Resident Evil 5: Retribution For What?

Resident Evil: Retribution in 3D

The Resident Evil Franchise, starring Milla Jovovich, is coming back with a fifth movie.

Yes. I said fifth.

They want retribution this time. For what, I do not know.

Alice in Resident Evil 5, played by Milla Jovovich

If you have read previous blog posts of mine - such as this one - the problem with Hollywood is that they pump out sequels under the premise that it has to be bigger and better. Please do not make another Indiana Jones movie. The first three were great. The last one - not so great.

But there is one problem - rather than continuing to produce high-quality and consistent movies that build onto a franchise, Hollywood opts to use the bigger explosions, unrealistic over-the-top CGI, and the 3D schtick to crank out another movie, rather than to expand the content of the franchise portfolio by producing a great script.

Part of the problem is that established brands with previous successes in the U.S. and worldwide already have brand recognition. That means they already have a "foot in the door" when it comes to adding on a sequel to the franchise.

Keep in mind that Hollywood executives aim to make 60-70% of their profits through worldwide distribution. That means that 30-40% is made here in the U.S., but the worldwide markets have a big influence on what movies get made.

Alice running from blood-thirsty zombie-like humans created by the Umbrella Corp.'s T-Virus

So until Hollywood changes its practices, we will continue to see stale sequels in franchises that have been squeezed dry of their creative juices.

That includes hordes of zombies, and every other beast fathomable, since the Resident Evil movies do not stick to one kind of evil. They do it all.

I would rather see them do one thing and do it well, rather than to do it all and be and a master of nothing.

Good movies are good movies. Plain and simple. But when is the last time you saw a sequel win an award for acting?
If you want to see the trailer for yourself, it can be viewed here on Yahoo! Movies.

...and by the way, if you are a fan of the video games, be sure to pick up Resident Evil: Revelations for the Nintendo 3DS, but don't look at the spine of the game, because it is misspelled.



Resident Evil: Revelations incorrectly spelled "Revelaitons"



Indiana Jones Versus Pirates of the Caribbean: Should There Be a Fifth Movie?

Recently, a friend posted on Facebook about his dislike for the Pirates franchise, and how they better not be making a 5th movie. I replied to the effect that the same should hold true to the Indiana Jones franchise. I thought the last Indiana Jones movie was not only horrible, but it also stole the plot from Stargate: SG1.

To read more about this, see my earlier blog post, found here.

Basically, The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a let down, because it used some cheesy jeep driving-on-the-edge-of-the-cliff CGI, Indy jumping into a lead fridge to survive a nuke, and had to incorporate aliens into the movie, rather than have Indiana Jones go on a real adventure. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with using aliens, if done right. Stargate: SG-1 did a good job with aliens.

 A Crystal Skull, like in Indiana Jones 4

Indiana Jones 4 did not stay true to the franchise, and did not convince me that it is worthy of a 5th movie.

Now, to be fair, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End was my least favorite movie of this franchise, because it had the giant CGI Calypso wreaking havoc while the two ships fought while spinning inside of a whirlpool. It was not believable, and definitely not cool.



Pirate ships swirling around in Calypso's bathwater

So, opinions aside, let's let the numbers do the talking. I did this side-by-side comparison of the two franchises, and guess which franchise wins when you compare the ticket sales at the box office?

Pirates of the Caribbean, hands down.

Indiana Jones vs. Pirates of the Caribbean franchise statistics

I am not against Disney making a Pirates of the Caribbean Part 5. But I am totally against a 5th Indiana Jones movie. Yes, the last one was that bad.

If you want to know the real problem with Hollywood and movie sequels these days, read my Yahoo! Voices article, found here.