Virus

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Virus

R,

1999,

1h 39m,

Sci-Fi

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Watchlist

Watchlist

15%

48 Reviews

Tomatometer

22%

10,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

15%

Tomatometer

48 Reviews

22%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Caught in a typhoon, a tugboat commanded by Robert Everton (Donald Sutherland) comes across a mysterious near-deserted ship. Excited to find a vessel that could be sold for as much as $30 million, Everton and his crew board and prepare to move the craft, despite the warnings of sole survivor Nadia Vinogradova (Joanna Pacula). When a malevolent alien presence begins killing off the crew, navigator Kit Foster (Jamie Lee Curtis) tries to convince the rest of them to leave before it's too late.

Critics Consensus

Despite its great special effects, this movie's predictability greatly undermines its intensity.

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Philip Strick

Sight & Sound

Jul 6, 2010

Virus makes another loud and colourful case for the special-effects epidemic.

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Lisa Schwarzbaum

Entertainment Weekly

Jul 6, 2010

C-

Your average winter cold follows a less predictable course.

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Lisa Alspector

Chicago Reader

Apr 25, 2007

Until the diverting special effects take center stage, this story, about an alien intelligence that builds an army out of flesh and metal, pathetically exploits genre conventions without generating self-reference, camp, or thrills.

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Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

Jun 18, 2026

2.5/5

While hardly the catastrophe it might have seemed on first blush (or to Jamie Lee Curtis years later), "Virus" does not capitalize on its considerably creative creature designs to make you care if anyone lives OR dies.

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Paul Lê

Bloody Disgusting

Jan 15, 2025

3/5

Appreciators of horror and sci-fi pulp, however, can still admire the loud and flashy delivery, the array of special effects, and perhaps most of all, unique creature designs that have only gotten creepier with time.

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Sep 25, 2020

6/10

It's no classic, but it's a fun little science-fiction horror film with creative creature effects and several noteworthy ideas - despite all the monster movie clichés.

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Rey W

Sep 26, 2018

John Bruno never wastes his time in deliver every B-movie-cliché possible, and although the practical effects are surprisingly good especially for a low budget flick, the rest of the movie falls flat, lacking originality inside an interesting idea, with zero character development and the presence of both, Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Sutherland completely wasted for the worst, Virus is another late 90s forgettable sci-fi film.

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Jun 29, 2018

I gotta admit: I really enjoyed that movie. Of course, it's just a lazy alternative version of Alien and the plot and CGI are low in quality. But marine settings will always have a special place in my heart, the monster design is both cool and ugly and Donald Sutherland nails his role. Would love to see a modern sequel.

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Harry L

Apr 17, 2018

Just as good as Alien.

George G

Dec 11, 2017

A unappreciated classic. If seeing a rag tag tug boat crew getting eviscerated and turned into grotesque androids is your thing this film will give you a husbands bulge.

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Abraham S

Oct 29, 2017

Great concept. Execution was meh. Although the half man, half robot guy who kept saying "Steve" was pretty funny.

Harry S

Aug 2, 2017

Oh boy. This a sci-fi/horror dud is cobbled together from spare parts from Event Horizon, Deep Rising, Runaway, Superman III, and The Thing. It makes you ask many questions. Why would actors like Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Sutherland agree to this, besides the paycheck? Why is Sutherland speaking with a (terrible) Irish accent? Why does a film with a $75 million budget look so cheap? Why are Billy Baldwin's pants so baggy?

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John Bruno

Director

Jamie Lee Curtis

Kit Foster

William Baldwin

Steve Baker

Donald Sutherland

Capt. Robert Everton

Joanna Pacula

Nadia Vinogradova

Marshall Bell

J.W. Woods Jr.

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Synopsis

Caught in a typhoon, a tugboat commanded by Robert Everton (Donald Sutherland) comes across a mysterious near-deserted ship. Excited to find a vessel that could be sold for as much as $30 million, Everton and his crew board and prepare to move the craft, despite the warnings of sole survivor Nadia Vinogradova (Joanna Pacula). When a malevolent alien presence begins killing off the crew, navigator Kit Foster (Jamie Lee Curtis) tries to convince the rest of them to leave before it's too late.

Director: John Bruno
Producer: Gale Anne Hurd
Screenwriter: Chuck Pfarrer, Chuck Pfarrer, Dennis Feldman
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Valhalla Motion Pictures, Universal Pictures, Dark Horse Entertainment, Mutual Film Company, H2L Media Group
Rating: R
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 15, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 18, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $14.0M
Runtime: 1h 39m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround

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