Contagion (Steven Soderbergh, 2011)

I'm of two minds about this one. Its 106 minutes move like five, especially since its when-not-if scenario is happening now. This is the result of Soderbergh's unwillingness/inability to bring the film's many mini-stories to conclusion. Not only do the clipped narratives add to the overall breathlessness but it augments the panic and confusion engendered by the pandemic. But it's clear that Soderbergh was biting off more than he can chew since he brings the grandest narrative to a close with the creation of a vaccine. And in keeping with Hollywood's propensity for narrative redundancy, he reminds us that the film is coming to a close with the formation of a heterosexual couple (i.e., the teens who finally get to enjoy prom) before the epilogue tracing the exact moment of animal-to-Paltrow transmission (although note that it's humans clearing trees with tractors that kick it off). Add some anti-union sentiments with respect to protesting nurses and you get a film with radical and conservative energies battling one another, a perfect model for Soderbergh's cinema.

Edit: I totally forgot that the pandemic is blamed on the perfidy of woman, i.e., Paltrow's affair so I'm bumping the grade down.
Grade: B-minus