“Contagion” How should we act? - Virus panic that predicted the new coronavirus

After the middle stage, which is completely linked to the current reality

``Contagion'' opens with a serious plot twist in which the main character's family dies of illness right after the beginning. What happens after the 15th minute is even more spectacular.

In response to a series of disturbances caused by the new virus, CDC doctor Ellis (Fishburne) dispatches his employee Erin (Winslet) to investigate, but Erin also develops symptoms and is forced to leave. Researcher Allie (Jennifer Ehle) discovers that the virus is made of pig and bat DNA, but producing a cure is extremely difficult. The DHS (Department of Homeland Security) is raising concerns that it may be a biological terrorist attack targeting Thanksgiving, and furthermore, famous blogger Alan (Low) points out that ``the government is hiding the truth and the vaccine'', and the infection is spreading. As the number of people increases, the chaos intensifies into a riot...

``Contagion'' is told from the perspective of three people: ``citizens'' represented by Mitch, ``influencers'' worked by Alan, and ``medical workers'' such as Ellis, Erin, and Allie, and each person has their own fears and anxieties. , it has a complex structure where beliefs collide. And now I no longer feel like all of that is someone else's business.

From a ``citizen'' perspective, at first the situation was limited to school closures, but as the situation became more serious, food and medicine were stolen and riots broke out. Mitch wants to mourn his wife, but the funeral home refuses to take the body, and when Mitch is not looking, gasoline is stolen from his car. Furthermore, citizens who have turned into a mob invade Ellis's house, and when the government starts distributing daily necessities, there are scuffles everywhere, and a Inferno picture of how they board the truck carrying the supplies.

"Contagion" (c)Photofest / Getty Images

As the situation worsens, contact is prohibited and the town is sealed off, turning into a ghost town. As a result, 26 million people died worldwide, causing more than 500 times more damage than the current coronavirus, making it the worst situation in recorded history...

From an ``influencer'' perspective, citizens who were worried about the slow progress of the investigation flocked to Alan's blog and rushed to pharmacies believing in the treatments he talked about. This will make the riots more serious. In addition, Alan criticizes Ellis by name on a TV program, and his "believers" come to treat her as a savior, but this also leads to confusion.

In this work, Facebook and YouTube only appear in bits and pieces, but now that social networking sites are connected to our daily lives, the ability of each person to communicate is a double-edged sword. The ``hoarding'' and ``bulk buying'' issues mentioned earlier can be said to be completely linked to the movie.

From the perspective of a "medical worker," Erin's line, "Humans typically touch their faces 2,000 to 3,000 times a day," and the concept of "R-0," which states, "If one person is infected, how many people will be infected?" There is a lot of useful information for us, such as an explanation of the indicators for whether there is a risk of infecting people (about 1 person for seasonal influenza, 3 or more people for smallpox).

At the same time, however, the ``limitations of the field'' become apparent. Tragic situations in which medical workers are infected with the new coronavirus are occurring frequently, and this is exactly the fate that Erin faces in the play. In addition, medical workers may go on strike, leading to situations where patients cannot be treated even if they go to the hospital. In addition, there were not enough beds for patients, so they were forced to lie on the floor, and the environment became increasingly poor...

Also, Ally said, ``Even if we find an effective vaccine, it will take several weeks for human trials. After that, it will take several months for manufacturing and distribution after obtaining permits and approvals, and several more months for thorough vaccination. The line ``The death toll continues to increase'' gives us a sense of the urgency of the story, and also gives us a sense of the ``eternal battle'' that awaits us.

When will the new coronavirus end? The development that rips away the faint hope that exists within us becomes clear in the "future" scenes that await from the 60th to 70th minute mark.

The final stage shows the difficulty of getting back to normal