A Plague Simulation on Screen

Maximo 2022-03-19 09:01:03

Because of the novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan during this period, this film became very popular, so I also came to watch it. It's no wonder that netizens call this film "true" and "prophecy". Compared with ordinary entertainment films, this film is closer to a documentary in its theme and structure. Multiple story lines show the emergence, development, and development of a plague (infectious disease). The process of fighting the epidemic and finally solving it, showing the appearance of all beings under the epidemic. The whole story is quite rigorous and representative, of course, this also makes the story less ups and downs than ordinary entertainment stories, but the director ensures that the audience can always be attracted by the film through reasonable story line crossing and the use of BGM.

I think the stories in it can be roughly divided into four lines, the civilian line, the rumor stick line, the epidemiologist line, the CDC line, and the last two medical-related lines, which can be considered as the real main line of the film.

The protagonist of the civilian line, Mark Damon, is the character closest to the male protagonist of the film. This is the line that runs through the whole film, but it is also the line with the least "drama" ups and downs. In the process of chaos, crime, and the final solution of the epidemic and returning to normal life, there is actually nothing the male protagonist can do in the whole process. The image of this family is also a refined model. The wife is the first infected person, and the male protagonist is the "immune" of the epidemic. But the anti-hero side of the story is that although the male protagonist is immune to the virus, he cannot save the cruel epidemic. He can only protect his daughter in the face of chaos and plague. When the daughter dances with her boyfriend at the end, she finally I can relieve stress and cry while looking at pictures of my wife. Mark Damon can be said to be a representative of the image of a kind civilian under the plague. He hopes to contribute to the fight against the epidemic, but there is nothing he can do. He can only protect himself and his relatives and wait for the medical staff to solve the epidemic. But I didn't see why he was arranged to be green.

The protagonist of the rumor stick line is Jude Law's Internet V. He pretended to be sick and healed himself by taking "forsythia", making forsythia an antidote to the epidemic, triggering a panic buying wave, and arousing a conspiracy against the government's medical treatment From this, he gained fame and fortune. This character represents the two most prone to "fishing in troubled waters" profiteers before the epidemic: conspiracy theorists and counterfeit drug dealers, perhaps this is how he can finally be released on bail after being arrested and continue to incite others not to get vaccinated and escape punishment ( This can be regarded as an open ending), and in reality, many such people are not punished in the end. Interestingly, in this new crown pneumonia, the "Shuanghuanglian" that was snapped up by the rumors of the People's Daily happened to have a certain relationship with Forsythia.

The epidemiologist line is mainly because the epidemiologist came to Hong Kong to trace the infection relationship of the sick person and locked the "first infected person" on Damon's wife, so this line is directly related to the source of the epidemic. But the story of the epidemiologist being hijacked by a local translator in exchange for a vaccine and ending up in "Stockholm" is too much of a mystery. To put it bluntly, it can be said that this story represents the distrust of the medical system in the developed regions and the way of survival in the developed regions, but it is too strange to be placed in Hong Kong. No matter how you look at it, it looks like a Vietnamese guerrilla in some movies.

The last CDC line is my favorite and the most important in the story. The three important characters in this line represent the three types of medical personnel fighting the virus. The female doctor who went to the site of the disease to investigate and arrange for epidemic prevention was close to the front-line medical staff, but unfortunately fell ill and died. At the last moment before dying, she wanted to pass her coat to the patient next to her who was chilling. CDC's black leadership represents the top CDC and spokesperson, and is primarily responsible for presiding over the overall situation, communicating with other departments, and speaking to the public. He not only cares about the public, but also has a selfish desire to notify his wife before the city is closed, which will lead to the leakage of information. Later, this also caused him to take the blame. This role is somewhat similar to some experts and academicians who were responsible for speaking in this pneumonia. The last one is a female scientist in charge of virus research and vaccine research. She used herself to conduct human trials of vaccines to speed up the progress of vaccine research and development. In the end, after winning many honors, she still did not forget her original intention. This role naturally represents the researchers in the rear. Trying the vaccine by yourself is a bit like "Grandpa Sugar Pill" Gu Fangzhou, which is also the most "heroic" moment in the movie.

Through multiple lines, the movie shows the process from the development of the epidemic to the solution, which is also caused by a coronavirus (of course, it is much more serious in the movie than in reality, more than the Spanish flu). At the end of the movie, the origin of the epidemic is revealed. Bats are invaded by their homes, and the food they eat falls into the pigsty. Pigs become the intermediate host of the virus. Therefore, this virus has the viral genetic characteristics of bats and pigs. The pigs were transported to the restaurant for processing, and the chef shook hands with the husband's wife, leading to the initial spread of the virus. The transmission route of bats and pigs seems to be based on the "Nipah virus" that first appeared in Indonesia in 1999. The chef has a bit of SARS elements (one of the initial infectors is the chef), and it is no wonder that this coronavirus epidemic Reminds everyone of this movie. The bats were initially frightened when the tree they lived in was pulled down by the bulldozer of the company where the husband and wife worked. This alludes to a major cause of various virus outbreaks: people's uncontrolled development of nature leads to too much contact with wild animals, and the virus can escape from nature. The host spreads to humans.

The film itself is excellent in conception, typical and comprehensive from multiple perspectives, "reality" but not boring, showing the profound skills of the creative team, and it is more worth watching because of current events.

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Extended Reading

Contagion quotes

  • Dr. Ellis Cheever: You know where this comes from, shaking hands? It was a way of showing a stranger you weren't carrying a weapon in the old days. You offered your empty right hand to show that you meant no harm.

  • Dr. Ellis Cheever: But right now, our best defense has been social distancing. No hand-shaking, staying home when you're sick washing your hands frequently.