Paul Anderson gives you the visual imagery you dream of, without the psychoanalysis.
Having launched four successful films in the 'Resident Evil' series, he has tackled diverse subjects such as classic literature, science fiction, video-games, and historical fiction.
He most recently directed and produced an update of the Alexandre Dumas classic, 'The Three Musketeers', and is scheduled to helm Pompeii, an epic love story set against the backdrop of the 79 AD disaster.
Having come a long way from his '1994 Shopping, which is considered the first successful film adaptation of a video game, Anderson talks about the gaming element in his latest, 'Resident Evil: Retribution' and the benefits of 3D:
What is new in this installment?
We start where the last film left off. The end of that film was an epic cliffhanger and we really wanted to make it pay off at the start of this one, then go somewhere completely different. We have taken a huge conceptual leap with this movie. It’s got global scope and the action is bigger than ever.
This is the fifth installment in the series... still exciting?
The films give me an opportunity to indulge in my own fan-boy obsessions. I love making Resident Evil movies. They’re everything I loved about movies growing up—sexy girls, big action, cool sets. We’ve become more adventurous with each movie, but with this one we’ve done something really spectacular.
How has the character of Alice played by Milla Jovovich, your wife, evolved?
Over the last ten years, this character (Alice) has developed, and we’ve had the opportunity to see her grow as Milla has. Alice was a blank slate in the first film because she had memory loss and knew nothing about herself. She has slowly gathered around her this family made up of other survivors of the apocalypse. Now, she is a slightly more complex character. This series will bring back the old character s like Michelle Rodriguez’s Rain and Colin Salmon’s One. It was a unique opportunity to work with everyone again. For instance, I’ve always wanted to work with Michelle Rodriguez again, but we shot her in the head in the first movie, which seemed to preclude bringing her back. Once we introduced cloning, it really kick-started the idea of characters returning.
Why make the film in 3D?
When we made 'Resident Evil: Afterlife', we used what was then the leading edge of technology. It has evolved enormously since then. With audiences more used to 3D,I felt freer in other ways as well. I think we can cut faster. We can do more handheld and tolerate more camera shake, which we stayed away from just two years ago. So I think the film will have a much more kinetic feel than you’re used to seeing in a 3D film. Hopefully, people’s eyes won’t explode. But if they do, they’ll be having a good time, because we’ve put some pretty amazing stuff on screen.