Review of Contagion (2011) by Michael C — 08 Sep 2012

As a Clinical Microbiology Specialist, I usually approach movies like this one with a great big grain of salt. Hollywood tends to over-dramatize everything and seldom gets the science right, even when they attempt to address the science.

But this movie, with a few forgivable dramatic moments of hyperbole, doesn't stray far from the mark. The science is good. The pandemic it portrays could very well happen; in fact different parts of it have already happened at different times. There's no reason why all the parts could not align into a perfect storm of a pandemic at any time. There are plenty of fruit bats, pigs, chickens and monkeys in the world.

The politics ring all too true as well. I interface regularly with local and state public health officials, and occasionally the CDC. They are all excellent organizations and our best protection during events like these. I'm glad the movie portrayed them pretty honestly. But like all government agencies, they are subject to the politics of the day.

There are also plenty of fringe loons out there ready to take advantage of the public's fear of the unknown for whatever their secret agendas may be and a headline-hungry press that's all too often ready to give them airtime without considering the source and reliability of their information.