MIS-TREATED
Michael Butts | Martinsburg, WV USA | 12/24/2003
(3 out of 5 stars)
"The career of Treat Williams has certainly been a circular one. After a brilliant start in the awesome "Prince of the City" and "Hair," this fine actor has gone from real bombs to mediocre material like "Venomous." Williams plays a loveably crusty middle-aged town doctor who is plunged into terror when a strange virus overtakes his small town. His estranged wife (Mary Page Keller) is a viral specialist in Washington and he is forced to bring her in as an assistant. The virus is caused by the bite of genetically mutated rattlesnakes, who escaped during a terrorist attack in 1990; of course the government wants their blunder kept secret. So the nasty government (under the auspices of the delightfully cool Tony Denison) decides to get rid of the town. There is some reasonably good suspense and the acting is above average. Hannes Jaeneke has a nice turn as Williams' studly assistant, who gets shot and we don't see any evidence of the shot in the following scene, but the bandage grows in the next two times we see him. It's directed by the prolific pseudonymned Fred Olen Ray (this time he's Ed Howard). It's not a bad movie, per se, just average and mildly entertaining."
Outbreak + Snakephobia = Venomous
John S. Milas | Illinois | 08/07/2004
(2 out of 5 stars)
"This is an interesting film about an outbreak of a deadly virus in the same town that Invasion of the Body Snatchers is supposed to take place in. As our hero follows the clues he discovers the poisonous snakes are the villains. As the town is quarantined and about to be nuked by the presidents orders, Treat Williams must act fast to find a way to stop the mayhem that's going down. There's a nice commentary on the DVD, which helps explain various things. It's a nice effort."
Not bad at all !
Mian Sukiman | Jakarta Indonesia | 03/16/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Sure, it is very similar to Wolfgang Petersen's Outbreak, about deadly virus carried by rattlesnakes. But the stars, Treat Williams and Mary Page Keller make this movie fairly entertaining. Director Fred Olen ray provides a great audio commentary throughout the movie that is very informative and entertaining. The DVD itself is OK. Sharp and clear picture and quite good Dolby 5.1. Too bad, Fox charges way too high for this B movie DVD but it worths at least a rental."