Blucher One of the worst movies I've ever seen

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Blake Rivera If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

Staci Frederick Blistering performances.

Derek Childs (totalovrdose) If you prefer your movies to include frequent explosions, entertaining car chases and limitless gun battles, then the Viral Factor might be the film you've been looking for. Besides this, the feature contains a well constructed plot, that is perhaps a little coincidental, alongside an emotional storyline about love, loss, betrayal, loyalty, honor, and most importantly, family.If Mission Impossible 2, Four Brothers and the Suspect were combined into one storyline, the combined effect might appear similar to this particular film. Jon (Jay Chau) is a brilliant International Security Agent, who, during his last assignment, experiences a horrific betrayal, leading to the deaths of many. With his life inexplicably changed forever, his mother, on his return home, reveals a familial secret she has hidden from him all this time: he has a brother, Man Yeung (Nicholas Tse).Escaping their gambler of a father, Jon's mother raised him on her own, however, filled with a lifetime of regret, wishes to be reunited with her husband and son, Jon agreeing to bring them home. Those familiar with the expression 'you cannot choose your family' will feel right at home in this plot, where, although Jon grew into a promising officer, his brother, Man, has become a wanted criminal.Unknowingly working for a criminal enterprise with the intent of distributing a world wide virus, despite their differences, Jon and Man discover they have a commonality in their goals, and though they've been separated for nearly thirty years, the film emphasizes, no matter how lost a family member is, they are always worthy of acceptance, the brothers trying to bring an end to the chaos in their own unique ways.When the enterprise captures Rachel (Peng Lin), a young scientist, who is as attractive as she is talented, to assist with their antagonistic endeavors, the brothers must work together to save not only her life, but the lives of all those who will be affected if the virus is distributed on a global scale.The action scenes are incredibly entertaining, and although violent, the film doesn't require mass quantities of blood to keep you enthralled. The connections exhibited by family is a paramount theme in the movie, and the actors portrayal of the characters, not to mention their love and appreciation for one another, is as emotionally poignant as it is captivating.The relationship between Jon and love interest Ice (Michelle Bai), could have been further developed, as too could have his connection to several law enforcement personnel, the in depth nature of these subplots been sacrificed in exchange for the familial storyline. Additionally, although there are unanswered questions at the conclusion of the film, its final scenes are so evocative, you cannot help but want to see the feature all over again.Though there are more action movies available today than anyone could possibly hope to poke a stick at, the Viral Factor is one entertaining thrill ride that should be placed at the top of your 'must watch' list.

caseymoviemania High-octane action takes center stage in Dante Lam's THE VIRAL FACTOR, which also marks his most expensive movie yet (at a whopping HK$200 million budget). Even though the plot takes a backseat this time (a forte that Dante Lam excels greatly 2010's award-winning THE STOOL PIGEON), THE VIRAL FACTOR is a solidly entertaining blockbuster that promises a lot of firepower equivalent with the one often found in Hollywood action trappings.Dante Lam, Candy Leung and Jack Ng's screenplay is a standard-issue plot spliced together with a heavily-melodramatic subplot. Those who are expecting the same psychological depth found in 2008's THE BEAST STALKER, 2010's FIRE OF CONSCIENCE and again, THE STOOL PIGEON, will be disappointed by lackluster storytelling approach here.However, the movie still works best when comes to a few emotionally-charging scenes while the actors rise above the occasion with some top-notch performances.But what really makes the movie compulsively watchable is its well-crafted action sequences. Designed by Dante Lam himself and perfectly choreographed by Chin Kar-Lok, the action is fast and furious.Full review at http://caseymoviemania.blogspot.com/2012/01/viral-factor-2012.html

dmuel Sorry, but I cannot agree with all the rave reviews offered on this site. Here we have a Chinese Jason-Bourne-like character, who is on the trail of, and also abetting and saving a terrorist; a plot that involves possible use of biological weapons, corrupt agents, deadly gunfire and his mama. In short, it's something of a mess, but lots of gun-play, fistfights, and explosions will keep some folks happy. I was inclined to leave this film early, but I find movies with Jay Zhou (or Chou as it's spelled here) amusing. Mr. Zhou has all the thespian skills of a turnip. He has his sullen face, his angry face, his sad face....in his last several films he does little talking. His shtick is to stare into the distance one way or another, and he plays this to a tee here. He can't act! Will someone please tell his paymaster! In this film a small portion of the dialog is in English, but I doubt anyone will understand Mr. Zhou's thick accent. Good thing there's subtitles! Suffice it to say, in this story the world will be doomed unless Jay Zhou succeeds. In many scenes, the cops don't just seem helpless to stop the terrorists, they are helpless. The bad guys are near super-human, incredibly resourceful, and it's child's play for them to either gun down or escape from an army of machine-gun toting police. Several scenes definitely strain credulity; the action is not realistic, but clearly is comic-book fare. An odd addition to the plot was the attempt to introduce sentimentality regarding one of the terrorists. This is a man who kills people, does kill many on screen, and somehow the director wants to show us his "human" side, (in this case with the introduction of a daughter that is little more than a prop in the movie), to induce pity or sympathy for him. Sorry, this guy is a killer (killers don't make good fathers, so the daughter is better off if he's not around), and he should die! John Woo did better at this sort of thing, because his Killer killed other criminals, but in this movie innocent people die. The director has connections and money, and Jay Zhou, but he has much to learn!

webmaster-3017 Dante Lam is fast becoming one of the most consistently good directors from Hong Kong. With Beast Stalker and Stool Pigeon under his belt, Lam once again impresses in The Viral Factor. There is something about this film that takes hold of you and despite the tame finale; Viral Factor manages to come up with plenty of guns, body counts and high stake stunts to entertain action fans. Casting Lam's regular Nicholas Tse and Liu Kai-chi springs no surprise in the good acting department, but it is the mis-cast of Jay Chou that ruins an otherwise pretty good flick.Jay Chou has zero facial expressions, his eyes are too small for any type of impact and his face is that of a wooden statue. Comparing with the matured reigning Best Actor in Tse, Chou is purely poor and totally out of place. Tse on the other hand oozes with confidence and in one scene his eyes was so intense that it bulges out to the audience. Tse has all the hall-mark of a versatile actor and another Best Actor gonk does not seem far away. Liu Kai-chi once again gives a scene stealing display as the gambling addict yet loving father. Another weak link is the villainous turn from Andy On and it is clear that he lacks the menacing presence that is required of the role. Like Chou, On is too wooden to have any impact on the audience.All in all, The Viral Factor is a decent Hong Kong action-er that shoots and shoots from start to finish. With some indifferent acting display and a tame finale, the film ultimately suffers and stops it from elevating the film to the same level as the wonderful Beast Stalker or even The Stool Pigeon for that matter. In hindsight, if Chou and On are replaced by the likes of Nick Cheung and Francis Ng respectively, the film will probably go leaps and bounds. Still, The Viral Factor entertains from start to finish and for Hong Kong film nowadays, one shouldn't expect perfection… Neo rates it 7.5/10