Gwyneth Paltrow is patient zero in Steven Soderbergh’s macabre medical thriller. She’s the first human to contract a new deadly disease, known as MEV-1, that will soon traverse the globe and leave a horrific trail of death and destruction in its wake. Opening with a sequence designed to show how easily diseases spread, “Contagion” quickly creates a sense of fear among audience members and makes them want to dowse themselves in hand sanitiser. In today’s climate, in which the Covid-19 pandemic has taken the world by storm, Soderbergh’s film seems like a much more relevant and important piece of cinema, despite being released almost a decade prior to the pandemic.
When Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) returns from Hong Kong with an illness assumed to be something mundane like the flu, her unexpected death — alongside the death of her son the same day from the same illness — sparks global catastrophe. Before long, professionals at the CDC and other health departments are aware of this new disease and must identify the virus, find a suitable way to treat it, and create a vaccine to prevent further deaths. However, that process is likely to take several months, months that neither the professionals nor civilians can afford to wait.
Pandemics, Deaths, and Societal Collapse
Alongside the perspective of health professionals, “Contagion” gives the audience an insight into how the general population is dealing with the spreading disease. Through the eyes of Beth’s husband Mitch (Matt Damon) and his daughter (Anna Jacoby-Heron), we see the societal order collapse under the weight of mass panic. From looting grocery stores, robbing pharmacies, and breaking into neighbour’s homes, the pandemic pushes people to their limits as they fight for survival.
“Contagion” is a film that ends up being one of the more realistic pandemic films produced by Hollywood, packing a greater sense of authenticity than films like “World War Z” and “I am Legend.” Soderbergh chooses to take a muted and much more believable approach to depicting this fictional pandemic. The screenplay, courtesy of Scott Z. Burns (“The Bourne Ultimatum”), balances complex science lingo with tense drama and creates a steadily paced film that doesn’t linger on unnecessary plot points or information.
Chin Han and Marion Cotillard in “Contagion.” (Photo: Claudette Barius – © 2011 Warner Bros.).
The film does a great job of helping audiences to understand the desperation that civilians are facing while the disease runs rife across the globe. With the looting of stores and robbing of pharmacies, the entire world seems to have come to a total standstill. Soderbergh also serves as cinematographer for the film, crafting visuals that not only create a sense of isolation for the viewer, but also emphasising the severity of the disease and how easily it spreads from person-to-person. If the focus on the spread of disease wasn’t fear-inducing enough, Cliff Martinez (“Drive”) composes a score that mixes dissonance and melody to create a chilling sound to accompany “Contagion.”
A Star-Studded Cast Propels the Drama
This is a film packed full of gripping drama and tension and is led by strong performances all round with no weak link in sight; although it’s hard to expect any less from a cast full of Oscar winners and nominees. Kate Winslet shines in an effective, yet short lived performance as one of the health professionals working to combat MEV-1. Laurence Fishburne stars alongside Winslet, delivering a compelling performance as Dr. Cheever, another health professional trying to stop the disease, as well as Jude Law excelling as conspiracy theorist Alan Krumwiede. Law does a superb job of being an irritating know-it-all who’s convinced himself he has the cure for the pandemic.
Steven Soderbergh’s gripping medical thriller is one of the better pandemic films to come out of the production machine that is Hollywood. Lead by riveting performances from the entire cast, the film grasps audiences’ attention for the entire 106-minutes and takes them on a journey from the very start of the pandemic to the point where things start to get back to normal. Its eerie similarities to Covid-19 is perhaps what makes “Contagion” a much more interesting film, as billions across the globe have had an experience similar to that depicted in the film, from the isolation to the desperation, and the false conspiracies and cures promoted online. Soderbergh crafts a thrilling film that is both informative and entertaining, while also being something audiences can relate to.
“Contagion” is currently available to watch or rent from most streaming networks.
