Virus

Having read all the bad reviews this movie has received because of its poor videoquality and editing, I nonetheless bought it yesterday on DVD from a local store in Oslo. I just simply had to buy it in spite of the numerous warnings.

The reason is that I'm a huge fan of similar movies like The Andromeda Strain, The Satan Bug and the Cassandra Crossing which are all great.

Regarding the movie itself I was pleasantly surprised. It has good acting, good story and decent production values to boot. All the necessary ingredients for making a compelling movie.

Sadly this is ruined by an almost unviewable videoprint. It seems to me that the DVD-edition I bought used an old VHS videoprint as the source. The sound is equally bad.

Finally, some of the shorter prints of the film is plagued by abruptness. The version I acquired runs approx. 108 minutes. You get the feeling you've missed out on something. Nearing the end of the film one of the main characters returns from Washinghton to Antarctica. But we get no explanation as to how he made the journey. Which off course is a prudent question to ask, since in between his departure and arrival, a nuclear holocaust has transpired and several years have passed.

The longest version runs approx. 150 minutes. Hopefully I'll someday get my hands on that copy. And I urge everyone else to stay clear of the shorter prints and aim for the full 150 minute version instead.

Kind regards, Chris

I was so impressed by this movie that I hunted for it on IMDB to place a comment. It boasts a stellar American cast in a delightfully international story. Rather than spoil it for a new viewer, I offer these two items of advice: 1) don't be put off by the occasionally over-the-top acting and 2) read ALL the credits at the end.

It was 17 years ago (1983) that I watched this movie as a new release in Guadalajara, Mexico. I was 15 years old and I still remember it well. That is how much it moved me.

What if a man made military virus killed off the world except for the coldest place on Mother Earth? What if (at the height of the Cold War) Cold War enemies had to team up to survive? What if the few hundred men and women left in the world had to procreate mankind? Further (and what makes me remember this movie), how do they handle a new threat to their lives?

I strongly recommend this movie.

This was the most expensive Japanese film of the time. The film didn't get any USA booking and played straight to cable before landing to video. In fact, several public domain labels now carry the film, when the film actually have a copyright! I saw both version of the film, and I think the uncut version is the best. A deadly virus is loose and wipes out all the U.S. population except for a group of people in Arctic. Most of the Japanese plotline was edited out, making the early stage of the film choppy in the US version. In fact, the end was also changed. Good American and Japanese cast supported by Canadian cast. But several actors like Ken Ogata (of MISHIMA fame) and Sonny Chiba still had little to do in the long version of this film. So I suspect a longer print might have been made. There was reports that a big accident happen on the set back then and several crew was killed.

I just purchased a used copy of the Sonny Chilba Action Pack which includes the uncut Japanese 156m version of the film. By far the best transfer of the film to a media that I have seen thus far. This version is extremely better than the edited US version. Every bit worth the money spent to acquire it. Looks like it is presented in 1:1.85 aspect and not grainy. The cut Japanese scenes bring a better viewing experience to fans of this film like me. There are English subtitles where needed. The scene that prompted me to post this on here was a scene where the Japanese Antarctic team get a radio signal from a 5 year old American child unable to operate a radio correctly. VIRUS is one of my favorite movies about the end of the world.