Contagion

Movie Name: Contagion

Year of Release: 2011

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Stars: Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Jennifer Ehle, Gwyneth Paltrow, John Hawkes, Demetri Martin, Bryan Cranston, Elliot Gould, Enrico Colantoni, Sanaa Lathan, Larry Clarke

Genre: Thriller, Drama, Sci-Fi

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7

Synopsis:

The fantastically talented and prolific Steven Soderbergh is back, following the great "The Informant" with Matt Damon and the experimental "The Girlfriend Experience". Soderbergh already has shot and has ready to be released "Haywire" with another great cast and is already shooting another film, named "Magic Mike" to be released next year. "Contagion" is very much a mosaic film, following a series of characters, as a dangerous and lethal virus starts spreading around the globe, killing millions of people. We follow the lives of Mitch Emhoff, whose wife arrives from Hong Kong and suddenly dies, the lives of Dr. Ellis Cheever and Dr. Erin Mears, both from the CDC, Alan Krumwiede a well known blogger, Dr. Leonora Arantes from the World Health Organization, as they all come in contact with the virus and play different parts in trying to find a solution for this catastrophe.
Steven Soderbergh, again working as cinematographer, builds a film that progressively escalates in suspense, as the virus progressively spreads the tentacles of destruction. The director is more interested in showing how people react to an overwhelming menace, with the different players and different contexts showing how an epidemic can destroy governments, cities and families. The cast is uniformly good, with Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jennifer Ehle doing small but impactful parts. The mosaic of actors, of the production design and the documentary-style cinematography make the film engaging and pertinent. A good film worth watching!