Rating: 
Summary: If you liked Aliens, you'll like this.
Review: I enjoyed this movie very much! It's like "Aliens" vs "Terminator". Lots of action. A spaceship enters the earth's atmposphere and takes over the Mier space station which allows it to zoom down to a distroyer ship where it takes over all the electronic capabilities making half man/half machine robots that intend to take over the earth once they get rid of the "virus" known as man, eliminating all on board except one. Then, the Sea Star traveling out on the ocean, catch a glimpse of this vessel on radar and investigate hoping to salvage it for lots of $$$. Out of 7 crewmen (including Jamie Leigh Curtis) only 2 survive. Which ones? You'll have to watch it to find out!
Rating: 
Summary: "Shocked" by the negative reviews...
Review: *
I cannot really ''praise,'' per se, the originality or story of the film ''Virus,'' because, in all honesty, it's not what anyone can rightly call a great film. Sure, it's visually stunning and fun and enjoyable and all that... but it's certainly not ''Terminator'' or ''Aliens.'' Even so, I'm somewhat puzzled that so many reviewers are having a difficult time ''relating'' to this movie, based upon how it plays itself out. I think they are missing one key element in the whole thing, however: Just as ADULT reviewers have to be reminded that ''Santa Claus Conquers the Martians'' was a movie made for the tiny tot audience, reviewers of the movie ''Virus'' need to keep in mind that this film was based on a ''comic book'' story (...or as ''fanboys''-- current and former --would call it, a ''graphic novel'')! Anyone who pays any amount of attention would realize that there is NEVER (or rarely ever) going to be a ''totally straight'' presentation of a comic book story translated to the big screen -- even if the story itself is treated ''seriously'' within the pages of the comic. (''The Crow'' was one of those rarest of exceptions.) Keeping that in mind may actually make viewing this movie about an alien energy lifeform that....??? uses human bodies for ''spare parts'' ???...., and tries to kill them off more effectively by constructing cybernetic monstrosities???.... okay, so it's a little ludicrous, but again, I don't think it was meant to be taken completely seriously -- it's mindless escapism that's both fun and scary. That's Entertainment! * * *
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining alternative
Review: Okay, so you have seen "The Abyss" about eight times, "Jaws" four times, "The Perfect Storm" once, and "The Terminator" a few times. Now, what do you watch? Yes, the theme that "humans are a virus to the planet earth and have to be eliminated" is not very original or surprising. Although, the irony that it is a virus that has made this observation is. "Virus" is an entertaining reprieve from your usuals. If you can put your "movie critic" nature aside, you will enjoy this movie.
Rating: 
Summary: ¿Aliens¿ without the straight face
Review: I honestly don't understand how people can NOT love this film: it's the funniest thing I've seen in ages, as it was surely intended to be. A shameless rip-of of the "Aliens" pretext, from the Newt-but-older Russian girl to Sigourney Lee Curtis, it's packed with all the usual stock sci-fi clichés. But, whereas "Aliens" treated the terror of its situation and characters with considered sobriety, this is just a hoot: you have a suitably earnest collection of actors, against whom is pitted the malevolent glee of director John Bruno, a host of pretty cool robots and Donald Sutherland, whose refusal to take his situation even slightly seriously should serve as an example to all. The effects are fun: though you can easily tell where the ships involved change from full- to 1/20-scale, the line between real and CG robo-thingies is often quite hard to spot, and in both forms they appear sturdy, mobile and even - a real cinematic first - plausible. The gore is suitably comic-book, with lots of squelches, body parts, and icky cyborg things: a bit rubbery à la John Carpenter, but none the worse for that. In short, this droll pastiche is well worth a look: put your brain in neutral, relax and enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: John Bruno's Virus
Review: ... When I first saw the previews for this, I assumed it took place in space on board a ship taken over by an alien. Even the video box looks space bound. Wrong. A boat crew loses their cargo in a typhoon (which do not necessarily spring up out of nowhere anymore, having lived through dozens of them in the Far East) and comes across a seemingly abandoned Russian space communications ship while waiting in the storm's eye. The Russian ship could be salvaged, and the crew decides to take it and redeem the millions of dollars they think they will get. Suddenly, a Russian scientist appears and tells them what happened. Apparently, and this was shown in the beginning of the movie, an alien lifeforce took over the Mir space station, then the ship in the water. It is electronic in nature, and uses humans for "spare parts" as it builds machine/human hybrids to do its bidding. A lot of things blow up after that, all headed toward the predictable finale. Jamie Lee Curtis is the navigator, but is not given a lot to do except cough and call out other characters' names in dark corridors. One of the Baldwin brothers comes along for the ride. It's not Alec, and not that [one] from "Bio Dome," it is the middle one, I think. Donald Sutherland is the stereotypical mentally unbalanced captain of the American ship. He has some kind of strange accent that sounds Scottish one minute, and Canadian the next. The rest of the doomed crew consists of expendable minority characters and ... crusty cowards. Why is it only the white women survive movies like this? Joanna Pacula plays the surviving Russian scientist. She has done better. The entire film is full of characters wandering down dark hallways, and "checking on" each other. People get separated, and the real gore comes about thanks to the machines. The special effects are pretty incredible. From the opening space shots, to the typhoon effects, to the very gory hybrids, I thought they were the best thing about the film. The cast here tries hard. The film looks expensive, and Bruno's direction is excellent. The musical score is a little clangy, and the cinematography (especially a closing sunrise shot) is lush. There is just nothing underneath the surface of this film. Characters go tromping after noises they hear in the dark. The crew stumbles across a stash of guns that seems prerequisite in all sci-fi horror films. Jamie Lee Curtis is lusted after by the rest of the crew as she remains serious so she can be taken seriously. They even throw in a fake ending to get your blood rushing again after 100 minutes of yelling, gore, and explosions. ... . What we have here is a spaceship movie that takes place in the ocean going ship concerning a computer virus ... . What we also have here is a lot of cliche dressed up with pretty pictures, an expensive look, and great effects. This is very similar to the straight to video "Proteus." We also have a film I cannot recommend. This is rated (R) for strong physical violence, strong gun violence, very strong gore, and profanity.
Rating:
Summary: Not the greatest, but worth watching
Review: If you bought this movie like I did becuase you're a fan of Jamie Lee Curtis or Donald Sutherland, you might be disappointed. The story line doesn't go nearly as far as it could with obvious conclusions. The viewer wonders if perhaps there was a diferent ending and perhaps the studio made the director make cuts leaving the viewer less than fulfilled. Oh well, that is the delima. Great special effects and action, but don't expect your brain cells to be overly stimulated.
Rating:
Summary: How to blow $75,000,000
Review: Virus was an ill-fated title for many Universal Studio executives. Budgeted at $75,000,000, it was the last straw in a string of flops. Shortly after it was released, heads rolled. I can see why, as will you, if you see the video. For one thing, successful horror movies have been set in many places - big cities [The Exorcist, The Omen], small towns [Halloween, Carrie], and even in outer space [Alien, Aliens]. Jaws, the biggest of them all, took place by and under an ocean, but every other one I can think of that was set at sea promptly capsized and sank. Virus is no exception. This is regrettable, because, as my regular readers know, horror movies are one of my guilty pleasures. The movie begins in fine fashion. A Russian ship on a science mission is in contact with astronauts in the Mir space station. A transmission is about to be sent from the station to the ship. Suddenly an astronaut spies a beautiful purple cloud approaching. Just as the transmission begins, the cloud hits the station. Huge bolts of electricity surge through the station, which sends them down to the ship. Things explode, debris flies, crew members scream. Fadeout. What comes next brings the movie down to earth. We see a crew being tossed about in a tugboat in the middle of a typhoon. This dinky little ship is in the Pacific Ocean towing a barge about a hundred times its size. As it turns out, whatever the barge is carrying belongs to greedy Captain Everton [Donald Sutherland], who threatens to kill any crew member who does the sensible thing, which is to release the barge. When the crew, which includes Kit [Jamie Lee Curtis] and Steve [William Baldwin], finally wins out, the barge promptly sinks. Everton is beside himself with grief. The storm intensifies. Then Kit has a bright idea - hey, gang! Let's sail over to the eye of the storm! There they encounter that Russian ship, which is sitting dead in the water. Everton has a thought - Let's board it and claim salvage rights! What follows is a fairly decent tale of an entity which takes up residence in machinery and computers. It's mission is, of course, to destroy the human race. It creates some cool monsters and thinks the only thing people are good for is as spare parts. The problem for both the entity and us is those idiots from the tugboat. They are so cartoonish and predictable that we wind up not really caring who wins the battle. Jamie Lee Curtis, who proved, especially in True Lies and A Fish Called Wanda, that she is a fine actress, has turned around and returned to her horror movie roots. Donald Sutherland, once a great leading man, has lately taken some roles that would be beneath even his son, Keifer. William Baldwin is also not doing his career a favor. What we have may be three stars in search of new agents. This brings us back to those horror movies which succeeded. Regardless of where they were set, each had in common well defined characters that we cared about. Was there ever a better woman as hero than Sigourney Weaver in Alien? Didn't we root for Sissy Spacek in Carrie? Wasn't it dreadful when Lee Remick fell off the stair landing in The Omen? In movies like Virus, there is simple nothing about the characters to make us care what happens to them.
Rating:
Summary: This schlocky thriller has some vibrant kick to it.
Review: In the early 1980's, New Line Cinema released a low-budget horror film named "Deathship," in which a handful of shipwreck survivors board a mysterious vessel in search of assistance and shelter. Of course, things go wrong for the characters as well as the ludicrous, unaffecting plot, which carried no shocks, no scares, and no suspense (and you wonder why you've never heard of it until now). In effect, John Bruno's "Virus" is the movie that "Deathship" wanted to be, possessing a somewhat similar story structure that is predictable, corny, and uses just about every piece of science fiction dialogue known to man. But familiar can be fun, and for the most part, this schlocky thriller has some vibrant kick to it. It begins by introducing us to the inevitable problematic situation: a Russian vessel commandeered for scientific research and medical experimentation receives a satellite transmission, in which a strand of alien life form is embedded that begins taking over their computer and power systems. Elsewhere in the Pacific, a small tugboat is battling its way through a typhoon. Its captain, Robert Everton (Donald Sutherland), presses on into the storm, despite cautionary warnings from navigator Kit Foster (Jamie Lee Curtis), who urges him to head for the storm's eye. A lost cargo barge and sufficient structural damage finally convince Everton to head for calm seas; once in the eye, Foster picks up a signal from another vessel, the same Russian vessel (gasp!) we saw in a state of disarray in the opening sequence. After boarding the abandoned ship, they find a variety of mysterious occurrences, from bullet holes in walls and windows, to a complete absence of power to the ship's engines and computers. A good setup so far, so it may come as a letdown that the antagonist of the story turns out to be a wave of computer-engineered robots, ranging from the smaller "gatherers" to the monstrous half-machine, half human contraptions fitted with things like machine guns, drills, clamps, all of which are controlled by a main computer who sounds like Arnold Schwarzenegger after too many martinis. As you may have guessed, the plot turns to race-for-survival tactics, pitting humans against human killing machines as they try to find a way off the vessel and a method of destroying the alien life form. As with any cliché-riddled science fiction thrill machine, there are pitfalls. The plot relies heavily on familiar twists and shocks that are seen coming a mile away. There are the obvious "Is It Really Dead?" jump scenes, during which a supposedly dead robot suddenly jolts to a quick hit on the soundtrack, as well as the standard "You're All Going to Die" speech, in which the secret behind the alien infestation is revealed, as well as its plan for humanity. The movie also makes it painfully clear who is going to survive the requisite final explosion, in which all the problems are solved. But, despite its banality, the film benefits from a likeable cast including Scream Queen Curtis and Donald Sutherland, whose cocky, arrogant demeanor is full of gusto and great zeal. William Baldwin plays opposite Curtis as the required "Love Beneath the Surface" character, Steve Baker; the fact that his role doesn't require much of his talent is a plus. The special effects, created by the wizards behind "Jurassic Park," are cheesy but effectively eye-popping, while the movie moves at a fast pace, making up for its lack of fresh ideas. Unlike an actual disease, "Virus" is too superficial and unoriginal to remain with you for long, but while you're there, it's quite a ride.
Rating:
Summary: Donald Sutherland is Cool
Review: There really isn't much to say about this cliched garbage. Soo many overtones of better movies like ALIEN, THE RELIC, MIMIC, and most of all, DEEP RISING. I am only giving it two stars for its entertainment quality, awesome cast, and special effects. It is BEYOND me how they dragged Donald Sutherland into this mess.
Rating:
Summary: Superficially Entertaining
Review: Nothing ultra-thought provoking in this one, just enough suspense and special effects to keep the popcorn chowing down. Donald Sutherland must have done this while either 1) intoxicated or 2) ambivalent or 3) in a mid-life crisis. His role as captain, even though passed by in large by the director and screen writer I am sure, is lackluster. In the beginning you want to think he's a grizzled Cappy, then you realize he's a suicidal drunk, then you see he will kill innocents for money, then you see him sell his soul to the alien force which has taken over the ship for no other apparent reason other than raking in 13 million $ which anyone can see is impossible.. and his acting is downright poor. Low Point. Jamie Lee does an inspired set, however, as does whoever plays the black guy and the Russian chick. The Baldwin brat is adequate yet uninspiring. Take all that away and you have a darn good sci-fi action movie, because the rest is 4 stars. Excellent directing. Better than yeoman f/x. 3 stars in all for the entertainment value and about half the actors showed up to act and half to get a paycheck. Worth seeing.
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