Contagion (2011)

A thriller centered on the threat posed by a deadly disease and an international team of doctors contracted by the CDC to deal with the outbreak.

Director:

Steven Soderbergh

Writer:

Scott Z. Burns

Stars:

Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Jude Law

2 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marion Cotillard	...	Dr. Leonora Orantes
Matt Damon	...	Mitch Emhoff
Laurence Fishburne	...	Dr. Ellis Cheever
Jude Law	...	Alan Krumwiede
Gwyneth Paltrow	...	Beth Emhoff
Kate Winslet	...	Dr. Erin Mears
Bryan Cranston	...	RADM Lyle Haggerty
Jennifer Ehle	...	Dr. Ally Hextall
Elliott Gould	...	Dr. Ian Sussman
Chin Han	...	Sun Feng
John Hawkes	...	Roger
Anna Jacoby-Heron	...	Jory Emhoff
Josie Ho	...	Li Fai's Sister
Sanaa Lathan	...	Aubrey Cheever
Demetri Martin	...	Dr. David Eisenberg

Storyline

Soon after her return from a business trip to Hong Kong, Beth Emhoff dies from what is a flu or some other type of infection. Her young son dies later the same day. Her husband Mitch however seems immune. Thus begins the spread of a deadly infection. For doctors and administrators at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, several days pass before anyone realizes the extent or gravity of this new infection. They must first identify the type of virus in question and then find a means of combating it, a process that will likely take several months. As the contagion spreads to millions of people worldwide, societal order begins to break down as people panic.

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Plot Keywords:

virus | disease | doctor | infection | hong kong | 

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Taglines:

Nothing spreads like fear

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for disturbing content and some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [de] Warner Bros. [es]

Country:

USA United Arab Emirates

Language:

English Mandarin Cantonese

Release Date:

9 September 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Contagion: The IMAX Experience

Filming Locations:

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$22,403,596 (USA) (9 September 2011)

Gross:

$75,638,743 (USA) (9 December 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Participant Media, Imagenation Abu Dhabi FZ

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The actual desk of Benny Evangelista, reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, appears in the film as Lorraine Vasquez's desk. Evangelista's desk is notoriously messy, and was left as it was by the crew.

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Goofs

When Dr. Cheever is describing the mortality rate of the contagion (one in twelve) the North American map Montreal marked as Toronto.

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Quotes

Alan Krumwiede: It's a bad day to be a rhesus monkey.

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Crazy Credits

The colors of the Warner Bros. Pictues logo are slightly faded.

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Connections

References Gojira (1954)

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Soundtracks

"All I Want is You"
Lyrics by Bono
Music by U2
Performed by U2

User Reviews

Fictional viral outbreak plausibly dramatized in docu-like fashion

Stephen Soderbergh's latest direction, "Contagion" (2011), even though bringing less than expected excitement, is an absorbing movie to watch, efficient as a social and behavioural study, but no less as an accomplished collection of individual case studies, offering sufficiently thought-provoking arguments, such as the fact that--despite all the scientific advances and exhaustive efforts of the thousands of specialists--humankind still stands pretty helpless in the prevention of new viral outbreaks and their many strains occurring globally, when even seemingly well organised societies easily slip into chaos, leaving all individuals to fend for themselves in the ultimate fight for survival, all further fuelled by unstoppable leaks (however, lucrative sensationalism, as well) on an almost inevitable, mutually supportive (money and power shouldn't mix, but mostly they do) corporal and governmental cover-ups. Surely it is a disturbing reminder that even at the most difficult of times, humanity's good traits still get so easily overpowered by the seed of all evil--selfishness and greed.

Many good actors partake in the movie: Kate Winslet, Matt Damon, Jude Law, Jennifer Ehle, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburne, Elliott Gould, to name a few, though one cannot expect remarkable character development when action is dispersed and story spread on so many leads. Nevertheless, Soderbergh knows how to make people count and, albeit somewhat shy about it, he's sufficiently confident in decisive difference their increasingly frequent, self-sacrificing actions could make, having faith in ultimately predominant selflessness and benevolence, kindness and compassion, whether among pre-organised, or ad hoc gathered communities, down to the last individual, rediscovering--now under extreme conditions--their altruism and, as implied in a reserved hope raised towards the end, having--this way or another--humanism in humankind still prevail.