Saturday, September 10, 2011

Contagion

Much like he’s used the influence of movies like Klute, Solaris and The Parallax View to create some of the best works of his impeccable career, Steven Soderbergh is seriously having a throwback blast with Contagion, a pandemic genre flick that shows the world plagued with the suspicion of a globally fatal disease.

In Contagion, Soderbergh casts a plethora of heavy-hitters (almost every major player has been nominated for an Oscar; most have won), and throws them into a world in which a mysterious, incurable disease is wiping out millions, with no clear end in sight.

There’s the successful businesswoman (Gwyenth Paltrow) who may or may not have been the first person to contract the disease, her soon-to-be widowed husband (Matt Damon), the cool calm and collected head of the CDC (Laurence Fishburne), the educated scientist (Kate Winslet), the educated problem solver (Marion Cotillard), the hysterical conspiracy theorist (Jude Law), the quiet janitor (John Hawkes), the determined General (Bryan Cranston) and on and on.

Soderbergh is a true actor’s director. No matter your status or number of awards, no matter how much money you make or how distinguished your filmography is; if you’re right for the part, you’re right for the part. 

Contagion has some serious A-listers, but it also has quite a few little-known actors in very significant roles.  And everyone, most thankfully, is given equal screen time. There are no grandstanding moments of epic catharsis, no Oscar-baiting, music swelling scenes of remorse. As a film, Contagion depends most on its actors, and it’s very rewarding to see everyone putting in such solid work.

But there’s another reason you may enjoy Contagion as much as I did, and that is the simple pleasure of watching a master at work. 

Steven Soderbergh, I’d argue more so than any living filmmaker, is a true master of his craft.  His technique, simply put, is deliberate and flawless.  Acting again as his own cinematographer, he knows when to focus pull his camera, when to use steadicam or hand held, what filter to use, and, most importantly, when to leave the camera the hell alone on a tripod.  In addition, the music (by Cliff Martinez), is always pitch perfect, the editing (here by Stephen Mirrione, an Oscar winner for Traffic) is always seamless and evolving; everything involved is the result of a true auteur of the medium.

Minutes after Contagion ended, I tweeted that if you were a Soderbergh fan, you’d love this film, but I cautioned that if you were unfamiliar with Steven Soderbergh, Contagion may not be for you. But seriously, who’s unfamiliar with Steven Soderbergh? A-


6 comments:

  1. Nice. Looking forward to this, but have to wait another month before it hits Aussie shores.

    Everyone seems to be reviewing this at the moment, and it is getting luke-warm to hot responses. So, I think you're right that not everyone is quite as appreciative as you, but few are claiming it a bad film.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yeah you're spot on. Soderbergh could make a movie about a senior citizen typing out the D section of the white pages, and I'd still see it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. For some reason, I really did have a little bit of fear in my system, but sure as hell not as much as Soderbergh wanted me to and for some reason I just never felt involved with these characters and their stories. Nice review Alex. Check out my review when you get a chance!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yeah freaky stuff. Interesting how this flick (about global, widespread panic) was released near the anniversary of the event that inspired the most global, widespreed panic of our time.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This really could have been a train wreck. Massive scale (of story and cast), pandemic, big reveal ending...

    But no, it all works. Very very well.

    For a less good version, see Outbreak. Or don't. Just rewatch Contagion.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Right? This one really toed a line, but it definitely succeeded for me. I need to check it out again actually.

      Delete