Virus begins with quick cuts. A family packs up bags and just as it leaves, the phone rings. The collector is informed that the medical college is running out of ventilators. The scene then smoothly cuts into an aerial shot of Kozhikode Medical College and from there again cuts off to a bunch of boys playing football.
Director Aashiq Abu takes the audience swiftly into the plot involving medical college, doctors and patients.
And in little time, we are let into the scary world of Nipah virus and the consequences of its outbreak. There is a team involved here and the responsibility lies with the health minister (Revathy) and the collector (Tovino). Along with them comes in a doctor from Manipal Institute of Virology (Kunchacko Boban) and district health secretary (Poornima).
The list does not end there and that's when the team realises that there are real unsung heroes around it.
Casting of Virus is just perfect right from where it begins with Sreenath Bhasi to Indrajith to Parvathy to Rima Kallingal and where it ends with Zakariya.
The movie's biggest asset lies in its balancing of characters, bringing out the real life account of the epidemic spread by Nipah virus. None is playing the lead and hence the totality of the film leads with how the characters are developed. Be it Joju George's character or Savithri Sreedharan's - it has an emotional treatment.
The best thing about Virus is that it has got many stories full of life attached with the epidemic rather than just portraying the outbreak and survival.
There are accidents, blood, bodies, and moreover fear, but never in the least possible manner it will panic you.
Virus is not a documentary model of making, rather it's neatly woven with commercial aspects too in it.
Writers Muhsin Parari, Sharafu and Suhas deserve praise for it's the screenplay that gets going. The manner how the plot is framed and a thread is outlined can be done only with a thorough research and findings and the writers and director have managed to bring it in the best possible way.
Cheers to Rajeev Ravi and his team for bringing out the best visuals for Virus along with Sushin Shyam's background scores.
The pace of the movie might not please everyone, but overall it sticks to what it was made for and spreads uniting all on a good note. A must watch indeed!
