Resident Evil Breaks Major Record on Rotten Tomatoes

It’s official: Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil film is winning over critics. With a remarkable 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it stands as the highest-rated video game movie on the platform, and the competition is quite far behind. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Werewolves Within follow in second and third place, both sitting at 86%. Notably, only three video game adaptations have earned a “Certified Fresh” rating, indicating they surpass a specific percentage threshold and have received a minimum number of reviews.

Beyond these top three, just six other video game films boast positive scores on the list: The Angry Birds Movie 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Pokémon Detective Pikachu, Gran Turismo, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Mortal Kombat II, with ratings ranging from 64% to 72%. This highlights the overall struggle of video game movies to find success.

For context, the Tomatometer reflects the percentage of critics who rated a film positively. The Rotten Tomatoes list excludes any films lacking at least 20 reviews from theatrical releases. Despite this, the list is quite limited. For example, Exit 8, based on the game of the same name, has a 91% score with 176 reviews. Still, Resident Evil clearly leads the pack.

Historically, video game adaptations have performed significantly better on television than in cinemas, with standout series like Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (100% on Rotten Tomatoes), Arcane (100%), Fallout (93%), The Last of Us (96%), Castlevania (94%), and Nier: Automata Ver1.1a making waves.

Having experienced Resident Evil, it delivers a tightly packed 90 minutes filled with shocking sequences, suspenseful moments, and genuine laughs. The film smartly prioritizes being entertaining over strict adherence to lore. While it doesn’t include well-known characters, this choice works in its favor, as it captures the essence of the games, placing the protagonist in one dire scenario after another. Cregger, known for his work on Barbarian and Weapons, infuses the film with humorous nods that don’t require an in-depth understanding of the lore. We’ll see how general audiences react when it officially hits theaters on September 18.

Zach Cregger continues his impressive run.