Review of The Viral Factor (2012) by Arlene C — 05 Feb 2012

OK, so I only went in to see the movie, because it was filmed mostly in Malaysia / KL. I had a kick identifying all the spots they had filmed in. There's something about seeing your hometown in the reels.

It was also a hoot seeing Malay being peppered in the film, and seeing a Chinese mother speaking Malay to her child. Not something you hear everyday! So, yes, they tried to cram too much action into one movie, but hey, the plot is not too bad itself, although typical of a HK film.

One cop brother, one fallen brother, and some family melodrama intertwined in between. The action scenes are awesome! Seriously, unlike the smoothness and sophistication of Hollywood, HK films are raw and violent, which is a nice change in many ways.

They're also very innovative - they use what's already there, and I like the fact that they can turn abandoned buildings and slums, into some seriously good props. The slo-mo bullet in the forehead turning brain into mush was Goddamn awesome, sorry folks, just had to say that.

Yeah, so it's your typical HK film, but it gave me an adrenalin rush, and had me entertained for 2 hrs 15 mins. Even had half of the cinema goers coming out with tears in their eyes over the family melodrama.

A yay for me!