So, as some of you may know, after our day in Toronto, I saw this movie with my friends Otto and Saleh, catching the midnight showing. It has a star-studded cast, including my favorite Jason Bou- I mean Matt Damon, as well as Gwyneth Paltrow, Lawrence Fishburne, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, and Marion Cotillard (who, it has to be said, is absolutely gorgeous). That's some kind of line-up. How did it play out?
What is the technical word I am looking for? I think its: meh. Nothing really to write home about with this movie, but it wasn't a total mess either. Someone contracts a mystery disease, our scientists don't know how to cure it, it kills a ton of people all around the World before someone figures it out. It wasn't really groundbreaking stuff by any means, but I suppose the progression of the story was delivered in a pretty neat way. This wasn't enough though. One can only do so much with that kind of story line, and it is pretty predictable, so the story, unfortunately, got to be kind of boring. It was interesting to see how the Center for Disease Control and other entities would respond to this kind of crisis, but that is not very redeeming. Otto even fell asleep next to me, though Saleh and I were able to stick with it. The acting was by and large good, but these really weren't very difficult roles to pull off either. This was just one of those films that was stacked with star power, and the hope was that would be enough to create a good film. Wouldn't be the first time this happened. Well, I have yet to see this come off, and it didn't here. The story becomes too disjointed as every actor is given equal time on screen, even though there is very little interaction between their characters. It becomes a set of several small storylines. I am actually all for that, but more in the line of Babel, where the stories of the characters intertwine or collide in some manner. Didn't happen in Contagion.
This movie was intended, at least that is the way it felt, to scare people to be mindful of germs, and to wash your hands and don't touch your face too much and all that. It is a good message I suppose, but right now, with so many other problems staring our World in the face, this was the issue that Steven Soderbergh decided to shed more light on? I don't even think it is very original. Wasn't Twelve Monkeys or Outbreak kind of like this? Maybe I don't know I am talking about, but I am sure there are other important items we can call attention to. Syriana, a very good film, made us think about reliance upon oil and turmoil in the Middle East. Why can't we do something like that again? Take a serious issue, and make a fictional story about it? How about religious extremism, or human rights in the third world, or potential food shortages, or the presence of autocracies around the World? Disease outbreak is not at the forefront of our minds, nor is it very original. Soderbergh is a good director, and he had some fantastic actors, he should put his skills and those individuals to better use.
Verdict: Don't waste the time or money in theaters, maybe, MAYBE, worth a rent, but even then only if there is nothing else that catches your eye. Grade: C
If you liked this movie you might also like: You like a ton of famous actors all in the same movie? Then you would probably go for the Oceans 11, 12, and 13 movies.
I am going to try and catch The Debt this weekend, and maybe something else on the computer. Look here later for any news.
What is the technical word I am looking for? I think its: meh. Nothing really to write home about with this movie, but it wasn't a total mess either. Someone contracts a mystery disease, our scientists don't know how to cure it, it kills a ton of people all around the World before someone figures it out. It wasn't really groundbreaking stuff by any means, but I suppose the progression of the story was delivered in a pretty neat way. This wasn't enough though. One can only do so much with that kind of story line, and it is pretty predictable, so the story, unfortunately, got to be kind of boring. It was interesting to see how the Center for Disease Control and other entities would respond to this kind of crisis, but that is not very redeeming. Otto even fell asleep next to me, though Saleh and I were able to stick with it. The acting was by and large good, but these really weren't very difficult roles to pull off either. This was just one of those films that was stacked with star power, and the hope was that would be enough to create a good film. Wouldn't be the first time this happened. Well, I have yet to see this come off, and it didn't here. The story becomes too disjointed as every actor is given equal time on screen, even though there is very little interaction between their characters. It becomes a set of several small storylines. I am actually all for that, but more in the line of Babel, where the stories of the characters intertwine or collide in some manner. Didn't happen in Contagion.
This movie was intended, at least that is the way it felt, to scare people to be mindful of germs, and to wash your hands and don't touch your face too much and all that. It is a good message I suppose, but right now, with so many other problems staring our World in the face, this was the issue that Steven Soderbergh decided to shed more light on? I don't even think it is very original. Wasn't Twelve Monkeys or Outbreak kind of like this? Maybe I don't know I am talking about, but I am sure there are other important items we can call attention to. Syriana, a very good film, made us think about reliance upon oil and turmoil in the Middle East. Why can't we do something like that again? Take a serious issue, and make a fictional story about it? How about religious extremism, or human rights in the third world, or potential food shortages, or the presence of autocracies around the World? Disease outbreak is not at the forefront of our minds, nor is it very original. Soderbergh is a good director, and he had some fantastic actors, he should put his skills and those individuals to better use.
Verdict: Don't waste the time or money in theaters, maybe, MAYBE, worth a rent, but even then only if there is nothing else that catches your eye. Grade: C
If you liked this movie you might also like: You like a ton of famous actors all in the same movie? Then you would probably go for the Oceans 11, 12, and 13 movies.
I am going to try and catch The Debt this weekend, and maybe something else on the computer. Look here later for any news.
No comments:
Post a Comment