Contagion

2011 "Nothing spreads like fear."
6.8| 1h46m| PG-13| en| More Info
Released: 09 September 2011 Released
Producted By: Warner Bros. Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website: http://contagionmovie.warnerbros.com/
Synopsis

As an epidemic of a lethal airborne virus - that kills within days - rapidly grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself.

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George Taylor So-so movie about a woman visiting the far east who brings back a new virus that sweeps across America, killing her and thousands others. Really doesn't that will with how people in such a situation would prey on one another, Kate Winslet it decent as the selfless doctor seeking a cure. Matt Damon kinds of sleep walks through his part.
Minas Gr SO many famous actors so good directing , big budget, nice story in the first 30min ... and then ... NOTHING !i cant understand what they are trying to show us.. Bad script, too many protagonists with short stories .. At least focus at them and show us more.. or focus on the government and how they failed to handle this (instead we see nothing of how US or Europe tried to do) Anyway, good movie but i dont get the point, it could go so better. Still deserves an easy 6/10
Zaffy-1 I could write a whole review based on Jude Law's character and especially his tooth. It is maybe the biggest example of why this movie fails. I mean how can you take a movie seriously when it tries to establish a character by his distracting... denture? Not to mention the stereotype of the evil blogger, eeeww!In other news the film was as mess. They spread the story in too many places and characters, all of them poorly written. And indifferent. I could't care less about them or the drama on the screen cause the writing and the directing failed to make me worry or feel the threat of doom. Everything felt kind of flat. And unrealistic. It was frustrating watching important people who where supposed to have a crucial part in humankind's survival, not taking the necessary protections against the virus (sleeping in common hotels, touching everyone and anything, allowed to go home and in other places, etc etc).Too bad for the good cast wasted on a very weak script.
Tom (tombracher) Matt Damon's character is immune to a contagion spreading wildly across the globe as a result of human cross-contamination. Tragedy besets a seemingly unblemished family life when his partner, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, falls ill and dies. She is not the only unlucky citizen to fall victim to the unknown disease, as we see other accounts from across the globe in individuals showing similar symptoms. What start's out as a mysterious collection of deaths results in a race to save humanity from the deadliest contagion in history...There's no doubting the fact that Contagion does have flaws - an overloaded cast of A-listers making it difficult to feel sympathetic towards specific characters, a foreseeable drop in tension towards the final act and having to bare witness to yet another accent attempt from Jude Law.Agonising accents aside, the film has you feeling muddied from the off (along with the coughing over the black screen, did anyone notice the almost nauseously-tainted Warner Bros. logo?) The polluted appearance of shots creates a bubble of infectiousness that audience members cannot escape from. There are countless images of basic human contact with objects and themselves; whether that's wiping their brows, lifting their glasses, touching their clothes...all of which causes the audience to feel uneasy and overly-aware of themselves and the people around them (a clever trick to pull in a public environment).The film then settles into its plot, one that owes much to other infectious cinematic experiences such as Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later or any early medical-related apocalyptic horrors/thrillers. So despite it not being original, I find Contagion to be the best attempt yet at portraying the anxiety, tragedy and sheer scale of a real-life contagion; after all, the only thing that's sci-fi about this movie is the disease itself.Contagion does seem to throw all its eggs into the one basket of statistical data and fact; we hear all kinds of different numbers throughout, possibly in an attempt to deliver the imposing scale of this impending disaster as realistically as possible.The problem with this approach is that the audience can quite easily get disconnected from the complex world of medical science to focus more on the sentimental side of the film; of it's characters and whether they will stand the test of time. Films must choose between science and sentimentality to ensure they don't have to share focus between the two.There are some admirable performances from A-listers such as Damon, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburn and in particular Kate Winslett who I found wonderfully believable as a skilled medical expert struggling on many fronts. Unfortunately, I found myself quickly detached from any scene featuring Jude Law; mainly because I couldn't see beyond his adopted accent. Other than his rather brief appearances in Wes Anderson's 'The Grand Budapest Hotel', I find it hard to pinpoint a performance from Law that stands out. With that, Contagion could possibly have benefited from being one A-lister short.The film also features an intriguing score that represents the panic, struggle and disorientation of ordinary human life. Changes in pace and volume are evident throughout, rising in intensity as characters grow more concerned for their safety and human survival.I enjoyed the exhilarating pace and infectious tension of Contagion throughout. I think despite its flaws it portrayed the human reaction to disastrous circumstances very well, created the necessary tension up until the final act to keep you embroiled in the suspense and included enough good performances to make this B movie as believable as possible. I've seen it on a few occasions now and as a medical student, I appreciate its efforts every time.