Virus :31 streams in the UK via Shudder from April 21, 2022.
Synopsis
In Virus :32, a virus breaks out and a chilling massacre rages through the streets. The sick become hunters, and only calm their fever by unscrupulously killing all those not yet infected. Unaware of this, Iris (Paula Silva, In The Quarry) and her daughter spend the day in the sports club where Iris works as a security guard. When night falls, their fight for survival beings. Their only hope of salvation arrives when they discover that after each attack, the infected seem to stop for 32 seconds of calm before attacking again.
Review
It was 20 years ago that Danny Boyle reinvented the zombie movie with the release of 28 Days Later. That film took the lumbering undead and made them a terrifying force of nature. Now, director Gustavo Hernández is taking a similar approach with Virus :32.
Sitting firmly in the sickness sub-genre, Hernández has done the near-impossible and found a new angle to revitalise the tried and true premise. Between hundreds of hours of The Walking Dead and countless other zombie movies, there is very little in terms of new ground to be covered. Person gets bitten, person is infected, person becomes zombie, chaos ensues. But by introducing the concept of the thirty-two second window of peace, Virus :32 suddenly has an unknown variable which makes it all the more compelling.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. At its core Virus :32 has a fascinating compulsion to deal with human trauma. Our lead, Iris (Paula Silva) has a lot of baggage which is a recurring theme across the film. The loss of her younger child haunts her even in the darkest moments of Virus :32‘s narrative. Then there’s Daniel Hendler as Luis who has his own trauma which ties to both his pre and post infection life. Juma Fodde’s script features few uninfected characters and allows the film to hone in on their emotional responses to the scenario with a focus that larger ensemble films are regularly lacking. In one of its more twisted moments, Virus :32 even seems to burn Iris’ daughter, Tata (Pilar Garcia), to death in a furnace.
Virus :32 is also very much a bottle story. Set almost entirely within the confines of the sports club where Iris works. The building itself offers up some varied locations which help define the different set pieces in the film. There’s a large, out of use pool which offers up one of the most tense scenes in the film. Whilst a medical procedure undertaken in a therapeutic space is truly stomach churning. Throughout, Hernández displays an adept use of space, maximising the impact of what is surely a low budget production.
Circling back to its unique selling point, Virus :32 finds genuine creativity in its virus. After killing, the infected are at peace for 32 seconds before the urge to kill returns. It offers a unique opportunity to vary the zombie behaviour between rabid and lumbering. Teamed with a compelling performance from Silva, Virus :32 becomes a gripping watch. Taking on characteristics from survival video games, the bond between mother and daughter becomes central to the film’s success. Rather than a distraction, their familial relationship grows in to something enthralling as we hope for their eventual escape from this zombie hell.
Verdict
An inspired premise and strong cast make Virus :32 a compelling addition to the zombie horror genre. Not since 28 Days Later have the infected felt so rabid or threatening.
⭐⭐⭐.5
