’t start off all that perfect to begin with). Annoying characters with far too much dialogue, an unfocused storyline, over-the-top and preposterous visuals, and an overt attempt to shove in as much from the current games as possible after mucking things up with the first film is mainly what this second film has to offer. While Mike Epps and Sandrine Holt wreck nearly every scene they’re in with eye-rolling comic relief, the story lacks basic tension or suspense and just de-evolves into action schlock. On the other hand, Sienna Guillory makes for a fine addition. She’s sexy, gives a decent performance (one of the better ones in the series overall), and inhabits the role of Jill Valentine with relative ease. Alice is kind of boring by comparison, and is mostly around to provide exposition and kick ass whenever the script calls for it. In essence, one of the worst of the lot.

Resident Evil: Apocalypse was shot on 35 mm photochemical film by cinematographers Christian Sebaldt and Derek Rogers in Super 35 format, using Panavision cameras and lenses, and finished as a 2K Digital Intermediate at the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. For its release on Ultra HD, Sony scanned the original camera negative in 4K and upsampled 2K VFX shots to create a new 4K Digital Intermediate, then graded the image for high dynamic range (HDR10 is the only available option). Both versions of the film are provided, including the Extended Version which reincorporates many of the deleted scenes, some of which can be found on the accompanying Blu-ray. It’s another stellar presentation, true to its source, with tight grain and boosted detail. Everything is much sharper, with excellent texturing even in darker environments. The smoky, dimly-lit areas in Raccoon City receive a boost in shadow detail, and the HDR widens the gamut for the film’s aggressively cool color palette. Reds and blues are much bolder, and blacks are deeper. Everything appears clean and stable as well. The CGI has improved slightly, but still stands out at this higher resolution.

The main audio options include English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible) and English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. The Dolby Atmos mix is another explosive and enveloping track with even more surround activity than its predecessor. Large crowds of people, hoards of zombies, varieties of gunfire and explosions, and various vehicle sounds are placed all around the sound field. The dialogue is balanced well and low frequency activity rattles the windows, giving the score plenty of extra amplitude. Other audio options include French, French (Canada), Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Polish (Voiceover), Portuguese, Spanish (Castilian), and Spanish (Latin) 5.1 Dolby Digital. Subtitle options include English, English SDH, Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, Greek, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, Russian, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Swedish, and Thai.

RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): D/A/A+

In 2007’s Resident Evil: Extinction, five years have passed. Despite Umbrella’s attempts to contain the T-Virus outbreak, it spreads all over the world, devastating the global human population. Meanwhile, Alice survives by staying hidden from Umbrella’s satellites since Dr. Isaacs (Iain Glen) has failed to replicate her and is desperate to find her under Albert Wesker’s orders. Claire Redfield (Ali Later), Carlos (Fehr), and L.J. (Epps) lead a band of survivors, continually searching for food and supplies while avoiding zombies and other T-Virus mutations. Alice tries to stay away in fear of putting them in more danger, but reluctantly joins them in the hope of helping them escape to Alaska, where it’s rumored that the virus hasn’t landed. This makes her visible to Umbrella, and it isn’t long before they start coming for her.

In the third film, the filmmakers have finally decided to shake things up visually, and hiring a director like Russell Mulcahy is definitely a step in the right direction. However, much of his aggressive style, seen in films like Razorback and Highlander, is missing outside of a few random shots. The film also takes elements from other properties, lifting ideas straight out of The Road Warrior and Day of the Dead... but as they say, if you gotta steal, steal from the best. Returning are the ineffective speed up/slow down shots and unnecessary uses of CGI, particularly the zoom ins and zoom outs from and to the Umbrella satellite hovering over Earth. The weirdest use of CGI is the airbrushed faces of some of the female characters, which don’t always match from shot to shot. Yet despite the negative aspects, it’s the most enjoyable entry in the series thus far. The story is ironed out a bit more, dialogue serves a purpose rather than just being expository or for comic relief, and the characters mostly all have a purpose. Even the zombie make-ups are improved. It’s still rough around the edges, but seeing a group of backwoods Aussies—I mean Americans—attempt to rape Alice and throw her into a pit of dogs with her having to fight her way out, it’s as if George Miller himself were at the helm.

Resident Evil: Extinction was shot on 35 mm photochemical film by cinematographer David Johnson in Super 35 format, using Moviecam cameras with Zeiss and Angenieux lenses, and finished as a 2K Digital Intermediate at the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. For its release on Ultra HD, Sony scanned the original camera negative in 4K and upsampled 2K VFX shots to create a new 4K Digital Intermediate, then graded the image for high dynamic range (HDR10 is the only available option). The result represents the biggest upgrade of the six films over the previous Blu-rays. Not only is the imagery clearer and sharper, the boost in fine detail and more accurate texturing makes a huge difference. The wider gamut of HDR deepens blacks, reveals much more detail in the shadows, and evens out color temperatures, which was an issue on the previous Blu-ray. The desert now looks as it should, with dry, granular spectrums of brown and white. Most of the film takes place outside in daylight, and this presentation renders those landscapes perfectly with tightly-encoded, yet natural grain. It's a very nice 4K image.

The main audio options include English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible) and English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. Yet again, it’s a powerful mix. It lacks the obvious bombast of its predecessors, but excels in terms of dynamics and fidelity. Dialogue reproduction is terrific, but outdoor environments have plenty of opportunities for ambient sound. Whether it’s flies, wind, or other natural sounds, the track offers as much during quiet moments as it does in booming ones. The variety of sound effects serves the mix well, including gunfire and explosions, as well as groups of zombies behind fences in the distance. The score is also the least intrusive thus far, acting more as background. Other audio options include Catalan, Czech, French, Hindi, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Polish (Voiceover), Portuguese, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Tamil, and Telugu 5.1 Dolby Digital. Subtitle options include English, English SDH, Bulgarian, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Danish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Korean, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), and Swedish.

RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): C+/A/A+

In 2010’s Resident Evil: Afterlife, Alice finds her powers taken away from her by Wesker (Shawn Roberts) when he cures her against her will. Now with less purpose, she flies to Alaska looking for Arcadia, a supposed refuge for the uninfected. She instead finds Claire, drugged and equipped with a device that wipes her memory and forces her to fight. Once removed, they fly to Los Angeles together and locate a small group of survivors, including Luther (Boris Kodjoe), Bennett (Kim Coates), and Chris Redfield (Wentworth Miller), Claire’s brother. They inform them that Arcadia is actually a ship, but getting there and avoiding the swarming armies of the undead, which are now mutating into faster and more deadly monsters, will take them to their limits.

With Paul W.S. Anderson back on board after jumping ship for the previous two sequels, Afterlife sees the series take another creative nosedive, undoing everything set up in the previous films and starting at square one. In some ways, it’s an interesting idea to make Alice human again, but since she’s still the slo-mo, ass-kicker we’ve always known her to be, it doesn’t make much of a difference. For the time being, she just has Umbrella off her back. Some of the new additions are welcome, including Kim Coates and Wentworth Miller, but others are completely wasted, such as Luther who disappears from the story only to re-emerge when it’s over. The film is also infamous for its main action set piece during the finale which features ridiculous and nonsensical combat, the worst of the series overall. Great visuals, especially in 3D for which it was specifically shot, and fun action sequences don’t make up for the interesting direction that the third film was setting up. Afterlife seems to want to evolve the series into something else, but with Anderson at the helm, it’s stuck in style-over-substance mode.

Resident Evil: Afterlife was captured digitally by cinematographer Glen MacPherson using PACE Fusion 3-D, Phantom HD, and Sony CineAlta cameras with Zeiss and Angenieux lenses, and finished as a 2K Digital Intermediate with the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. For its Ultra HD release, Sony has upscaled that source to create a new 4K DI and graded it for high dynamic range (HDR10 is the only available option). The first film in the series to be shot entirely in a digital realm, Afterlife looks virtually perfect, though lacks the visual appeal of film stock. That said, it bests its Blu-ray counterpart with ease. Textural detail is increased, especially on flatter surfaces wherein detail can only be increased by the additional pixels. The encode is tight with excellent clarity in every shot. It’s less colorful than its predecessors, but the wider gamut and HDR pass wring the most out of the palette, with deeper shades of red and green, while boosting whites and blacks. Flesh tones are generally excellent as well.

The main audio option offered is English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible). The return of Paul W.S. Anderson also means the return of a hard driving soundtrack with an electronic hard rock mix, as well as explosive sound design. The various booms of shotguns, the rat-a-tat-tat of machine guns, the crashing of airplanes, and blowing them up are loud with major low frequency activity. Dialogue reproduction is excellent and minor ambient activity is evident. Sounds sweep and cascade all across the sound field, enveloping the listener and keeping us right in the middle of the action. It’s another powerful sound experience. Other audio options include an English Audio Descriptive track, Catalan, Czech, French, Hungarian, Italian, Polish (Voiceover), Portuguese, Russian, Spanish (Castilian), and Spanish (Latin) 5.1 Dolby Digital. Subtitle options include English, English SDH, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Danish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Korean, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), and Swedish.

RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): C/A/A+

In 2012’s Resident Evil: Retribution, Umbrella’s forces, lead by a brainwashed Jill Valentine (Guillory), arrive at the Arcadia to destroy it, sending Alice into the water and killing the survivors. She wakes up moments later in a simulated suburban environment with Carlos (Fehr) as her husband and Becky (Aryana Engineer) as her daughter, but after a zombie attack on their home, she wakes up again in prison. She escapes and runs into Ada Wong (Li Bingbing), one of Wesker’s minions. Wesker (Roberts), who is miraculously alive, claims to have left Umbrella’s employ since the Red Queen now controls it. Alice learns that they’re in an underground lab where thousands of versions of her have been tested, even recreating cities like Moscow and Tokyo for simulations. A group of mercenaries, among them Luther (Kodjoe), are on their way to help. To retaliate, the Red Queen sends Jill and a group of Special Forces clones, including Rain (Michelle Rodriguez), to keep them from reaching the surface.

One of the series’ most ambitious sequels, Retribution is higher in concept than its predecessors, but doesn’t satisfy that concept very well. The idea of cloning characters from previous sequels is a potentially fun idea, but not much is done with it. For instance, there’s a “good” version of Rain in suburbia who is anti-gun, but she’s given nothing to do and is killed off screen. Also a waste of time is the inclusion of characters from the games, including Ada Wong, Barry Burton, and Leon S. Kennedy, all of whom have no personality and serve no purpose. The return of Sienna Guillory is welcome as she was one of the strongest aspects of Apocalypse, but for whatever reason, she is extraordinarily awful in this film. Making Alice a potential mother certainly gives her more of a human side, but at the end of the day, she still winds up an emotionless fighting machine for the majority of the running time. As such, Retribution attempts to do something different, and mildly succeeds, but doesn’t go far enough.

Resident Evil: Retribution was captured digitally by Glen MacPherson in the Redcode RAW codec (at 5K), using Red Epic cameras with Zeiss lenses (as well as the 3Ality Technica Atom 3-D Rig for the 3-D version), and finished as a 2K Digital Intermediate at the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. For the Ultra HD release, Sony has upscaled that 2K source to create a new 4K Digital Intermediate and graded it for high dynamic range (HRD10 is the only available option). The resulting image is solid in every respect, with excellent detail and texturing, particularly in the shadows at the beginning of the film during the suburbia scenes. The wider-gamut and HDR pass deepens the blacks during the Tokyo scenes, but also enhances the variety of neon hues and lights found all around the city streets. Again, the encode is tight with nary a visual flaw in sight. The CGI elements are a mixed bag. Sometimes they blend well with the other elements, but contrast discrepancies sometimes give them away. It’s still a great presentation, all said and done.

The main audio options include English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible) and English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. Not much of a surprise here, but the Atmos track is another reference quality presentation. The subtlest of sounds heard in and around both the suburban and urban environments add vast dimension. Gunfire and explosions yield loud, booming results with plenty of LFE to back them up. Dialogue is well supported during both noisy and quiet moments. It’s a totally satisfying auditory experience with wonderful clarity, sweeping sonic movement, and ample support for the various elements. Other audio options include English Audio Descriptive Service, Catalan, Hindi, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Polish (Voiceover), Russian, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), and 5.1 Dolby Digital. There’s also Czech 2.0 Dolby Digital, and French and Turkish 2.0 Dolby Surround. Subtitle options include English, English SDH, Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, French (Canada), Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Swedish, and Thai.

RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): C+/A/A+

The final film in the series, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, picks up not long after the events of the first film which left Alice infected with the T-Virus yet again, regaining her powers. We’re told that Wesker (Roberts) betrayed her and that the war for humanity ultimately failed. When she wakes up in a destroyed Washington, D.C., the Red Queen locates her and tells her that the world’s survival depends on her going to Raccoon City and back into The Hive to find the last sample of the antivirus. It’s against the Red Queen’s programming to go against Umbrella, but she’s willing to help after having been made aware of previously unknown information. Alice attempts to get back into the city, but is picked up along the way by Dr. Isaacs (Iain Glen), who is now a bible-thumping crazy person. She soon escapes his clutches and takes up with a band of survivors, including Claire (Larter), who help her get into The Hive where Wesker is waiting. She’ll not only have to contend with more of Umbrella’s monsters along the way, but she’ll also have to grapple with who she really is.

For the last entry in the six part, Alice-centric Resident Evil series, Paul W.S. Anderson goes all out and pumps every bit of his style of filmmaking into this one. Besides a storyline involving heady and heavy ideas that go back to his Event Horizon days, The Final Chapter is also a film that you really have to put your game face on for because it’s a giant mess, possibly the biggest of the series. Once again, events that were meant to take place after the events of the previous film all happen off screen, and many of the previous characters don’t return. There’s not even an acknowledgment of their existence. And those who suffer from seizures easily need not apply here. This film is over-produced within an inch of its life. The camera doesn’t sit still, screen direction is nigh impossible to follow, and every cut is about half the length that it should be or less. The story is pretty wild too, but it’s easier to swallow than the other elements, logical flaws aside (as if any of the films in this series were ever dependent upon logic). And the final minutes, the most touching of the entire series, are undercut by more quickly-edited, promise-for-a-potential-sequel hijinks. A ticking clock element is added in and an attempt to explain the why of Alice is attempted, but the overall film is a headache to get through. Sadly, The Final Chapter doesn’t close out the series satisfactorily. Instead of closing the door, it manages to leave one open. But based upon the box office profits (the largest of the series), it’s a non-issue at this point.

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter was captured digitally by Glen MacPherson in the Redcode RAW codec (at 5K), using Red Epic Dragon cameras with Zeiss and Angenieux lenses, and finished as a 4K Digital Intermediate at the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. For its Ultra HD release, Sony has graded the image for high dynamic range (HRD10 is the only available option). Given the fact that this is a native 4K presentation, it’s surprising to report that The Final Chapter is easily the worst looking of any of these films in Ultra HD. This is due to an overly-aggressive color grade, a strange lack of depth in the image, and poor contrast as well. That’s a shame because, given the variety of environments—whether it’s the brown, war-torn, ravaged by disease, above ground world or the clean and sterile blues, reds, and whites of The Hive—this film had the potential to be a visual feast. But the shadows are crushed to the point of detail disappearing, and even macroblocking pops up from time to time. Despite the wider gamut and HDR, the colors fail to impress. Detail is most improved during daytime sequences, but when night falls, the presentation really suffers. This is a clear failure of some critical aspect of the digital cinematography or post production. Sadly, Alice’s final outing goes out with a visual whimper.

The main audio option offered is English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD). Whatever visual flaws it has, the film’s aural counterpart is just as impressive as its predecessors. It’s the busiest soundtrack of all with a constant barrage of sound effects and score from all around the sound field. It’s definitely immersive as bullets, vehicles, and broken glass whiz by constantly. Explosions boom louder than ever with deep low frequency. Even the quieter moments, of which there are few, offer nice atmospherics. Dialogue reproduction is perfectly balanced with the rest of the track as well. Other audio options include English Audio Descriptive Service, Czech, French, Hungarian, Italian, Polish (Voiceover), Russian, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Thai, and Turkish 5.1 Dolby Digital. Subtitle options include English, English SDH, Arabic, Cantonese, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, Greek, Italian, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Latin), Swedish, Thai, and Turkish.

RESIDENT EVIL: THE FINAL CHAPTER (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): D+/C+/A+

Each film is included on a separate Ultra HD disc with a 1080p Blu-ray counterpart. Both sets of discs are included in separate amaray packages and housed within a thin slipcase. The following extras are included on each disc, all in HD:

DISC ONE – RESIDENT EVIL (UHD)

Theatrical Trailer (2:16)

DISC TWO – RESIDENT EVIL (BD)

Audio Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson, Jeremy Bolt, Milla Jovovich, and Michelle Rodriguez
Audio Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson and Richard Yuracich
Playing Dead: Resident Evil – From Game to Screen (15:04)
The Making of Resident Evil (27:20)
Scoring Resident Evil (11:03)
Storyboarding Resident Evil (6:26)
Costumes (3:26)
Set Design (4:07)
The Creature (5:18)
The Elevator (1:08)
The Laser (5:05)
The Train (2:20)
Zombie Dogs (3:54)
Zombies (4:30)
Alternate Ending with Introduction by Paul W.S. Anderson (3:20)
My Plague Music Video by Slipknot (3:05)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind: 30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition Preview (1:34)
Coming to Blu-ray Promo (:32)
30 Days of Night Trailer (2:20)
The Company Trailer (2:00)
Resident Evil: Extinction Trailer (2:32)
Dragon Wars Trailer (1:42)
Ultraviolet Trailer (2:19)
Underworld Trailer (2:25)
Blood and Chocolate Trailer (2:31)
Easter Egg #1 (1:02)
Easter Egg #2 (1:26)

All of the extras from the US DVD and Blu-ray releases are included, adding the trailer on the 4K disc. The first Easter egg, which can be found by pressing up when “Play Movie” is highlighted, will reveal the Umbrella logo. Clicking on it will reveal a brief zombie make-up test video. The other Easter egg, which can be found in the “Special Features” menu by pressing right when “Featurettes” is highlighted, will reveal an image of the Red Queen. Clicking on it will reveal a camera test featuring Milla Jovovich in a blue dress. Not carried over from a couple of overseas releases are a few interviews, B-roll footage, photo galleries, TV spots, and additional trailers.

DISC THREE – RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE (UHD)

Teaser Trailer (1:24)
Theatrical Trailer (2:30)

DISC FOUR – RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE (BD)

Audio Commentary by Alexander Witt, Jeremy Blot, and Robert Kulzer
Audio Commentary by Milla Jovovich, Oded Fehr, and Sienna Guillory
Audio Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson and Jeremy Bolt
Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated – Game Plan (12:26)
Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated – Running, Jumping, Fighting (10:17)
Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated – Zombie Choreography (8:52)
Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated – Building Raccoon City (7:50)
Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated – Big Guns (5:27)
Game Over: Resident Evil Reanimated – Smoke and Mirrors (10:47)
Game Babes (11:05)
Symphony of Evil (7:42)
Corporate Malfeasance (2:54)
Deleted Scene: Weather Report (:53)
Deleted Scene: Extended Stairway Chase (:50)
Deleted Scene: Extended Gate Scene (:47)
Deleted Scene: Terry’s Big Break (:55)
Deleted Scene: The Lord’s Judgment (:56)
Deleted Scene: Pray for Help (:29)
Deleted Scene: “What the Hell was That?” (:38)
Deleted Scene: Alpha-Team to Base (:50)
Deleted Scene: Stay Alive (:26)
Deleted Scene: “Save Your Ammo!” (:23)
Deleted Scene: Graveyard Melee (:16)
Deleted Scene: Umbrella Laboratory (:50)
Deleted Scene: “What Are You Staring At?” (:24)
Deleted Scene: Just Say No… (:32)
Deleted Scene: “You Be on the Weather!” (:39)
Deleted Scene: I Was a Ghetto Superstar (:42)
Deleted Scene: Point, Pull, Repeat Pt. 1 (:21)
Deleted Scene: Point, Pull, Repeat Pt. 2 (:43)
Deleted Scene: Dogs in the Kitchen (1:24)
Deleted Scene: Closure (1:00)
Casino Royale Trailer (2:34)
Ultraviolet Trailer (2:19)
S.W.A.T. Trailer (1:21)
xXx Trailer (1:31)
Coming to Blu-ray Promo (1:13)

Most of the extras from previous US DVD and Blu-ray releases are included. Missing are a set of outtakes and a photo gallery. Overseas releases featured additional interviews, featurettes, still galleries, trailers, and TV spots.

DISC FIVE – RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION (UHD)

Resident Evil Road Map: Reflections on the Future of the Series (6:59)
Teaser Trailer (1:45)
Theatrical Trailer (2:32)

DISC SIX – RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION (BD)

Audio Commentary by Russell Mulcahy, Paul W.S. Anderson, and Jeremy Bolt
Beyond Raccoon City: Alice Vision/Pre-Production (7:07)
Beyond Raccoon City: The Big Bang/Shoot Resident Evil: Extinction (13:55)
Beyond Raccoon City: Bigger, Faster, Stronger/The Undead Evolve (6:07)
Beyond Raccoon City: Vegas Visual Effects/Miniatures (4:49)
Deleted Scene: Tracking Alice (:56)
Deleted Scene: Fresh One (:59)
Deleted Scene: Dr. Isaacs’ Research (:35)
Deleted Scene: The 87th (1:01)
Deleted Scene: “Forever Hopeful” (:49)
Deleted Scene: Coping with Reality (1:11)
Deleted Scene: Legend of Alice (:27)
Deleted Scene: Alice’s Powers (:48)
Deleted Scene: The Drive to Vegas (1:31)
Deleted Scene: Vegas Memory (:15)
Deleted Scene: Remembering the Lost (:42)
Resident Evil 5 Video Game Trailer (3:11)
Devil May Cry 4 Video Game Trailer (3:39)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind: 30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition Preview (1:34)
Vantage Point Trailer (2:32)
Resident Evil: Degeneration Trailer (1:01)
Under the Umbrella: Picture-In-Picture Experience

All of the extras from the US DVD and Blu-ray releases of the film are included. This release also imports the Resident Evil Road Map featurette from overseas releases of the film. Those releases also included additional interviews and featurettes not carried over here.

DISC SEVEN – RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE (UHD)

Moments: Alice (9:34)
Moments: Claire (7:10)
Moments: Luther (3:47)
Moments: The Undead (5:17)
Cast and Crew Listings
Start-Up Promo for 4K Ultra HD (1:02)

DISC EIGHT – RESIDENT EVIL: AFTERLIFE (BD)

Undead Vision: Picture-in-Picture Track
Audio Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson, Jeremy Bolt, and Robert Kulzer
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Intruders – Extended (:38)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Alice and Claire in the Plane (:42)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Alice Rolls Quarters – Extended (1:11)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Getting Dirty (:29)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Crystal Volunteers (1:14)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Claire and Luther at the Prison Gate (:34)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: On the L.A. River (1:08)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: To Arcadia – Extended (1:38)
Outtakes (4:30)
Back Under the Umbrella: Directing Afterlife (6:43)
Band of Survivors: Casting Afterlife (6:39)
Undead Dimension: Resident Evil in 3D (7:27)
Fighting Back: The Action of Afterlife (5:31)
Vision of the Apocalypse: The Design of Afterlife (7:28)
New Blood: The Undead of Afterlife (7:31)
Pwning the Undead: Gamers of the Afterlife (6:11)
Sneak Peek of Resident Evil: Damnation (1:10)
Blu-ray Disc Is High Definition! Promo (2:05)
Salt Trailer (2:32)
Faster Trailer (:58)
Ticking Clock Trailer (1:19)
Takers Trailer (1:26)
The Virginity Hit Trailer (2:29)

Most of the extras from the US DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K UHD releases of the film are included, though strangely, the US version of this same release includes the teaser and theatrical trailers, as well as an exclusive featurette. Missing from releases around the world are additional featurettes, interviews, and premiere footage. The 3D version of the film is also not included.

DISC NINE – RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION (UHD)

Undead Retribution (5:43)
Evil Goes Global (5:39)
Theatrical Trailer #1 (1:16)
Theatrical Trailer #2 (2:30)

DISC TEN – RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION (BD)

Project Alice: The Interactive Database
Audio Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson, Milla Jovovich, and Boris Kodjoe
Audio Commentary by Paul W.S. Anderson and Jeremy Bolt
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Suburban Attack: Extended (4:56)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Alice Fights Undead in Corridor of Light – Extended (2:33)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Undead Rain/Jill in the Control Room (3:53)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Alice and Ada Find Becky – Extended (1:19)
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Rain Captures Ada (:20)
Outtakes (4:36)
Maestro of Evil: Directing Resident Evil: Retribution (8:06)
Evolving Alice (6:50)
Resident Evil: Reunion (9:42)
Design & Build: The World of Resident Evil: Retribution (9:11)
Drop (Un) Dead: The Creatures of Retribution (6:58)
Resident Stuntman (6:17)
Code: Mika (5:34)
Sony “This Is Blu-ray” Promo (2:21)
Resident Evil: Damnation Blu-ray and DVD Trailer (1:07)
Total Recall Blu-ray and DVD Trailer (2:25)
Starship Troopers: Invasion Trailer (1:17)
Premium Rush Trailer (2:22)

Most of the extras from the US DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K UHD releases of the film are included, but the US version of this same release included the featurette Resident Evil: Retribution – Face of the Fan. Missing from releases around the world are a few additional featurettes and interviews. The 3D version of the film is also not included.

DISC ELEVEN – RESIDENT EVIL: THE FINAL CHAPTER (UHD)

Moments: Alice (21:46)
Moments: The Red Queen (10:33)
Moments: Dr. Isaacs (13:19)
Moments: Zombies (13:44)
Cast and Crew Listings
Startup Promo for 4K UHD (1:03)

DISC TWELVE – RESIDENT EVIL: THE FINAL CHAPTER (BD)

Retaliation Mode with Paul & Milla
Stunts & Weaponry (9:03)
Explore The Hive (4:18)
The Bad Ass Trinity & The Women of Resident Evil (6:32)
Sneak Peek – Resident Evil: Vendetta (4:22)
Resident Evil: Vendetta Start-up Trailer (1:33)
Underworld: Blood Wars Start-up Trailer (2:30)
Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV Start-up Trailer (2:15)
The Shallows Start-up Trailer (2:25)
Resident Evil: Retribution Start-up Trailer (2:28)

Most of the extras from the US Blu-ray and 4K UHD releases of the film are included, though several trailers and featurettes are missing from the alternate 4K UHD release of the film. Missing from releases around the world are more trailers and a large set of interviews. The 3D version of the film is also not included.

And that’s the breadth of it. The Resident Evil series is a rocky mess of schlocky action and poor filmmaking choices. They attempt horror elements, but most of the time, they fall completely flat. Oddly enough, they’re charming films in their own naive way, but they’re far from what fans of the video games were hoping for. Still, if you’re a fan of the series, this 4K Ultra HD Six Movie Collection from Random Space Media offers the films in the finest quality (outside of the final film, that is), and is a nice alternative to Sony’s US edition.

- Tim Salmons

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