Restrictions and I have been yapping - or more likely complaining - that all we talk about is getting sick, going to the doctor, high pressure and all the other things that come with age. Nah, we're not old, but now our bodies need a little more maintenance than usual - and we just laugh about it. And in going with this theme of being sick, let's talk about Contagion, the movie.
Listen, maybe you have a couple of hours to kill - pun intended - and what better way than going to the movies to become a little more neurotic and paranoid about, well... everything you touch and walk by? Contagion will do the trick. If you touch anything at the end of the movie with your bare hands, then you are one ballsy person. But, is it real? Well... sort of.
Contagion has a shitload of great actors. And I wondered from the start why. Now I know. The movie tries to give you a scenario of what would happen if a really airborne and deadly virus would pop up on earth. You basically get this bug that makes you feel shitty and then in a couple of days you die. And yes, you are really passing it on to other people. Ugly, nasty. No gore shit like the very blockbustery Outbreak. This actually looks kind of doable. White snot, convulsions, pale skin and then you wipe out. Scary, yes indeed.
The thing about this movie is that it goes berzerk and states the idea that the US Government would fuck us all and endanger us instead of helping humanity survive. Bureaucracy would give way to thousands and thousands of people getting sick instead of being protected. Higher ups would totally get vaccines instead of normal dick and janes. The media would jump all over the story and twist it for profit. These things are in the movie, and that is why it is very scary. Contagion is sort of a really real what if...
... that's happened before.
Mark this paragraph as the end of my review. Yeah, go and see it. Maybe you get a great idea on how to be a little bit more safe when going to a public space, on how to handle yourself on crowded situations and how to avoid getting your bacteria near me. It is very well photographed, all the characters are credible and the story is well written. It drags a bit in the end but you are already pot committed. You really need to wait because you want to know what happened. But, why stop here my review?
Because if you want to see a movie that will really scare you, you need to rent "And the Band Played On". An 1993 HBO movie, it is based on the non fiction book by the same name on how the AIDS/HIV virus was handled by the government and the media - and how it got spread wildly for no real logical reason. Fights about discovering the virus, loads of politicians playing God and judge, the Reagans not paying real importance to the spreading velocity and not giving the right amount of funds to correctly study it... I can go on and on.
THAT is scary, because THAT HAPPENED FOR REAL. If you don't have access to it, then read the book - it is way more thorough. And yes, we do have an epidemic, and it could have been prevented or maybe it could have been controlled a little - but life got in the way.
Here's a great scene to make you a bit curious...
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