User reviews

A deep dive into the eventually of a pandemic. We get the story from the main point of veiw of several characters. A few of the side story's seem unnecessary but on the most part it all fits together like a jigsaw. The film is fast paced and at times can be hard to follow however it show cases its themes well and will keep you interested until the very end. The film does't really end, you just step into 2020.

Not much to say that hasn't been already… the critics are right, it is an effective slick movie that may be a bit slight as far as character development but doesn't suffer too badly for it. This is a movie far more about ideas than people and that is not necessarily a bad thing.

Excellent direction from Soderbergh, masterful cinematography, and while there are a few logical mis-steps, the writing more than makes up for that by confounding expectations more than once in truly creative and credible ways.

Unfortunately trailers have many seeking an action thrill-ride, when what it delivers for the most part is a slow boiling suspenseful drama. When will Hollywood learn that setting expectations that don't match the product may sell a few extra tickets in the beginning, but hurts word of mouth and user reviews which are needed for the success of a film beyond the opening weekend.

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.

Ian Lipkin, the university professor and epidemiologist, who serves as the director of Columbia University's Center for Infection and Immunity, agreed to assist as medical consultant in the making of "Contagion" because the film was "an effort to accurately represent the science and to make a movie that would entertain as well as educate."

Okay, there's bound to be a lot of similarities with this film to the Novel Coronavirus outbreak that's now reaching around the globe with rapid speed. Of course, "Contagion", being a Hollywood film, the virus spread much faster than the real thing as well as caused way more fatalities. As of this writing (2.21.2020) there are 77,767 cases with 2,360 deaths and 20,833 recovered around the world. And that's pretty fast for a virus that was just recognized 12.31.2019 - not even two months ago. Some of the ideas and behaviors in "Contagion" seemed far fetched, but in the end, it wasn't really that bad of a production consideration the nature of virus infections tend to be mysterious and unknown in the first place.

I knew this was an important movie when it came out. I had not seen anything like this before. Excellent writing, good direction, an invisible antagonist, and most importantly - a sense of realism.

Nine years later, as the Coronavirus disease is running rampant, my mind keeps going back to the horror depicted in this movie. I tried to hold back but my eyes welled up with tears. This should be a must-see movie for the younger generation since it captures the frightening reality of a pandemic and humankind's reaction to it like no movie has ever captured before.

At this moment, in 2020, I know many more will die from Coronavirus, and it is a scary thought. What makes it even more scary for me- my wife is a physician. She reminds me of Kate Winslet's character. She is out there fighting the infection and the fear that comes with it. Like her, she is tireless and compassionate. No movie or documentary can ever capture or portray fear that follows bravery like a dark shadow. Nevertheless, I applaud the audacity of the filmmakers for making such an important movie. As important as this movie is, I sincerely hope no one ever has to make a movie like this in future.

Now go and wash your hands! That's what you'll be doing after you see this film. Contagion is a frightening realistic procedural thriller about the spread of an airborne pandemic virus, its impact on an ensemble cast of characters played by a veritable 'Who's Who' of Hollywood and the subsequent race to find a cure.

Like his earlier work 'Traffic', Soderbergh skilfully interweaves the various story lines into a bigger picture that breathlessly tracks and encircles the globe. The cast do not let him down. It's impossible to see a bad performance from Matt Damon and once again his role as a grieving father is sensitively and painfully played. We really feel his sense of sudden and unexpected loss as he struggles to internalise the news of his wife's death, disbelieving, dazed and confused. Marion Cotillard adds an international hue to her role as a World Health Organisation investigator whilst Jude Law plays the role of an insidious Australian blogger, who dangerously undermines the medical establishment's attempts to find a cure for his own conspiratorial and financial gains, to perfection. I could go on; Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet, Jennifer Ehle and John Hawkes all provide solid support in a starry cast.

What makes this film so compelling is the way Soderbergh is able to show how unhygienic human beings are and how easy it is to create a pandemic. In hundreds of different absent minded ways we touch our faces on a daily basis and in doing so, transfer and spread dangerous viruses amongst ourselves. Next time you're in the supermarket look out for the number of people who pick their noses, wipe their mouths and cough, sneeze and splutter their way past you without any attempts to cover their mouths. They're picking up (and putting back) the fruit and vegetables, handling groceries and even touching your hand when supermarket staff are giving back your card or change! Worse still, a recent survey showed that although 95% of people say they wash their hands, only 12% actually do so and consequently 1 in 6 mobile phones have faecal bacterial on them and 30% of all handbags. I could go on.

Despite a slightly preposterous storyline when Cotillard is kidnapped in Hong Kong, Soderbergh does portray the breakdown of society in an uncomfortably truthful way when people are suddenly and unexpectedly faced with their own extinction and the instincts of self preservation take over. This could have been explored a little further around the world although at all times the story is grounded in reality. Even the death toll of 27 million worldwide in four months has the ring of truth about it and this is due in no small part to the film's chief scientific adviser, Dr. W. Ian Lipkin, the John Snow Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University. The televised national lottery in the film is something that I could see happening in the interests of fairness and impartiality when the supply of vaccines is unable to keep up with demand when life and death is only one injection away.

At the film's closing credits one thing stands out and that is the unheralded and heroic work of the thousands of doctors, microbiologists, virologists and vaccine researchers around the world who labour night and day to minimise the effects of such a pandemic occurring which might wipe out the human race. If you're a pessimist like me in this age of global warming, massive deforestation, the depletion of the earth's natural resources, the extinction of wildlife habitats, overpopulation and overcrowding, go figure...a pandemic like the one portrayed in Contagion is inevitable (and long overdue according to the scientific world). The only question that remains is how many people will it kill? Anyway, go and see the film – it's a thought provoking and scary chiller that taps into the current zeitgeist.

This movie has so much similarities between the coronavirus outbreak.

Had I watched this movie few months back , it wouldn't have been a big deal but now it's totally relatable. Literally its like , the current situation was all scripted years back !

This is a cerebral movie. Many complain about having too many characters, but these characters serve as illustration, the main character is the pandemic, that is explored in non sensationalistic but still interesting and compelling way. The most scary thing about the movie is its realism. Yes, this is what really would happen if there were a pandemic. Not everyone would die, there would be no flashy helicopter drama, but it would not be a pleasant experience either. This is a good movie but perhaps not for the seekers of cheap thrills.

People are calling it a visionary movie but the scientists and epidemiologist always knew how the virus like this will spread. They had many examples of it. I have watched a few videos on this topic and they have been predicting possible pandemics, like COVID-19, for many years. Even the makers of this movie got inspired because of a TED talk by one epidemiologist, named Brilliant. They used his consultation for the movie. In one of the talks I watched, one guy even predicted the shortage of toilet papers in case of any pandemic. It is just normal people, who don't seem to understand, until they face the situation. It makes me wonder about other issues like climate change etc. Will people also understand them when it will be too late?

People wanted a thrill. People wanted action. People wanted character development. Those elements weren't the intent, however. I'd have to admit expecting an action from the marketing materials and the poster, but I don't judge movies over a preconceived notion or genre. Without throwing out spoilers, I was happy to see that it's more of an ensemble cast than a Matt Damon flick, considering his small role. Yeah, he's Gwyneth's husband, but so what? It was a good analysis on how our country, and the world at large, would react to a real medical epidemic. We saw a few overblown pandemics the last few years with H1N1 and swine flu, and I believe this movie is a what-if thought experiment on steroids. They even paid homage to the real world examples near the conclusion. Granted, the real world issues turned out to be media overhype more than a real medical scare and I believe the movie covered the media in a brilliant way. I liked this movie because it was a societal study rather than just an updated 'Outbreak.' Regarding character development, there really wasn't a place for it in this movie. The only thing that touches it was the budding relationship between the two youngsters. On the other hand, I could, just as easily, write that off as a symbol of human strength, desire, and endurance since it survived the epidemic from beginning to the end. Favorite actor for the movie: Jude Law. He really sunk his teeth into his role and I really wanted to hate him. Great job.

Went back and watched this as the real pandemic is finally hopefully coming to an end. Had forgotten how much it predicted and parallels how this virus has played out in reality, except that as of early 2022 we're actually in better shape than those in this film. Well done, paced and a great cast carries you through some sobering (now real life) scenes.

Released in 2011, this film could easily have been written as what could happen with a virus such as Covid-19. It's realistic in some aspects, because viruses can spread rapidly and there have been viruses hitting humans throughout history, some more deadly than others.

The film could be seen as over-dramatic but as we know fear can spread as quickly as a virus. I think it does a pretty good job, even if it is a bit too close to home, for comfort!

I saw this movie at a pre-screening in St. Louis. I thought it was good, and I did enjoy it, but I also thought it could have been better. It's about a virus outbreak that is untreatable, and threatens the whole world's population. I thought it had a kind of 'CSI' vibe to me. I liked the way the story showed what day it was, place, etc, and kind of followed the outbreak across the globe. The acting by Matt Damon and Jude Law was great, but overall it just didn't have enough conflict. I felt like I had seen it before in similar movies, and there was no main protagonist/bad guy to fight against (well, besides the virus itself, of course!) The film made me think about germs, diseases, and government cover ups. Which are all too real even today. I did really like the last scene and how the movie came full circle. Overall though, I felt like it could have gone somewhere, but didn't. But still I enjoyed it and would recommend it, it's just not one of my favorites. 7/10

It's amazing how close this movie nailed it. This movie probably didn't make a lot of sense back in the day, but now knowing what actually happens in a pandemic, props to the writers. This movie captured it all. I really give them credit for all the key worries related to a pandemic.

As I watch this film many months into COVID and at the end of my infectious disease/immunology unit in medical school, I'm in awe of how accurate of a portrayal this is of a pandemic. It's truly incredible how many things in this movie come to fruition nearly a decade later. It's a testament to the writer, director, and most of all the scientists who were consulted for this movie.

The film itself is fascinating and fast-moving. Bolstered by an all-star cast, the movie is brutally realistic and unflinching in its bleak view of how quickly a virus can spread throughout populations. Matt Damon anchors the cast and keeps the human drama at the forefront. All of the science used in the film is very accurate and also very easy for anyone to understand. Contagion is a tense, brilliant thriller which isn't the typical three act movie, but a more focused look at the scary potential of a global pandemic.

I was taken off guard when I first watched the trailer for Contagion. It looked like a crazy, off-the-rails thriller that was genuinely terrifying in its depiction of something too close to reality. When I got passes for an advanced screening last week, I had to contain my excitement. With Steven Soderbergh at the helm of a plethora of Oscar-winning/nominated talent, how could I possibly go wrong?

A deadly virus has been discovered after multiple deaths begin surfacing around the world. As various members of the CDC and WHO race to find a cure, the world stands at the brink of a rising epidemic. While some are safe, others must do everything they can to avoid infection, or risk the fatal consequences.

It may sound vague, but with so many characters and story lines going on at once, it is slightly difficult to nail down a synopsis without giving too much away. The film takes the approach of giving us the events on a day-to-day structure, showing how quickly and destructively stretches and mutates. Characters drop in and out to give us varying points of view of the effects of the virus, whether it be from an almost random citizen, a doctor on ground zero, or the scientists in the lab. We learn early on that no one is safe, and the film pulls no punches letting you know that sentiment again and again.

While I was a little flabbergasted at the almost ludicrous amount of montages early in the film, it became clear exactly what kind of slick look Soderbergh intended for the picture. Depending on the location, the colour scheme modifies and reinvents itself. Some scenes look simply stunning in their production values, making a big budget Hollywood project look like a down and dirty, gritty amateur indie. Soderbergh has never been easily classified, and with this film, his first major motion picture since Ocean's Thirteen, he maintains and furthers his enigmatic nature. The pounding 1980s synth score was a nice and bewildering touch too, but I would have expected nothing less.

Despite what the trailers and some of my early praise would have you believe, Contagion is actually a slow and meticulous film that is only partially thrilling. Yes, there is a panicked tone that carries the film for a good portion – one that frequently veers into claustrophobia as it dawns on the characters and the audience themselves just how widespread and devastating the virus is – but this tone never seems right. It jumps and fluctuates, disappearing almost entirely in some instances, and overdoing it in others. It seems completely unable to settle on any one ideal, and as a result, feels very all over-the-place. It saddens me to say it, considering what a master filmmaker Soderbergh truly is, but the film starts unraveling the moment it starts and never seems to be able to find its footing.

But I think this can also be blamed on the script by Scott Z. Burns. He partnered with Soderbergh before and gave us the moderately entertaining The Informant!, but he suffers here by building a complex, dense and incredibly verbose narrative around a mere nugget of a good idea. Instead of developing the idea into the thought-provoking and horrifying vision we are meant to take from everything we have been shown, we are given a cross-section of stories that intersect at points and fail to come to any sort of fruition. By the time the film comes to a close, after more than a handful of screeching halts and asinine character motivations and reactions, I just found myself asking what the point of it all was. There is some heavy handed satire buried within the picture, as is a treatise on some disturbing realities of the healthcare system worldwide. But outside of these vague notions, it all feels like a huge build-up to nothing. It feels like Burns and Soderbergh simply stopped caring after the basic idea stage was completed. And if they do not care about what is happening, then why should we?

And really, with all the jargon and technical terminology being thrown around, did they really need to talk down to the audience on more than one occasion? I am by no means a genius, but I felt kind of offended that the film found the need to hint and then spell things out entirely for me.

While it was initially impressive to see such a diverse group of actors in roles of varying importance (including Canada's own Enrico Colantoni in a fairly substantial role), sadly there is no real time for any one actor to really make something of their role. No one drops the ball thankfully (they let the film do that for them), but at the same time, no one seems like they are putting any substantial effort in either. Singling any one actor out is practically unfair, because there are no standouts. I realize this is a very ensemble based film, but even the most hardened examples of this type of film have one character that the audience finds unforgettable. This film does not have this character in any capacity. And for such a great pool of Oscar-calibre talent, this is the most disappointing and disheartening element of all.

While I went into Contagion with excitement, I came out let down. For what little the film actually has going for it, it just seems like it all went to waste (including the absolutely shocking death that is ruined by the trailers). Whether it wanted to be a paranoia-driven thriller, a not so subtle satire, or just an exercise in fear, Contagion fails on all counts. It is overly slow, and at the worst of times, incredibly boring. You are better off watching the trailer on loop and imagining just how much better the film looks, than it actually is.

6/10.

(An extended review also appeared on http://www.geekspeakmagazine.com).

This is not a zombie movie. It is not an overdramatized race to catch the carrier before it infects everyone. It is a rather realistic depiction of a fast spreading contagion with a high mortality rate. As I am watching the spread of Covid-19, I see numerous parallels with the film. OK, the virus in the movie was way too deadly and with a short incubation period, but that made it more easy to contain. The vaccine was developed incredibly fast, too. I mean, it had to all fit inside less than two hours. In other words, it is describing exactly what is happening now, but at a much faster rate. It is therefore important to note the predictions of this film: idiots spreading rumors online, violence from desperate people, supply shortages on every level.

I loved how Contagion did not exaggerate almost anything. There is no huge number of deaths, relative to the world's population. There is no dramatic save from the heroes, no karmic retribution against the obvious villains. Even the bad things, they happen, they show the animal nature of humankind at its basest, but the world doesn't end, civilisation doesn't collapse. It's easy to imagine 5 years after the vaccine everybody has conveniently forgot how they stepped on their neighbors to steal their stuff and instead they commemorate the innocent victims.

I am still waiting for the epic movie or TV series about the 1918 epidemic. Oh, you didn't know about that? Or you know very little? How convenient the amnesia, isn't it?

This is a well made film with an all star cast. It was certainly prophetic having come out 9 years before the covid-19 pandemic. The film is a mover and just goes at this break neck pace from start to finish. While that was effective for the first two acts in driving home the fear, it hurt the last act. The resolution felt like it was too rushed. That being said, solid film with a great cast.