I know that title may seem a little presumptuous, since a movie about the Kerala Floods is in works. But till then, the closest we have to the HBO Masterpiece is Virus. Whatever Chernobyl did to entice the audience, the same has been done in Virus. But less effectively. Whatever Chernobyl did to stay true to the story, Virus had done more. In terms of a disaster movie, Virus wouldn't be your cup of coffee. But for a survival one, it can hold and twist your nerves till the curtains draw.
It just seems that even with it's flaws, Virus could very well be a film that can demand an international audience and not many Indian films can say that with confidence. The Cast was a little too crowded but eventually everybody got their part. Soubin nailed the desperate patient role while Bhasi ( who got the most on screen time) gave a very nuanced performance that one wouldn't expect normally. Parvathy, Rima, Revathy all gave performances that was satisfactory, albiet a little too dramatic.
Sushin Shyam's haunting Soundtrack wholeheartedly deserves a special mention. If there is one thing i wouldn't have changed one bit, it's the soundtrack. And he delivered it without giving any break to the audience.
Aashiq Abu has been having a fantastic plethora of films. And it is no secret that Virus could very well be the next golden crest in his filmography. Short of a few crucial scenes, Virus could very well have been judged as a 'movie that was promising' but Aashiq has done a terrific job in crafting a movie that would've been pretty hard to make.
Real Life Events are always hard to adapt on screen, especially if it is a one that isn't as global as this. So the filmmaker's priority will be to convey the seriousness and soul in the opening scenes itself. And I'm sure the opening scenes of Virus could very well be one of the rarest, yet one of the most crucial openings in movie history.
