Blu-Ray Review: ‘Resident Evil: Vendetta’

Resident Evil: Vendetta emerged as likely my favorite entry in the animated RE series. It’s a return to the horror roots of the video game series, as well as balancing the standalone film dynamic with the Resident Evil canon. Heck, it might be my favorite RE film out of all the movies, live-action included. I recently had the chance to get hands-on with the 2-disc special edition Blu-Ray. Does the home video release match the excellence of the film? Find out…

Courtesy: Sony

Let’s begin with the packaging. Sure, it’s supposed to be about what’s on the outside. But honestly speaking, appearance (when it comes to home video releases) does matter. Vendetta comes packaged in a premium slip cover. Inside, you’ll find the traditional Blu-Ray casing. The film is fantastic, and the transfer looks phenomenal in 1080p with lifelike visuals.

Resident Evil Vendetta Blu-Ray with slipcover

Although the slipcover isn’t really a major packaging feat, it looks pleasant and lends a high-quality feel since it’s more than the vanilla Blu-Ray case. Special features are where the Resident Evil: Vendetta Blu-Ray 2-disc set shines. Disc one features filmmaker commentary which I quite enjoyed. What can I say, I’m a sucker for delving beyond the film. There’s a still gallery which is fun to peruse and really helps you appreciate the artwork of RE: Vendetta.

RE Vendetta Blu-Ray discs

Two bonus features, CGI to Reality, probe creature design and overall film design. It’s tough to capture realism and fantasy alike in CG. Further, a motion capture set tour with Dante Carver displays the neat technology which in large part helped Vendetta appear so vivid.

Disc two explores the RE universe, specifically with a focus on the BSAA mission targeting Arias as well as the world of Vendetta. There’s also footage of the Tokyo Game Show. Overall, it’s a beefy set. There are hours of videos and images to plunge into beyond the film itself. And for the most part, it’s not just filler. I didn’t care much about the Tokyo Game Show footage, but it’s a fun inclusion. I was more interested in the commentary, as well as insight into the technical aspects of making Vendetta.

SCORE
8/10