Contagion film

[Bluewavescrashing]

I watched this the other day. It wasn't that disturbing considering most of the plot is actually happening now. The seizures were hard to watch. No looting here yet but maybe it's a matter of time. Gwyneth Paltrow was less irritating in this than most of her other films.

The vaccine obviously saved the day. What if it hadn't been possible to make one though? Most of the population would have been wiped out (except the naturally immune people like Matt Damon).

I was yelling at the TV telling the chef to wash his hands when he had pig blood all over them and just wiped them on his apron at the end 🤢😠

I watched it the other night and was disturbed by how scarily prophetic it was! It even showed bats transmitting it to pigs and pigs to humans in China.
How did the film makers know this 9 years ago?!! I’m presuming other viruses have been transmitted this way.
Yes to the chef not washing his hands after handling the pig 😆!

The people didn't seem very good at social distancing. I think the panic was worse because of the horrible seizure symptoms.

The film makers knew this because this is what has happened countless times before through all of history (animal to human transmission) and why it's such a shame China haven't cracked down on their dodgy food and animal practices in markets

I’m presuming other viruses have been transmitted this way.

Yep. SARs, MERs, Smallpox, plague.

Transmitted from animals to humans. Nothing new.

It's just new for us.

How did the film makers know this 9 years ago?!!

From a New Scientist article on the film:

"MEV-1, the film’s fictional virus, is modelled upon the bat-borne Nipah virus, which was identified in 1999 when an outbreak caused brain and lung disease in pigs and people in Malaysia. In the film, MEV-1 kills people within days, but in real life the incubation period for Nipah – and many deadly viruses – is more like two weeks"

www.newscientist.com/article/2239913-how-realistic-is-contagion-the-movie-doesnt-skimp-on-science/

Interesting article, thank you!