*Note: This article contains minor spoilers for the live-action movie *Resident Evil*. Please be aware if you haven’t seen it yet.
On October 12, Director Hideo Kojima posted his thoughts on the movie “Resident Evil,” directed by Zack Kreger, on his X account. Word has spread throughout the community that this film is “a movie adaptation of Hidetaka Kano’s live-play commentary,” and attention is focused on its content, which appears to depict players actually playing the game.
“It’s a movie about players (controlled by remote) playing the game.”
After mentioning the film’s classic horror direction and succession of jump scares, Director Kojima described the film as “not a film adaptation of *Resident Evil*, but a movie about the players (controlled by remote) who played *Resident Evil*.”
Reflecting on his own experience, he recalled that when he played the original *Resident Evil* in 1996, he felt just like the film’s protagonist, Brian. He seems to be describing the film as one that portrays the players themselves as they play the game.
Meanwhile, Hidetaka Kano—well-known for his game commentary videos—posted on X on October 13 that many people are saying the currently in-theaters movie “Resident Evil” is “Eiko.” He appeared confused, asking, “What does that mean??”
In fact, if you search for “Bio movie commentary” on X, you can see that some people are describing this film as “a movie adaptation of Hidetaka Kano’s *Resident Evil* gameplay commentary.”It seems some fans—not just those familiar with Director Kojima—perceived the film as a portrayal of the players themselves, and many in particular felt that Brian’s demeanor resembled Hidetaka Kano’s gameplay commentary.
The official Japanese X account for the movie “Resident Evil” also reacted to this post with a quote, saying, “Eiko-san!”—which has drawn significant attention.
An ordinary person who’s scared out of his wits but keeps dropping F-bombs, with weapons that get progressively more powerful… Is this a movie about us, the gamers?
As mentioned in Game*Spark’s review, Brian—the protagonist of this “Resident Evil” movie—isn’t a series staple like Leon or Chris; he’s an anonymous ordinary citizen who isn’t a hero or a combat professional. The review notes that he’s practically a novice with guns, and the tension—where he can’t feel safe even when armed—persists until the very end.
Just as Director Kojima identified with Brian, the way he pushes forward while cursing might remind us of ourselves when we first tackled horror games or *Resident Evil*.
Furthermore, the progression—starting with a handgun, moving to a shotgun in a house visited early on, and then to more powerful machine guns as the story advances—where the weapons in your arsenal grow stronger as the danger increases, is likely a key factor in making this game feel “like a game.”
The review also touches on the production design that emphasizes a “player’s perspective”—making it feel as though you’re actually controlling the game—as well as the appearance of familiar items like typewriters and green herbs, and jokes that subvert the “cliché” where small locks can be destroyed with a gun but large ones cannot.
Additionally, a video titled “[Complete Recreation⁈] Herbs and Typewriters Make an Appearance.A ‘Bio’ Fanatic Director Talks Behind the Scenes of the Movie ‘Resident Evil’” is currently available. In this video, Director Kreger—a self-proclaimed “Bio” fanatic—discusses the making of the film, commenting that he “packed in every bit of my gaming experience.”
The live-action “Resident Evil,” acclaimed for its portrayal of the players, has been in theaters since October 9.
