Sony Entertainment, 2-disc limited edition steelbook, 2-disc Blu-ray and DVD, out now

‘He’s a merchant of death!’

The third of Capcom’s CG animated movies set in the same universe as the hugely popular games (not to be confused with the live action series starring Milla Jovovich, the latest of which I reviewed on the site here), Vendetta takes place between the events of Resident Evil 6 and 7 – for those of you who play…

We hit the ground running in this one, with BSAA agent Chris Redfield (voiced by Kevin Dorman) – an expert at fighting the living dead, we’re quickly reminded – taking a squad into what looks like a haunted house, in an effort to bring down bio-weapons mercenary Glenn Arias (John DeMita). In true RE-fashion, the mission goes spectacularly wrong and Chris finds himself up against zombies who can effectively be controlled by Arias: including his undercover source there, Cathy White (Karen Strassman) and her son. Barely escaping with his life, Chris swears to avenge himself on his enemy.

Arias, meanwhile, has an axe to grind himself – his wife and their entire wedding party having been attacked on the big day itself; leaving him holding the severed hand and arm of his dead spouse. It’s a lust for vengeance that leads him and his minions to attack Rebecca Chambers (Erin Cahill) – former member of Chris’ S.T.A.R.S. unit and now a professor trying to come up with a vaccine to the madman’s zombie-inducing virus.

It isn’t long before they have to recruit Leon S. Kennedy (Matthew Mercer), an expert on this particular kind of bio-weapon, in an effort to try and stop an attack on a major city; or at least cure the population if they do get zombified. But with Rebecca taken hostage so she can become Arias’ next bride, and the clock ticking, will Chris and Leon – at loggerheads from the start – be able to make it to the evil genius’ lair in time to save the day?

For those of you wondering, it is possible to watch Vendetta without any previous knowledge of the other films – Degeneration and Damnation – or the games, but obviously if you are a fan of those you’ll get a lot more out of the whole affair. The fights especially are very game-like, often first person POV: a blatant effort to appeal to those who enjoy playing Resident Evil. They’re also very entertaining, however, making up for the slimness of the plot and some of the general silliness of the characters’ motivations. At the end of the day, Vendetta knows its target audience well and is very confident in the execution of its tried and tested story. That said, there are also some genuinely creepy moments which wouldn’t be out of place in your average horror flick, especially when the team are exploring the old house at the start.

Extras for the DVD include a stills gallery and audio commentary from the director, executive producer Takashi Shimizu (director of The Grudge) and writer Makoto Fukami, while the ordinary Blu-ray and limited steelbook contain various featurettes covering everything from motion capture to designing Vendetta.

Revenge is a dish best served genetically modified… 8/10          

Paul Kane