Virus - the movie from the past about the future?
UPDATED: 5th of November 2024
I'm grateful to a friend who recommended this film and found both of the versions I'm writing about now.
The comment has been added to the article and it has been updated. Since the previous version of the article from a few years ago was linked to a very poor quality and shorter version of the movie Virus (1980), which was the only version of the film available on YouTube at the time, I didn't see the point of commenting on the movie outside of the shot transcription of the most interesting dialogue between the top US politicians in the script.
The structure of the movie Virus (1980) is, to some extent, diametrically opposite to the structure of the contemporary vaccine propaganda, which is why it is worth seeing.
The Japanese movie Virus from the 1980s, directed by Kinji Fukasaku, is possibly more actual now than at the time of its filming. It’s based on a novel by Sakyo Komatsu from 1964.
Warning - this article from this point on contains many spoilers.
A “multi-apocalyptic” movie
A better version of the 1980 movie Virus is currently reachable on YouTube. The film presents humanity in a nearly hopeless situation and seems "multi-apocaliptic." However, I wouldn't claim that it is a horror film as described in this YouTube video, at least not in the sense that they are made today. The fact that there were only a few survivors in this film and that everyone else on the planet had essentially perished as a result of two cataclysmic events, as well as the highlighted photo on this YouTube link, may be the cause for a “horror movie” etiquette. In my opinion, the film is mostly post-apocalyptic and pertinent in this regard.
Now, in this article linked, a better version of the movie is also a longer version; that’s the Japanese version of the same movie, and it’s almost a half an hour longer than the United States’s version of this movie, which consequently ends sooner and therefore differently. As stated above, it seems that the movie is “multi-apocalyptic” due to the double-armageddon plotline, biological and nuclear, and that’s somehow non-typical to these kinds of movies—and also one of the main characteristics of this movie. The US’s version ends with nuclear armageddon, while the Japanese version shows also post-nuclear scenes, which makes it clear in comparison to the US’s version that some people survived even nuclear armageddon. So that is a way, life goes on, while the US’s version left that unclear.
Plot
It all began with a biological weapon that was accidentally discharged and was described as a lethal virus known as the "Italian flu." With the exception of nearly 1000 international workers, mostly men and also women, the “Italian flu” obliterates the world and burys all of humanity. Survivors were working at the so-called "Palmer Station" in Antarctica during the "Italian flu," and that’s why they were able to survive there due to the virus's dormant state at temperatures below -10 degrees Celsius. However, just a few years after the "Italian flu," their newly constructed post-apocalyptic lifestyle, different from the lifestyle before the “Italian flu,” is once more upended when they discover that soon the anticipated and impending earthquake will trigger the automatic nuclear response known as the "Automated Reaction System (ARS);" which was activated in the US prior to the "Italian flu" reaching its most devastating stage, and that would be followed with the same nuclear response from Russia “as soon as the first rocket falls on the Russian soil;” unless they could deactivate that system before the earthquake.
Fast forward (though the movie's plot moves a little slowly, maybe too slowly for some viewers in comparison to contemporary popular movies). They failed to deactivate the "ARS" in the United States; therefore when the earthquake occurs, it activates their "ARS," and soon Russia responds in kind. The number of people that survived the first "Italian flu" apocalypse is further diminished by the second nuclear apocalypse. At the end of the movie there are just a few survivors in about the size of a small village, along with a similar number of children born after the "Italian flu" pandemic.
Parallels with contemporary times and other pandemic movies
There are some parallels between the movie Virus (1980) to contemporary times or to similar pandemic movies, though I hope I exaggerated with the title of this article even if it’s in question form.
Propagandised coronavirus, which for the Western world started in Italy, reminds of the “Italian flu” in the movie, but coronavirus was probably not a biological weapon nor much different if even from a regular flu. Also, the nuclear threat in current times is somehow parallel with the one from the movie. Definitely since, perhaps I could say, “Agent Covid,” the world is in geopolitically important and turning times and theories of different apocalyptic scenarios are around every corner as there are political tensions all over the map.
Interestingly, in comparison with most other later pandemic movies, here, the protagonists of the story don’t succeed in turning armageddon tides around. Additionaly, the biological weapon called “Italian flu” is significantly more devastating than any other in real life known pandemic to this date because it nearly wipes out the entire civilization. While in most other pandemic movies there is always a happy, non-apocalyptic ending, they get or make or a hero gets or makes “miraculous vaccines” that supposedly change everything, and humanity is cinematographically rescued once more. (There isn't a more thorough comparison of those films and their titles here; maybe I can add that later.)
But Virus (1980) is so different from this usual plot; here the vaccines play a different role, and with so much going on (not one, but two armageddons), it’s unclear if the protagonists of the story even believe in vaccination against the “Italian flu” or if they believe that vaccination had anything to do with their survival of the pandemic and nuclear apocalypses. They seem to have simultaneously tried to develop an effective vaccine while the narrative of the movie constantly relativised the supposed effect of the vaccines. Also in the most cynical way, as the impact of the armageddons in the movie somehow exceeds the question of a vaccine working or not.
Pro-vaccination persons might get a clever idea here, namely that both cataclysmic events in the movie could have been prevented if only they managed to develop “the right vaccine” against the biological weapon in time. But if in the movie there was not the accidental release of the biological weapon, there would be no need for an antidote of some sort, then humanity wouldn’t almost completely perish without that “vaccine.” Not to mention scientific questions about possible virulence of the so-called viruses or ethical questions about freedom to make an informed decision regarding vaccination. In the movie there is no reference to possible vaccine side-effects, which might also mean a hint that the protagonists of the story perhaps didn’t get anything other than a harmless placebo, and that, so to say, a “vaccine” then conditionally “worked” in the post-apocalyptic world, etc.
In the movie, they actually discuss the ineffectiveness of the “vaccine” against the “Italian flu.” Perhaps they eventually developed “a better vaccine” or a vaccine wasn’t that important anymore, especially after the second, nuclear, armageddon. In any case, here’s the excerpt of the dialogue about politics of vaccination more or less in the first part of the movie.
The excerpt of the dialogue from the movie from 33.12 and on
“Voice from a reporter on TV: “The raging epidemic of the Italian flu so inseeds fear and panic throughout the globe. A severe shortage of vaccine of everykind is reported in almost all countries. Everywhere there are ugly confrontations. Martial law is the order of the day, civil disorder has escalated with widespread damage to private and public property, and rising death toll in a number of countries. In the United Kingdom, Spain, France, West Germany and Japan. The United States is no exception. For the past several days on Capitol Hill in Washington DC mass demonstrations of tens of thousands of people are daily events. This morning the national guard and the police attempted to restore order, only to inflame the angry move of the vast crowd demanding efective vaccines. Reports of bloody encountes continue to stream in. President Richardson’s television appeal to the nation asking for calm and restraint has appeciable effect. No one dares to say when order can be restored. Even now in Washington, authorities cannot maintain the order.”
President: “That’s enough.”
It’s still possible to hear the reporter’s voice: “Everywhere in the country there is confusion, chaos…”
President: “Turn it off!” (i.e. the TV) He continues: “What vaccine?” And after a little pause: “All right, how long will it take you to manufacture this vaccine in quantity?”
Politician no.1: “Mr. President, we were not even able to isolate the cause. The virus, if it is a virus, it is like a common cold, it’s everywhere and it’s nowhere.”
/…/
Politician no.2: “What do you mean, there is no vaccine? Then what it is that we are giving to the police and the fire department personnel, the essential services, the military alert crew, if not a vaccine? It’s just that we don’t have enough for the general populace. Isn’t that right?”
Politician no.3: “We have a vaccine of sorts. We put together a soup of every flu-related vaccine we know. Its effect leaves something to be desired, uhm, in fact, it’s more a placebo than anything else.“
Politician no.4 yells: “You gave me a god-damn placebo?”
Politician no.3 yells back: “We are doing our best!” …”
Virus (1980), Youtube
Lost with translation
Btw, as I said, the version I watched a few years ago was the US’s shorter version. I have already compared this US’s and Japanese versions here, and what I’m about to say is probably not of much importance, but I have noticed differences in both versiones also within this part I have offered transcription for.
When there is the TV's reporter voice coming from the television, the US’s version adds that the governments around the world killed several protesters while they tried to shot down the riots wihch started because of the “Italian flu.” The Japanese version (the one I have partly transcibed in this article) leaves this information out so it’s not clear what was the original and what was the intent behing two different versiones.
It would also be interesting to know why they cut out the last third or quarter of this movie in the US’s version so that it ends with a doomsday, while the Japanese version offers some insights into post-nuclear armageddon survival. So the first version literally creates the image of the end of the world, while the other original Japanese version continues narrative and presents survival in post-apocalyptic terms.
There is a "cospiracy theory" that could explain observed variances, such as desiring different attitudes in various geographical zones and then producing separate versions of the same film. Recoding a film like that a few decades after World War II, when Japan was dealing with its own nuclear devastation, may also be a reflection of that era, as it was also the most costly Japanese film at the time. And survival of humanity in the Japanese version perhaps wanted to symbolise some hope?
On the other hand, can the removal of the original ending for the Western audience and therefore to end the film at doomsay persuade the general public to adopt a more destructive worldview, and if so, why? To lose some of the hope? The 1980 film Virus raises more questions than it does solutions, in contrast to more simple-minded, mostly all-of-the-same contemporary pandemic movies.
“Who will inherit the Earth?”
Last but not least, and meaningful to say, with all these cataclysms in the movie, there is still an important question: “Who will inherit the Earth?”. That’s right, nevermind the multi-apocalyptic part of the story; it’s still crucial to answer the question of who will rule the Earth. Except not “rule” but “inherit.” I’m a bit sarcastic, but on the poster for the movie for the US’s version, they did put this question, “Who will inherit the Earth?”
How about if the real story of the movie is more about how the (ruling) elite is transferring their power during crises than anything else? Order out of chaos and stuff like that? Or, how about if the movie is also about transferring power in times of crisis? That would make sense. In the movie, vaccines are not necessarily working or are important, and all the destruction that has fallen on humanity raises the question of whether humanity was “the real virus” in the movie from the (ruling) elite perspective, because humanity almost perished while the (ruling) elite not only managed to survive two armageddons in Antarctica (that could also be any bunker wherever), but soon after the destruction and chaos, they, the (ruling) elite, were obviously perfectly prepared to establish new political rule, or order, because they supposedly also “inherit” the rule over Earth.
”It’s not too late to start again…” a couple of suggestive words from the movie’s soundtrack. More:
“It’s not too late to start again
It’s not too late though
When you go away
the skies will grey again
In the time that remains,
I will stay
Toujours gai, mon cher
No regret
for the light that will not shine
No regret,
but don’t forget, the flame was mine
and in another place, in another time
Toujours gai, mon cher”
Two stanzas from the song You Are Love by Janis Ian and also a part of soundtrack of the movie Virus (1980).
Conclusion
The movie Virus (1980) seems important to watch, on a symbolical level and also in comparison with other similar movies. I have made some parallels and some distinctions and offered alternative interpretations of the movie. In times of possible agent-virus politics, it might be inspiring to watch some movie about some pandemic that was recorded way back in time to offer a different perspective, and the movie Virus (1980) is a good choice.