VIRUS (1983)
A lot better than the Virus you're probably thinking of
This is the Japanese-made not-really-horror flick starring an almost all-American cast. And it's leagues better than this year's robots-on-a-rampage spectacular.
Reportedly the most expensive Japanese film made up until that point (no idea what the budget was or if its record has been broken), it runs 155 minutes but the version I saw was106.
Anyway...sucks to be you if you're infected with Virus MM88, because you'll be dead in three days. (Captain Tripps still has it beat, though) Needless to say, it gets out into the world and within 35 minutes of screen time (which is actually a nicely expansive look at the decline of society), all that's left of the human race are the 863 men and women on various Antarctic bases.
American, Japanese, Soviet, Chilean, French, and Norwegian bases comprise the collection of people - okay, all the Norwegians kill themselves, except for Olivia Hussey. If you had to live with the shame of ridiculously bad bands like Darkthrone and Mayhem coming from your country, you'd probably kill yourself too.
What follows is a whole stack of great plot twists and complications. An infected crew of a Soviet submarine wants to take refuge. Probes are sent out to what's left of civilization to see what's left. A woman is raped, bringing the obvious issue of what's to be done when there's 855 men and 8 women. (their solution isn't based on the prison model, which is what I suspect would actually come to pass) And just when things are starting to look idyllic down there, they learn that there's a nuclear missile pointed at them.
The acting and writing is good (but not great) all around, but the film's well-paced, exciting, suspenseful, and frequently gorgeous with its location shots. This one begs to be seen on the big screen. I'd be very interested in seeing the 155-minute version.
It's got a few problems, however. Edward James Olmos singing at the piano? Augh! The conclusion is pretty maudlin. And I don't understand how a killer virus is a DEFENSIVE weapon, as one character states. (For that matter, while killer viruses make great fodder for fiction, I have serious trouble imagining any government - theocracies aside, since they're of course God's chosen people and won't be touched, yeah, right - manufacturing a killer virus and actually believing that it can be used without eventually destroying the population of the country that deployed it)
Still, a terrific "little" movie that I'm glad I saw, and I'd recommend it. Filmed mostly in Alaska and Canada.