The intersection between horror and comedy is separated by a thin wall of air. In modern times, we’ve seen comedy legends, such as Jordan Peele and John Krasinski, make the successful jump into horror. Some have theorized that laughter is a pain response, which links it to the adrenaline-filled thrill of experiencing horror. Personally, I believe that mastering comedic timing also complements the timing of scary moments in horror. Comedy-trained directors just get it. That’s why the melding of the two genres is always something to look for, and that’s why Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil is a must watch.

Coming from last year’s Weapons, Cregger established himself in the annals of horror history, despite learning the art of filmmaking from cult comedy classics like Miss March and The Whitest Kids U’Know. Weapons (and Barbarian before it) expertly balances the essentials of horror with dark comedy. If you’ve seen either of these movies, then you know what you’re in for with Resident Evil.

Based on the games or the past movies?

Resident Evil is tagged as second reboot of the movie franchise after 2021’s disastrous attempt, starring Kaya Scodelario, which barely registered a hiccup in the oeuvre of Resident Evil films. However, like 2021’s failure, Cregger’s take bases itself primarily on the events of the games, specifically around the plot of Resident Evil 2.

Bryan, a medical courier played by Austin Abrams, is tasked with delivering a top-priority package to Raccoon City. Unbeknownst to him, the way leading into Raccoon City (and the fabled city itself) is already overrun with mutated monstrosities.

And so, Bryan, a courier inexperienced with combat (much less surviving against zombies), must fight his way into the city to deliver his charge.

A worthy protagonist

Over the years, the franchise has seesawed between capable action heroes, like Leon Kennedy, and those who can barely survive, like Biohazard‘s Ethan Winters. On that scale, Bryan falls deeply into Winters’s side of the spectrum. He’s ill-equipped to survive a zombie apocalypse. He even admits that his barebones knowledge of guns comes from videogames. He attempts to shoot locks, thinking they’d work as they do in games. He is not a character you’d want to follow if you’re looking for a gruff man gunning down hordes of zombies with a machine gun.

But that’s exactly what makes this horror film worth watching. Bryan is us. Though there were times I was screaming at the screen because he wouldn’t do the obviously logical thing of running away from blatant traps, our fragile protagonist mimics how we would all react in a horrific situation: a deer in the headlights stuck staring.

Every situation feels more frightful. You don’t know how you’d react. He doesn’t know how he’d react. We’re just stuck trailing along for his ride. If he lingers too long looking at a zombie about to bite him, you have no choice but to look along with him. As a horror protagonist, he’s perfect.

When a camera does the work

Of course, inept protagonists aren’t new to horror. Practically all good horror films will feature a helpless hero standing up to the monster. See: the “final girl” era of horror.

Resident Evil elevates this trope by allowing the camera to do the heavy lifting. The film’s expert transitions into first-person perspectives and over-the-shoulder ones amp up the frights. When Bryan sweeps a room with a gun, the camera takes you down to the muzzle. You become the one sweeping along with him. You see the darkness as he does. The style creates an impressive layer of immersion that brings you into his trauma. Plus, if we’re going with comparisons, the transitions feel like a game taking you from a cutscene back into control of your character.

And it’s not just the perspectives, too. The film mimics several tense moments oft found in horror games, like gingerly creeping through a thin ledge when one false move can mean plummeting to your death. Resident Evil also has scenes in a dark tunnel, the sewers, and an overrun hospital. It’s a veritable who’s who of horror settings. But they all just work. It’s like you’re in a Resident Evil game.

When goofy becomes scary

But that’s enough of how the movie was made. How scary is it?

Taking them from their respective contexts, each monster is goofy. There’s an infirm zombie spewing acid bile that Bryan just bullies around. There’s a seemingly innocent young girl with a tentacle foot. There’s a zombie katamari.

And if that’s not enough, the casting is filled with masters of comedic timing like Paul Walter Hauser, Zach Cherry, and Austin Abrams himself. The first two play bumbling representatives of Umbrella Corporation, people who are too incompetent to do their job. Abrams is the bumbling everyman who can’t make heads or tails of what’s happening. Comedy is a living, breathing presence in this film.

But that’s not to say that this is a comedy film. The horror is still top notch. Cregger just knows how to time everything right.

Unlike modern films today, like in The Conjuring universe, Resident Evil is not a scare-a-minute film. It will not bombard you with jumpscares.

Now, to be fair, there are a fair bit including fakeouts. In fact, under normal circumstances, I’d dislike how many there are. But here, each jumpscare comes with a lengthy period to catch your breath. The film gives you time to relax, to laugh, and, eventually, lower your guard for the next scare. It’s a balanced pace that’s kept up throughout the entire film.

This is exactly how you should pace a horror movie.

Should you watch Resident Evil?

Even with its uniquely comedic style, Resident Evil is one of the most faithful adaptations of a video game I’ve ever seen. Like a game, Cregger’s pacing knows when to let you, the viewer, breathe and when to thrust you back into its monstrosities.

Humor will always go hand in hand with horror. Though the responses to these two categories are technically different, they’re both genres about facing the unexpected. On the box, Resident Evil says that it’s a horror film, but it’s so much more. If you want to laugh, cry, and cower in fear all in the same movie, this is the movie to watch.

As a child, one of my favorite thought experiments is to imagine who would win in a fight between my favorite characters at the time and a number of other random beings. For example, will Superman prevail against 100 Magnetos? Those are the ways I kept my young mind occupied. Now, as a former child, I still do the same thing but with more realistic people, like imagining if Steph Curry can win against 100 high schoolers. This week, ESPN and Disney+ are making one of those imaginary fights real: Formula 1 legend Max Verstappen versus 100 go-karters.

In an upcoming live event streaming exclusively on Disney+, Max vs 100 will pit the four-time world champion against 100 go-karters from everywhere in pop culture. This gaggle of 100 will include popular content creators such as Twitch streamer ExtraEmily, car photographer Larry Chen, and NBA shooting coach Chris Matthews.

All 101 drivers will race around one of the most iconic tracks in Formula 1 history, Silverstone in England. The track will be reconfigured to match the special race.

Of course, this is more than just a parade of go-karts. Max Verstappen will start at the back of the grid, meaning he has to overtake all 100 racers to win. Now, the Dutch driver is no stranger to winning from the back. In 2024, he won the Sao Paulo Grand Prix despite starting from P17 (out of 20 racers). Max vs 100, though familiar for the driver, presents a different challenge. Can he overtake 100 times to win the race?

Max vs 100 will stream live through Disney+ on September 17, 12:00am PHT.

SEE ALSO: Disney+ is moving to a global app experience

Cosmic Orange had a good run. For one generation, Apple’s “brave” iPhone Pro color turned into the flex color of 2025, and Android brands spent the better part of a year chasing that same citrus glow on everything from budget phones to tablets.

That cycle just repeated itself, except this time the copying started before the original even launched.

Apple made it official recently: the iPhone 18 Pro’s flagship shade is Burgundy, a deep red that leans warm and shifts toward purple depending on the light.

It’s the successor to Cosmic Orange, and Apple’s own language calls it “sophisticated.” Fair enough.

But Burgundy didn’t sneak up on the industry when Apple’s event wrapped. It’s been the worst-kept secret in tech since spring, when the first “dark cherry” and “deep red” leaks started making rounds.

By the time Apple actually confirmed the color on stage, at least four other phone makers had already shipped something wine-toned of their own.

Xiaomi got there first, on purpose

The Xiaomi 18 Fold, the company’s first wide-format foldable, launched with a Cherry Red colorway that multiple outlets pointed out looked a lot like Apple’s rumored shade, months before Apple confirmed anything.

Graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

Xiaomi timed the whole announcement to land just ahead of Apple’s own event, essentially racing to market with the same design language and a matching color story.

Whether that’s coincidence or a very calculated troll depends on how cynical you want to be about the smartphone industry, and honestly, you should be pretty cynical about it.

HUAWEI’s been circling this shade for a while

HUAWEI didn’t need to react quickly because it was already in the neighborhood.

The Pura X Max shipped in a Bordeaux Red, and the newly launched Pura X View came in a Shadow Red variant that sits comfortably in the same wine family.

Graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

HUAWEI has actually been rotating red-adjacent colorways across the Pura X lineup since last year, with Stylish Red and Stylish Orange finishes added as running refreshes rather than one-off marketing stunts.

TECNO didn’t just match the color, it named the reference

The TECNO Camon Slim 5G might be the most self-aware entry in this whole cycle.

It launched at IFA with a Burgundy Red option sitting alongside artist-inspired finishes like Van Gogh Blue and Neo Mondrian, and GSMArena‘s own unboxing coverage flat out called the color “iPhone 18-anticipatory.”

TECNO wasn’t hiding what it was doing. It saw the leaks, built the phone, and then, shipped it before Apple’s event even happened.

This isn’t Burgundy’s first lap

Wine-colored phones aren’t new, they just don’t usually get a moment like this.

Samsung quietly ran a Burgundy Red Galaxy S8 as a limited South Korea release back in late 2017, then brought the same shade back for the Galaxy S9 and S9+ the following year alongside Sunrise Gold.

A Burgundy Galaxy Z Fold4 later became an online-exclusive color that didn’t cost extra despite the exclusivity. None of those got the fanfare Apple’s version is getting now, mostly because Samsung treated Burgundy as a nice-to-have rather than the hero shade.

Burgundy used to be the tasteful alternative color buried three options deep in a lineup. Now, it’s the one every brand wants on the box art.

Why burgundy, and why now?

The appeal is pretty straightforward once you look at what came before it. Bright colors like Cosmic Orange photograph well but can feel a little loud on a device you’re carrying around all day.

Burgundy splits the difference. It reads as premium in product shots and it doesn’t look like a toy in person. Yet, it still stands out next to a wall of black and silver phones on a shelf.

It’s the color equivalent of a phone trying to look expensive without trying too hard. And after a year of neon everything, that’s clearly what buyers and brands both wanted.

Whether Burgundy becomes as inescapable as Cosmic Orange did remains to be seen. But for a color Apple hadn’t even confirmed until its event, it’s already had one of the busiest years any smartphone shade has had in a while.