“Somewhere in the world, the wrong pig met up with the wrong bat…”
End of the world films are not known for their restraint. Even in the midst of a global pandemic, I would still rather have my apocalypse films be just that – hysterical renderings of the end of days. Contagion takes a different approach and, in many ways, recent global events repackage Steven Soderbergh’s 2011 film in a changed, more favourable light…
When a global pandemic, originating with some dodgy meat in China, threatens to kill millions, various parties must work together to find a vaccine. A cast that includes (deep breath) Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Bryan Cranston and Laurence Fishburne work to solve this problem.
First off, whilst that cast is undoubtedly impressive, nobody really gets an opportunity to shine. There is just too much going on in Contagion. It’s easy to see how this film would now probably be released as a prestige mini series on HBO or Netflix, and it would be excellent, but as it is, the running time doesn’t do the story justice. This is a shame because the numerous threads that Soderbergh frantically tries to tie together are all worthy of greater exploration.
One thing that can’t be doubted is the film’s accuracy, and this can only truly be understood in the wake of the ongoing coronavirus crisis. It’s all there, from the scrabble for food and medical equipment, to stony faced officials imploring people to wash their hands and employ social distancing.
In the end, if not for this current pandemic, Contagion would have been merely a footnote in cinematic history. Instead, it has become an oracle for the future. It has gone from being totally forgotten to being ahead of its time. What a truly modern phenomenon.