Virus

Finally I am watching the 156 mins version for the first time. Read some amazing reviews by prolific reviewers like Leofwine_draca n Coventry.

I cant wait to state that this movie is a solid take on the virus n apocalypse genre. Upto now I am into 37 mins n this film is so intriguing n engrossing man.

My review aft completion of the film. This film has some amazing lines : History can tell you that the rational mind is not always a prerequisite for a position of power. Those who cannot remember the past r condemned to repeat it. This time try to work it out together. U r a fool, general. There's nobody left.

The scene at 45th min is so distressing. The film has an amazing ensemble cast. Watch out for Henry Silva as the psycho general. The end is a lil far fetched n that is the reason it's not a 10 from me.

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.

I saw the original one in cinema when it first came out in 1980 in Japan. Great adaptation of an original novel by Sakyo Komatsu. It was an epic of more than two hours, which shook my youthful soul with the power of love.

I was flabbergasted by how this epic was mutilated when I saw it again in video in USA. The one you can see in USA has no resemblance to the original version, where, I recall, much longer portion of the film was spent describing "the walk". Also all the episodes in Japan were omitted, so most of the Japanese characters in Antarctica made no sense. In a nutshell, the "American" version only talks about American people, so there is really only half the story left in the film. If you can get the original version, it is a very emotional film, 8/10. The "American" version is not worth anything, 4/10.

I have always loved this movie since I first saw it in the eighties but have been stuck with the shorter (105 or 115 minute)American versions. I finally found a full, 156 minute, version last year and it really makes a difference. As is the case with most Japanese movies edited for America, from Gojira to the present, they have a tendency to take out the poignant parts and edit so that some of the original plot points are completely lost. Here you gain more scenes at the Japanese base camp with them dealing with the loss of their families back home and a really powerful scene when they contact a young American boy by short-wave that has lost his parents. There are also more scenery-chewing scenes with some of the leads, especially with Henry Silva going way over the top. If you like the movie, this version is definitely worth looking for.

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