2012 Directed by Brandon Cronenberg
Syd March is an employee at a clinic that sells injections of live viruses harvested from sick celebrities to obsessed fans. When he becomes infected with the disease that kills super sensation Hannah Geist, Syd becomes a target for collectors and rabid fans. He must unravel the mystery surrounding her death before he suffers the same fate.
Caleb Landry Jones Sarah Gadon Malcolm McDowell Joe Pingue Sheila McCarthy Douglas Smith Wendy Crewson Nicholas Campbell James Cade Dawn Greenhalgh Lara Jean Chorostecki Salvatore Antonio Elitsa Bako Reid Morgan Nenna Abuwa Katie Bergin Lisa Berry Ian O'Brien Mark Caven Adam Bogen Tedd Dillon Josh Holliday Kim Ly George Tchortov Dan Warry-Smith Vincent Thomas Donna Goodhand Raul Tome Lady Vezina Show All…
Viirusevastane, 抗体, Antivirus, Антивирусный, Антивирусен, אנטי-ויראל, Vírusgazda, アンチヴァイラル, 항생제, Zaraźliwi, Антивирус, Virüs Kıran, Антивірус, 病毒抗体
Horror, the undead and monster classics Monsters, aliens, sci-fi and the apocalypse Intense violence and sexual transgression future, sci-fi, technology, action or technological zombies, undead, horror, gory or flesh horror, creepy, eerie, blood or gothic horror, scientist, monster, doctor or experiment horror, gory, scary, killing or gruesome Show All…
caleb landry jones is half dead and puking blood during all of this and he's still prettier than me on a good day
Commodification of all that is possible + celebrity fetishism to feel a sense of intimacy and belonging. Brandon Cronenberg plasters a world where people pay good money to get infected by their favorite celebrities, but in our world where people already paid $30 for gamer girl bath water for no other reason than to participate in a collective meme the hypothetical of Antiviral doesn't seem that far-fetched. Less a warm, introspective delve on what our very 'selves' mean, as his father often opts, Brandon focuses on a cold, clinical approach that distances subject and audience, something that makes it admittedly difficult to fully-immerse into his world as opposed to David's but matches his predilection for high-concept psychological science-fiction. I don't…
In a soulless world where celebrities are gods and tv screen's are their alter's and we kneel before them every day praying to be one with our god's! This may sound like Brandon Cronenberg's Sci-fi Thriller but it also defines the world we live in today!
We demand to know every minute detail no matter how small the detail may be about our stars but know very little about real life hero's, or government officials we vote into office! We know more about what our favorite movie star is doing than we know about our own families! Love, honor and respect are no longer earned! Families, friends, and loved ones are no longer priorities! Everything is Selective... by choice! Celebrity…
went into this rewatch assuming i was going to like it less because of how much better possessor was but no this is a pretty solid debut. gets a bit too plotty by the end when it should be getting more weird/gruesome (and is definitely a bit too long for what it is), but i do quite like the premise of a lonely, commodified, cannibalized society of fetishists so desperate for bodily connection they will turn themselves into a walking disease, and he does pretty effectively crib the eerie mundane look, medical body horror and corporate conspiratorial paranoia from his dad's early stuff. there's also some very nice antiseptic production design and caleb landry jones is the pastiest, most tired/strung out looking man alive, basically exactly who you want for a movie about slow, poisonous deterioration.
Brandon Cronenberg takes the fetishization of celebrity to an insane level and it's brilliant. A truly awesome concept that is executed really well. I had a blast watching Antiviral with Michelle.
So, a quick question for those who shop at Arvid's celebrity meat market: which steaks do you recommend? The Taylor Swift tenderloin looks great, but so does the Dwayne Johnson ribeye. At about $ 799⁹⁹/lb, I'm obviously only gonna buy one. 🥩🤔
Sexy and gross, trademark of House of Cronenberg. Unravels a bit after the first hour but undeniably alluring and an overall impressive debut.
Antiviral. 2012. Directed by Brandon Cronenberg.
Brandon Cronenberg introduced his freshman feature length film in 2012 with a premise about celebrity obsession, unregulated genetic engineering, and an unregulated food industry. Cronenberg relied on his use of analogue equipment to give the sets a near future feel. Genetic engineering was exploding in 2012. Viruses could be manipulated a myiad of ways. So, in Cronenberg’s near future, businesses were thriving off selling diseases that were acquired by celebrities, harvested from celebrities, and sold to customers so they could experience a form of genetic/scientific communion. In addition, selling celebrity flesh (muscle cells) provided a method for customers to consume celebrities. In turn, after they digested the proteins, the celebrity amino acids could be…
ENCOURAGED BY Dirk
Having seen and kinda like Possessor (thanks again secret friend!), I was somewhat excited for this one. Some of the reviews gauged my interest and that poster is pretty enticing, so coming into this movie there was a hype going on. Add to that the fact that I've been doing this marathon for all daddy Cronenberg's movies, and what you got some expectations that both enhanced and hurt my viewing.
Starting off with the positives, the very minimalistic, sci-fi approach of the movie is quite interesting and Brandon uses it to build some very eerie vibe through its production design and little use of body horror (that scene with the thing on the mouth and wires was…
Like father, like son. I have to say, this beautifully shot bizarre tale of celebrity obsession taken to extremes is undoubtedly the work of a Cronenberg. I have no doubt that dad was very proud of his son after seeing this.
The story is incredibly absorbing and not so outrageous that you can't picture a (only slightly) alternate universe where things like this actually happen. As a horror fan, I can relate, on a much lower level, to the extreme devotion that is dramatized here. I can even think of some people who come frighteningly close to this level of insane fandom.
While the story, cinematography, and direction are all very impressive, undoubtedly the best component of the film is…
