Change is the only constant
The theme behind this edition of Ryan’s Movie Corner was ‘change’—originally intended to coincide with the coming of spring. This theme was decided a few weeks ago, the world around us having since changed in ways many of us could not have imagined. The theme, therefore, seems highly appropriate.
Spring is typically seen as a time of rebirth and renewal, where we can throw out the old and embrace the new. This is certainly what many of us are being forced to do, but in a way that hardly feels as refreshing as it should. The biggest change, no doubt, that many Ultra Vires readers face is the shift to living life indoors. This change has been a challenging one, and it has provided many with a surplus of free time that has been hard to fill.
I want to respond to this tectonic shift in the way we live our lives through the prism of film. Below, I review Contagion, a film that has enjoyed tremendous popularity since the coronavirus moved our lives indoors. I also provide a brief list of films from the past decade that I think are worth watching during the extended downtime occasioned by the pandemic. I hope that you are all staying safe and healthy during these difficult times.
Contagion (2011)
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Contagion, a film about a global pandemic, is a painfully obvious choice for this edition. Its subject matter is not only highly topical, but the ease with which it is accessed on services like Netflix makes it a prime way for the home-bound to speculate, and perhaps agonize, over how our own pandemic might go. Though Contagion is a lackluster film, it is nevertheless a must-watch during these trying times: if not for its vision of a pandemic-stricken society, then because of the imprint it has left on our collective consciousness.
The film is an homage to the disaster genre. In keeping with that tradition, it is over the top and replete with clichés. The ensemble cast faces a virus with a 25-30% mortality rate that is highly contagious and originated from a bat-to-pig-to-human infection. This ensemble cast includes: Mitch Emhoff (Matt Damon), an everyman who happens to be immune to the disease; Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne), the head of the Center for Disease Control (CDC); Alan Krumwiede (Jude Law), a conspiratorial blogger; and a handful of epidemiologists and scientists (Marion Cotillard, Kate Winslet, Jennifer Ehle, Elliot Gould). The plotlines of these characters intertwine as the virus spreads from an unsuspecting few and becomes a global pandemic. Emhoff experiences the pandemic as a series of tragedies he struggles to protect his daughter from. Cheever leads the CDC in responding to the pandemic, but also uses his position of power to give his family preferential treatment over others.
Krumwiede tries to expose both Cheever’s tactics and what he believes to be a conspiracy by big corporations to profit off of the pandemic. Ehle’s character, Hextall, races against time to develop a vaccine. Though there are other plotlines that make it into the story, they are too numerous to be described in any detail here. The film sometimes struggles to juggle its simultaneous plots, but the fact that it aspires to depict such a massive story—and on occasion does so effectively—is somewhat praiseworthy.
Several aspects of the film will no doubt be eerily reminiscent of our current moment: for instance, Cheever implores society to practice “social distancing”. These dramatizations no doubt capture aspects of our current situation in a prescient way. Chief among the film’s predictions is its anticipation of the role that social media plays in shaping our response and experience of a pandemic. It is portrayed as a tool for spreading misinformation, mainly through the exploits of Krumwiede, who uses his blog to denounce official sources of information and encourage his followers to take ‘Forsythia,’ evidently snake oil, as a remedy for the lethal virus. Social media has indeed been a hotbed of misinformation during the coronavirus pandemic, and has presented governments and policymakers with the novel challenge of controlling the spread of potentially dangerous myths. Though good films generally aren’t considered good because they predicted something, the film’s apparent clairvoyance nevertheless makes it an interesting watch.
Though Contagion is not a great film (it is poorly acted and has an awkward narrative), it is relevant because of the way it channels and represents our anxieties. The breakdown of social order depicted in the film is a far cry from what we are experiencing today; nevertheless, many viewers will no doubt consider the possibility that a similar collapse is on the horizon for our society. On this I make no comment, but what makes Contagion worth viewing is that the anxieties and possibilities it portrays resonate with contemporary viewers. Viewers who, much like the characters in Contagion, are uncertain and nervous—waiting for the pandemic to abate.
5.5/10
Film Recommendations
Shirkers (2018)
Directed by Sandi Tan
An excellent film and my favourite documentary of all-time, Shirkers recounts a group of Singaporean teenagers’ botched attempt to make a film in the 1990s. The young filmmakers collaborated on their failed project with their mysterious film teacher and mentor, Georges Cardona. After the group finished filming the project, Cardona disappeared with the footage and was never heard from again. The film explores what exactly happened to their footage, and why Cardona did what he did. The documentary, interspersed with footage of a film that never was, is a triumphant, somewhat haunting, use of the moving image.
10/10
Cold War (2018)
Directed by Pawel Pawlikowski
Cold War lost the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film to Roma at the 2019 Academy Awards and, unfortunately, did not get much attention in North America. The film is a black-and-white depiction of a tumultuous romance that criss-crosses the Iron Curtain. It is a tremendous aesthetic accomplishment and a raw portrayal of emotions—a must-see.
9/10
Frances Ha (2012)
Directed by Noah Baumbach
Frances Ha is a creative and unconventional film from the director of Marriage Story, co-written by Greta Gerwig, director of Little Women. The black-and-white film features a creative, choppy style of cinematography with a whimsical plot that follows the exploits of Frances Halladay (Gerwig) as she navigates a bohemian life in New York City. Though some of the film’s most memorable moments are depictions of the mundane, simple pleasures of everyday life, it manages to deliver a compelling character study that will make viewers wish that they, too, could live a bohemian life in New York City. Hopefully the New York recruit is close enough.
8/10
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
Directed by Taika Waititi
Hunt for the Wilderpeople is a charming film about the friendship of an orphan and his (at first reluctant) adoptive father. As they clumsily venture through the New Zealand wilderness, they develop a compelling bond that leaves a lasting impression on viewers. The film is constantly funny and delivers countless heartwarming moments. As the monotony and anxiety of social distancing set in, this film will be a welcome respite.
8/10
