© Sony Pictures
Austin Abrams - Resident Evil
Austin Abrams in 'Resident Evil' (2026)
Resident Evil
(In Theaters Sept. 18)
It’s risky business stepping into an established franchise that boasts an enormous number of existing fans. Being somewhat naive, writer-director Zach Cregger figured that “Resident Evil’s” video game fans would be excited to see an original story starring a new character.
Raccoon City figures heavily into the action, set at the beginning of a viral outbreak that infects its residents with a zombie plague. It is at this very moment that young medical courier Bryan (Austin Abrams) arrives carrying an organ needed for a life-saving transplant. The game’s fans exerted sufficient pressure on Cregger that the director claims this will be his first and last franchise endeavor. He states that he made a movie that looked like a version of the video game he’d want to play, meaning Bryan spends virtually the entire film battling monstrous creatures while trying to fulfill his courier assignment. Back home, Bryan’s bossy girlfriend along with his demanding boss, are each determined to dictate Bryan’s every move. The film also features Paul Walter Hauser, Zach Cherry, Kali Reis and Johnno Wilson. It’s a tough world and Bryan just barely lives in it. (Lisa Miller)
Tequila Sunrise
(Arrow Limited Edition Ulta HD Blu-ray)
Robert Towne wrote the screenplay for one of the great films of the ‘70s, Chinatown. He wasn’t finished. Towne returned to LA’s underworld, writing and directing 1988’s Tequila Sunrise. Set in ‘88, Tequila Sunrise updates the noir detective-criminal scenario to the “Miami Vice” era with Mel Gibson as a drug dealer trying to shake off his past and Kurt Russell as his best friend, an LA sheriff’s office detective.
Mac (Gibson) keeps being pulled back to a life he wants to leave; Nick’s (Russell) rule-bending irks his colleagues (but he gets the job done). Michelle Pfeiffer plays Jo Ann, the glamorous owner of a trendy restaurant who wavers between the two men. The dialogue is hardboiled but supple as the story explores the competing demands of loyalty, the ties of friendship early formed and the demands made as life continues. The limited-edition release includes new interviews and an appreciation of Towne’s work. (David Luhrsen)
