Theaters: Facing an unknown epidemic, the Chinese government tries to force a Canadian scientist to steal viral samples from a Canadian government lab.

Release date May 16, 2025

The MPAA rated The Unrestricted War Not Rated

Run Time: 140 minutes

Genivax is having a great year. The biotech company, owned by Canadian virologist Jim Conrad (Dylan Bruce) and his Chinese wife Sophie (Nadia Hatta), is on the brink of major breakthroughs, and everyone anticipates continued rapid growth. Then a group of Chinese government agents show up at Jim’s office, arrest him, throw a bag over his head and take him to an interrogation room where he’s given an offer he can’t refuse.

An unknown virus has broken out in Hubei province and the Chinese government is desperate to prevent news spreading in case it casues panic. They are also going flat out to create a vaccine at lightning speed. That’s where Jim comes in: he’s being ordered to return to Canada and steal a vial of a virus he once made from the vault of the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. If he refuses, he will lose his business and the life he and Sophie have built in China. If he succeeds, everything goes back to normal.

Jim is outraged by the whole episode and with an almost touching bit of naiveté, believes that talking to the right people and hiring a lawyer will bring an end to the pressure. But as the screws tighten, his corporation is blackballed, and his teenage daughter terrorized, Jim realizes that he’s going to have to make a difficult decision…save his family or betray his country.

Some movies have plot holes so big and annoying that it’s all I can do not to bang my head on the seat in front of me. The Unrestricted War is one of those films. Let’s go through the plot issues in order of appearance. First, the People’s Republic of China has a deep bench of skilled scientists; they don’t need to blackmail a foreigner when they have plenty of homegrown talent. Second, Jim errs when he views the situation as binary: obey and betray or fight back and lose it all. I would suggest that he tell the truth in Winnipeg and stage his own public arrest, thereby protecting his family and country at the same time. Third, there’s no way Jim would still have a working security code for the vault: his personal code would have been deactivated when he quit or a universal code would change frequently. Fourth, no one in their right mind is going to walk into an airport with a dangerous viral sample that could be manhandled. China would definitely use a diplomatic courier for such a package. Fifth, no one who has spent time in a hospital filled with patients dying from a mysterious illness is going to go straight home and breathe all over their family members. There’s more, but I’m pushing the limits of both my word count and my sanity.

On top of the plot holes, the movie also struggles with a made-for-TV feel. I have no idea how it snagged a theatrical release, especially with its massively bloated two-hour-and-twenty-minute runtime. The only fun part in the film is identifying the “true events” that purportedly inspired the script. There’s the arbitrary arrest of Canada’s “two Michaels”, the Chinese/Canadian diplomatic rift over the US-requested extradition hearing for Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, the arrest of Chinese scientists at Canada’s microbiology lab, and the Wuhan lab leak theory for the origins of Covid. Given that the production was partially funded by the extremist Epoch Times, it’s a relief that the film isn’t flat out crazy.

To be fair, however, this production has some redeeming features. Negative content is minor, with little profanity and carefully sanitized violence. The movie also provides a chilling depiction of the dangers of living in a totalitarian state. As Jim soon learns, nothing is safe – not your business, not your family, not your own life – in a world where the rule of law has been replaced with rule by force. If there’s one worthwhile reason to watch the film it’s for the reminder that when the law doesn’t protect one of us, it fails to protect all of us.

Directed by Yan Ma. Starring Dylan Bruce, Nadia Hatta, Uni Park, Russell Yuen, Jun Che. Running time: 140 minutes. Theatrical release May 16, 2025. Updated May 16, 2025

The Unrestricted War is rated Not Rated by the MPAA

Violence: An autopsy (with no details) is carried out on a person who has died from an unknown illness. The lab is ordered to burn the body. Two people have a discussion about whether or not animal corpses used in labs are being burned or resold at local markets. Innocent people are arrested by police; one person is manhandled. A child is abducted by police and her hair is cut off. A man “falls” from a high building and dies. A state security officer fires a gun at civilians. A man is shot and is later seen in hospital recovering from his wound. A hanged man’s feet are seen. Police beat pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. A doctor is bullied by security agents for trying to warn people about a virus: he later dies. A man’s dead body is seen as healthcare workers pretend to resuscitate him for the cameras. A girl is bullied at school; other students call names and push her. A woman slaps a colleague. An injured man is seized by security officers. Rows of body bags are seen outside a hospital. People wail as sick patients die. Spoiler: A scientist is forced to develop a bioweapon.
Sexual Content:   None
Profanity: The script includes approximately five scatological curses, two terms of deity, and a couple of minor profanities.
Alcohol / Drug Use:   An adult occasionally smokes cigarettes. There is brief alcohol consumption with meals.

Page last updated May 16, 2025