Antiviral

Ver isto numa altura em que está em casa a lutar contra um vírus forte é uma delícia por excelência. Um filme antipático em todos os aspetos, com um tema satírico relevante e uma forma estéril. Muito de branco no qual se destaca melhor o sangue da tosse espasmódico, injeções com vírus do herpes, o consumo de carne, feito no laboratório a partir de células humanas. Desculpe, a partir das células de celebridades admiradas. «Celebrities are not people. They’re group hallucinations.»  Antiviral poderia entreter-me numa duração consciente de 80 minutos, mas não desta forma. Gosto de estreias bizarras de cineastas originais, de outra forma. (14/03/2023)

After the first viewing, I have very mixed feelings, more on the negative side. But first, the positives. Amazing visuals, excellent music, some moments directly shocking, and the bittersweet Caleb Jones. I was extremely looking forward to this film and was crossing off the days until its premiere. However, the first attempt was not successful. It really messed with my head, although it's true that I tend to overthink things and dig into details. I had already conceived Antiviral as a horror sensation, and in the end, the constant swaying of the main character got on my nerves a bit. Therefore, I will not rate this film until I have a second screening and keep watching it over and over until I start to like it, because my initial rating would surely disappoint me. After the second viewing. Although many people would probably not rush to the second screening of Antiviral, I managed to force myself and eventually carried out the second attempt. And believe it or not, it helped! I got more into the story and accepted the fact that it's sci-fi all the way. I still have some discrepancies here and there, but I'm letting it go. I give it 4 stars and will leave it here for now. (18/03/2013)

Very sick, very hard to watch, very Cronenberg. The comparisons with David Cronenberg’s early works would apply to Antiviral even if it was made by someone completely unrelated. It has many layers, even though the visual impression is different. And it’s actually the visual impression (the white glitz of the clinic against the nastiness that bubbles here and there) and the perverted atmosphere the main basis for my rating so far. I put it on sometime after midnight and I nodded a couple of times (it’s not exactly packed with action :-D). It needs at least one more viewing, but the film is certainly interesting. (12/02/2013)

Brandon Cronenberg does not deny his origins here, and so he presents a rather visceral and stomach-churning body horror which is a scathing satirical comment on contemporary society. Antiviral is based on a great idea - perfect for a short film. The only real problem with this movie is that Cronenberg has selfishly stretched it out to a lengthy 108 minutes. (05/11/2021)