Virus (1980/I)

Director:

Bruno Mattei

Writers:

José María Cunillés (writer)
Rossella Drudi (writer)

Release Date:

20 January 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

When the creeping dead devour the living flesh!

Plot:

A tough female reporter and her cameraman boyfriend team up with a four-man commando unit in the New Guinea jungle whom are fighting flesh-eating zombies.

Plot Keywords:

Flesh Eating | New Guinea | Chemical | Chemical Leak | Zombie

Cast

Margit Evelyn Newton	...	Lia Rousseau
Franco Garofalo	...	Zantoro (as Frank Garfield)
Selan Karay	...	Vincent
José Gras	...	Lt. Mike London (as Robert O'Neil)
Gabriel Renom	...	Max (as Gaby Renom)
Josep Lluís Fonoll	...	Osborne (as Luis Fonoll)
Pietro Fumelli	...	Man on TV
Bruno Boni	...	Josie's Husband
Patrizia Costa	...	Josie
Cesare Di Vito	...	Technician Lawson
Sergio Pislar	...	Technician Fowler
Bernard Seray	...	Barrett's assistant
Víctor Israel	...	Zombie priest
Pep Ballenster	...	Reporter
Joaquín Blanco	...	Professor Barrett

Also Known As:

Apocalipsis caníbal (Spain)
Hell of the Living Dead (International: English title)
Inferno dei morti viventi (Italy)
Night of the Zombies (USA)
Zombi 4 (USA) (pre-release title)
Zombi 5: Ultimate Nightmare (Italy)
Zombie Creeping Flesh (UK)
Zombie Inferno

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

Italy | Spain

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Telecolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-18 | Germany:(Banned) | UK:18 (re-rating: 2002) | UK:(Banned) (1984-2002) | UK:X (original rating: 1982) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Italy:VM14 | Italy:VM18 (VHS rating) | Australia:R | Canada:R | Norway:(Banned) | Spain:18 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:18 | Canada:R (Ontario) | France:-16 | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Badalona, Barcelona, Cataluña, Spain

Company:

Beatrice Film

Trivia:

Stock footage from the film La vallée (1972) was used for the native scenes.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the abandoned house, zombies that are seen entering through the window upstairs are also seen entering from downstairs.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Singin' in the Rain (1952)

Cheese with some good wine

"Hell of the Living Dead" is better than it's rumors say it is.

**SPOILERS**

At a chemical plant in Guinea, a radioactive leak spreads out, infecting the population. After stopping a terrorist organization, a special anti-terrorist group, Vincent (Josep Luis Fonoll) Zantoro, (Franco Garofalo) Osbourne, (Gaby Renom) and Lt. Mike London, (Jose Gras) arrive there on a vacation. While journeying across the landscape, they run across Lia Rousseau, (Margit Evelyn Newton) a reporter who specializes in the tribes on the island, and her husband Max, (Selan Karay). After their other two members, Josie, (Patrizia Costa) and her husband, (Bruno Boni) have been consumed by zombies, they travel into the heart of the island to another tribe. After they are also attacked by zombies, the band flees again into the jungle, trying to find shelter and an explanation for the zombie outbreak.

The Good News: I don't really get why this one is so bashed. Sure, the documentary footage inserted into it may distract some from it, but I viewed it as "Zombies on the Animal Planet," and that really increased my enjoyment of the film. There really isn't all that much when looking at the total time of footage used and the film's total run time. It doesn't distract from the gut-munching, the real reason for this movie. The film does have some great moments of flesh-ripping, producing some good gore moments. Granted, most of it is in the form of blood-splatter early on, but once the zombies get in on the action, the gore gets moving and flowing. From bites that cause blood spurts to shoot out to some great flesh-ripping to some nice full-body corpse devouring. The zombies on display are quite passable, especially considering how great the Italian ones usually are. The usual rotting faces appear, complete with large facial wounds and distortions that are typical for the scene. Not as memorable as some others, but more than passable for this type. There is a pretty fair amount of action in here, with plenty of gunfights and chases in here, and it can seem pretty non-stop at times. The opening assault on the consulate is a prime example, as is the first encounter with the zombies in an abandoned village. The later village sequences are also full of action, and it gets non-stop deeper into the movie, which is nice to know.

The Bad News: OK, so yes most of the film looks borrowed from other films and used as stock footage. Yes, there are shots of animals randomly thrown in to pad out the running. Yes, there are tons of moments where things don't make sense at all. These can all be distractions at times, especially the last one. The infamous shot of a soldier dancing around in a dress during the middle of a battle is an obvious one, as is the fact that the soldiers continually shot the zombies full of holes despite learning in their first encounter that a head shot is the ideal way of dealing with the creatures. There are plenty of other, more notable moments in here to choose as to which one to grasp onto, but those are some of the most obvious. The stock footage, not just of animals but also features regular scenes as well, is not in the slightest made to blend in with the normal film, making them all the more obvious as to which ones are included and why they are there in the first place. Many times the animals shown aren't even in the New Guinea, and proves even clearer as to why it's inclusion is there. The plot also makes little sense. The group travels off and on towards a radioactive plant, but then is dropped off to include an action sequence with the zombies. It moves along quickly enough, but stops along at too many intervals to really get a sense of what is going on.

The Final Verdict: This one wasn't all that bad. There are many entertaining parts in here that over-weigh the negatives. I won't say it's the worst one I've seen, but in no way is it the worst one either. All zombie fans should see this one just in case they might like it.

Rated R: Graphic Violence, Adult Language and Nudity