Resident Evil: Extinction” is the third film based on the Capcom video game Resident Evil. While it calls itself a science-fiction action film, it would be better described as a poorly-directed action film.

The story picks up five years after the T-Virus made its way through Raccoon City. After failed attempts by the Umbrella Corporation to control the virus, most of the population has become undead and humans are on the verge of extinction.

Under the order of the Umbrella Corporation’s chairman, Albert Wesker (Jason O’Mara), Dr. Sam Isaacs (Iain Glen) sets out to develop a cure for the epidemic. In his eyes, the cure can only be found by using a sample of Alice’s blood. The problem is that Alice (Milla Jovovich) has been out of their sight for years, forcing them to use her clones, which are put through rigorous tests that none of them survive.

Eventually, they are able to locate the real Alice and learn that she has acquired super-human strengths, including the ability to use telekinesis, which helps set the stage for an intense head-to-head showdown.

The movie manages to play out much like the video game since every time Alice enters a new location and things seem to be normal, catastrophe strikes.

One highlight in particular is a dogfight that would make even Michael Vick proud.
At times, the idea that just one slit of the throat could destroy the zombies made the movie a bit unbelievable, but for the most part, the fight scenes were well conceived.

Although the action is intense, the plot is another story. First and foremost, this movie is only for those who have seen the previous editions. Rather than giving an overview of what happened previously, the plot is unforgiving despite it being three years since the release of its predecessor, “Resident Evil: Apocalypse.”

At times, “Extinction” lacked continuity, almost as if every time there was a storyline that could have been elaborated, director Russell Mulcahy simply chose to cut it out and move on to something else.
The movie hints at there being a fourth installment on the horizon, but it seems somewhat baffling given “Extinction”‘s blatant flaws.

2 out of 4 stars