GL84 Out in the wilderness, rehabilitated teens come across a swarm of strange birds infected with a mutated strain of avian flu and must try to stop the unrelenting attacks from continuing and warn the world of the crises.There was a lot to like from this one. One of the best parts is that the film really manages to get a lot of great moments due to its strong pacing. This one is just relentless, not even getting ten minutes in before the birds attack the main group, which is outstanding and really appreciated. The fact that the attacks are also fun is great, as this one contains some really good sequences and gets really fun as it gets going in the rather frenetic opening scene where it shows the birds raining down on the confused teens as they flee in panic. Some of the other bird-attack scenes, including one where they're under attack inside a cramped house and any of the forest attacks are pure fun, with several sequences stuck inside a gas-filled chamber and the attack on the SWAT team. There's also the way it handles the virus and how it transmits it, managing some fun scenes where the discovery is made, and the race to keep it contained and really feels like something of a crisis, which comes off as a nicely done way of building tension to their attacks, using an impressive-looking hospital victim and them falling under the effects later to generate even more which is a nice plus. The last positive is that this one works in a nice amount of gore into it as well as the fact that the birds are realistically designed, both drawing from a real dearth of fake and cheaply-done CGI, which is a nice plus as these here are the film's best features. There wasn't a whole lot of flaws to this one. The main one is the fact that this one doesn't offer up too much in the form of explanations for anything, as there's no explanation offered for the bird's appearance, or even for the mutation of the virus, how it even got to the birds, what it does or really anything else, which is a grave error as it doesn't really manage to put anything together or really make an effort to do so, merely content to simply say they're alive and leave it as that, which makes for a suitably ill aftertaste. Along with the fact that it misses a grand opportunity with the helicopter attack, these are the film's flaws.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and Brief Nudity

Claudio Carvalho Two amateurish hunters are attacked by creepy birds in the woods. Meanwhile seven delinquents are camping in the forest with their counselor in a program of reintegration to the society. Suddenly they are attacked by the birds and the counselor dies and one of the youngsters is wounded. The brutal Johnson (Jonathon Trent) imposes his leadership by force to the others while they are hunted by the birds. Meanwhile the ranger Garrett (Lance Guest) finds one of the hunters fainted in the forest and brings him to the hospital. Dr. Jacqueline Hale (Clare Carey) discovers that the patient is contaminated by a lethal influenza and she calls CDC that seals off the hospital putting everybody in quarantine. The youngster Eva (Sarah Butler) calls Garrett and tells their position, but the chief of security decides to blow up the whole area. "Flu Birds" is a lame and stupid horror movie with a dreadful story, awful characters and terrible acting. It is impressive how flawed and unintelligent the badly written screenplay is, with clichés and mistakes. There are so many stupidities but I would like to highlight the following: (1) The security guard shoots the doctor and feels sorry, but he is incapable to physically block her. (2) The scene with the soldiers shooting at the birds is something pathetic. (3) The hunter in the beginning leaves his friend instead of shooting the bird. (4) The sacrifice of Johnson killing the two birds (weren't they five?) in the end is absolutely incoherent with the personality of the character. (5) The hospital is forgotten in the rest of the story. (6) The leader of the security flies with the pilot alone to bomb the cabin is also terrible. My vote is three.Title (Brazil): "Vale dos Mortos" ("Valley of the Dead")

Wuchak "Flu Birds", which aired on TV in 2008 as "Flu Bird Horror", is a low-budget creature-on-the-loose flick about mutant reptilian birds wreaking havoc on a group of juvenile delinquents lost deep in the forest. The birds spread a hideous disease to the people they bite or scratch. The Feds quarantine the hospital that an afflicted hunter is brought to and decide to airstrike the birds, whether the teens are still in the area or not. Meanwhile a ranger and a doctor desperately search for the kids."Flu Birds" combines the delinquents-on-the-run aspect of "The Warriors" with the flying-reptile angle of "Gargoyles" and the skin-eating disease element of "Cabin Fever".Most reviewers tear the film apart. Are their low-ratings and heavy criticisms legitimate or simply a knee-jerk result of these modern Sci-Fi TV flicks being such easy targets? Although some of their criticisms is valid I say "Flu Birds" delivers both as a wild creatures-run-amok flick and as a fascinating human interest tale.As far as the former goes, the reptilian birds are quite effective, in ways reminiscent of the gargoyles in 1972's excellent TV flick "Gargoyles" (the DVD cover completely misrepresents the creatures). One reviewer lambasted the scenes where the birds attack a jeep and helicopter as "inept filmmaking," but I thought they were effectively done. Where's the beef? The sequences depicting the skin-eating disease are well done as well; in fact, the disease is scarier than the birds. Also, there's lots of gore for those who care.In addition to this, the film has a good babes-on-the-run factor with Rebekah Kochan as Lola leading the way. She prances around with denim shorts the entire movie and she's quite pleasing to the eye. But don't get me wrong, the various women in the film do more than just flee in terror -- they lead, they fight, and a couple are doctors.Also, although there's a decidedly comic-book vibe to the proceedings and a few humorous moments, the filmmakers and cast all take the material seriously and evade the rut of camp (with the possible exception of Porky), even though there are some scenes with dubious acting, which is to be expected in low-budget fare like this.Other pluses include the great opening/ending score, as well as spectacular Romanian locations, particularly during the opening credits; post-production was done in Louisiana.However, it's in the realm of human interest that "Flu Birds" scores its highest points.At it's core the movie addresses the conflict of self interest vs. group interest, as another viewer pointed out. The Feds are depicted as ruthless in their drive to extinguish the threat of the birds and the disease they spread. Anyone who gets in the way must simply be destroyed. And who can blame 'em since they are trying to save millions at the cost of a mere handful? The whole is greater than the one, as they say.The teens, all delinquent loners from dysfunctional families, are just starting to learn the importance of sacrifice of the self or the few for the greater good of the many. In fact, the film starts out with them on retreat from juvenile jail to learn the importance of community and the team concept.Johnson, the lead teen played by Jonathon Trent, is reminiscent of James Remar's Ajax in "The Warriors". Although he initially comes off uber-obnoxious and uncaring the viewer can't help but sense something good underneath the surface, not to mention his passion and courage to survive. He possesses a wild, dangerous air and this naturally attracts the blond hottie. It also attracts the allegiance of the other two main guys in the group, Derrick and Gordon (aka 'Hip Hop'), despite the fact that Johnson is extremely tough on both at times. The reason he's tough on them is because it's a life or death situation. And even though the other leader of the group, Eva (Sarah Butler), loathes his seemingly uncaring, selfish nature she's willing to work with him to survive. She also has an epiphany about Johnson at the end. (Sarah Butler, by the way, also plays the lead in the 2010 remake of the infamous "I Spit On Your Grave").The teens face no less than three episodes that present the possibility of sacrifice -- in a tunnel, in a hunter's house in the woods and, lastly, in the tunnel again. In the initial episode the group votes on whether or not to sacrifice the disease-ridden Porky as a diversion for the birds so the rest can escape. Johnson argues that Porky is as good as dead already since he's clearly dying from the disease, but Porky objects. I guess Porky would rather suffer a slow, agonizing death in the lonely darkness of the cave than die a relatively quick death as a diversion so his fellow delinquents might have a chance at surviving. Regardless, notice how the members attitudes contrast Porky's in the two subsequent episodes. It's an interesting study and reveals the teens' positive growth in the crisis.FINAL WORD: Yes, "Flu Birds" has a laughable title and a ridiculous premise, but don't 95% of these Grade-B creature features? Yes, there's some questionable acting and the film has a comic-booky vibe. Regardless, "Flu Birds" entertains and delivers in all the requisite areas as a nature-runs-amok flick, but it's greatness emerges in its study of human nature and self vs. group dynamics.If you can look beneath the Grade-B trappings. "Flu Birds", like "Sasquatch Mountain" (which is better), possesses depth even while it successfully entertains and is therefore worthy of your time and respect.The movie runs 89 minutes.GRADE: B

jgweiner Charles De Montesquieu once proclaimed - "To become truly great, one has to stand with people, not above them." Unfortunately - although this contributed to the overall greatness of the film - Johnson was unable to fully grasp this seed of knowledge as the film progressed, leading to the quintessential conflict that truly drove the movie home: self vs group interest. However, before examining the answer, we must first evaluate the question...Are these motivations mutually exclusive, and can an individual's incentive be the same as the groups? The typical response is no; however, after viewing this awesome movie in its entirety, it evidently is not always the case. While Johnson tried to control the group and constantly struggled for power, Ava was trying to survive, and she kept the good of the group - with the obvious exemption of Porky - and its survival as the main focus.Now with this knowledge in your arsenal, re-evaluate the movie under this new light. Johnson did his best to fend off the terrifying birds {side note: the general animation and craftsmanship that went into the creating of these fearsome creatures truly was top notch. My entire family went into shell shock as we first laid eyes on these creatures from hell, and it took almost 10 sessions of therapy before I could get a hold of my new found fear.} and his actions portray a selfless man trying to help others. Once this fundamental pillar of the movie is understood, it even further elevates the rest of the film towards greatness.Hence, it was not a mistake that the teenagers were in fact juveniles, nor was the doctor getting killed a mistake. Many scenes also further lead to the notion that while intentions may very well be good, actions on the other hand clearly are not. The representation of the federal government as being the problem, not the answer, is typically found when looking back over the great movies of the decades, and obviously this movie was no exception. While the juveniles self sacrifice for the good of the group, the feds ruthlessly kill...While the script was capable of allowing a classic, it took the fine actors to achieve this feat. The acting was, frankly speaking, splendid. Everyone did their part, facial expressions spoke to the audience, and little nuances and expressions helped guide the audience through what is often times difficult messages to decode. The casting selection was dead on, and every camera angle was perfect. This was a great film, and I am sure that it will be remembered over the ages. I know that I will never forget it, and the wisdom that is now permanently with me.