Straight Out Of A Movie: Pandemic-themed movies and shows to watch right now

With stay-at-home orders in effect due to COVID-19, I’ve been stuck in my house with lots of time. And what better way to spend this free time than watching movies and shows about pandemics and comparing it to the real thing? Here’s my take on pandemic-themed entertainment.

The Killer that Stalked New York (1950)

“The Killer that Stalked New York” is about a woman named Sheila Bennett, played by Evelyn Keyes, who brought smallpox to New York when she smuggled in $40,000 worth of diamonds from Cuba. As the police look for the diamonds and the health department searches the city for patient zero of smallpox, Sheila Bennett is on the run, spreading the virus across the city. 

After stumbling on the streets and looking sick, a police officer — unaware she was the one who smuggled the diamonds — takes her to a doctors office to be examined. While in the waiting room, a little girl wanders in and tells Sheila that she, the small girl, is sick. Sheila ignores this and promptly sits the girl on her lap. A few days later, the girl contracts smallpox and she dies.

This scene made no sense to me. Why would two sickly people purposely come into close proximity with each other? Maybe I’ve become too accustomed to being six feet apart from all strangers, but this just doesn’t sound right. 

One of the more interesting things I learned in this movie is that it’s based on a true story, though the smuggled diamonds aspect of the plot is fiction. I hadn’t heard of a smallpox outbreak until now, but that’s probably due to the New York Health Department’s proactivity against the virus. 

In 1946, several cases of smallpox were discovered. The Health Department understood the severity of smallpox and promptly launched a campaign to vaccinate New York City. Their efforts were successful, vaccinating over six million people and capping the cases at 12. Though there is no vaccine for the coronavirus yet, compared to the current handling of the coronavirus in America, I have to hand it to NYC’s Health Department — that’s a good response. 

Though the history behind the movie was interesting, would I watch it again? Probably not. But if you’re bored and have already watched nearly every movie on Netflix, you can check out “The Killer that Stalked New York” on YouTube.

Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak (2020)

The arrival of “Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak” on Netflix is eerie. After all, it came just weeks before the coronavirus spread across the world. I figured I had to check it out and see what they had to say about the dangers of a now not-so-potential pandemic. 

While I’ve only watched three out of the six episodes, I’d say this docu-series is pretty accurate to the reality we’re experiencing now. “Pandemic” describes what would happen if another flu epidemic broke out and how scientists are working to track and prevent the next outbreak.

As a scientist describes how the next epidemic will come from an animal, they flash through images of chickens, pigs and then bats. They talk about the importance of strong kidneys during a pandemic, while a few hours ago I saw a headline about just that. Even though I was expecting these top researchers to make correct predictions, the accuracy is uncanny. 

My favorite part of this whole series though would definitely be the visuals. The crisp scenes of hospitals in India and sterile laboratories in California piece together the story seamlessly, and they provide background on each scientist and doctor.

I would definitely recommend this docu-series to anyone who wants to take a break from being a mere participant in a pandemic and wants to experience the science side of things.

Contagion (2011)

“Contagion” is a movie about a highly contagious pandemic occurring…so basically our current situation. I figured this would be the perfect movie to compare our experience to. 

I was expecting to be freaked out after seeing the trailer showing Gwyneth Paltrow’s character dying, but mostly, I was confused. Throughout the movie, characters are introduced, but as more characters come into the picture, it was hard to understand who was from where and what organization they worked for.

The main plot was simple enough. Beth Emhoff, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, brings a new, unknown virus to the U.S. The virus spreads across the country as scientists and government officials race to find a vaccine. Eventually, society turns to chaos as food supplies dwindle and tensions rise among the public as more and more people die.

What scared me more than the virus itself were the scenes of burglaries and raids. People in black sweatshirts and face masks storming their way into a house demanding if they have vaccines seemed intense, even for a pandemic. I know our situation is rough, but leave it to Hollywood theatrics to remind me things could always be worse.

I’m not sure if I would watch this movie again. The concept of the plot was good, but by the end I was ultimately confused and left wondering what happened to all the different characters we were initially introduced to.