Outbreak (1995)

I've spent a week in isolation with my wife thanks to the looming threat of the COVID-19 coronavirus outside, so what better way to pass the time than to watch relevant films?  A couple days ago, we saw Outbreak (1995).

SYNOPSIS:
An African village discovers a terrible virus that violently kills anyone infected within 48 hours.  The US government moves to contain the virus before it spreads, but a captured capuchin monkey from nearby is imported to northern California and ends up spreading a more deadly strain of the virus throughout a small town.  Colonel Sam Daniels (Dustin Hoffman) and his medical team, ex-wife Robby (Rene Russo), best friend Casey (Kevin Spacey), and Major Salt (Cuba Gooding Jr.), search desperately for a cure before the infection spreads to the rest of America. Meanwhile, his superior Generals (Morgan Freeman and Donald Sutherland) resist the Colonel's attempt to stop the pandemic, instead choosing to nuke the US city and be done with it.  Col Daniels is in a time crunch to discover a cure before the US military chooses to bomb its own citizens on US soil.

REVIEW:
This film is very loosely based on a novel called The Hot Zone: A Terrifying True Story, by Richard Preston, which itself is a non-fiction account of two extremely deadly African filoviruses (Ebola and Marburg) with no known treatment or cure.  Although the film deviates wildly from the novel, creating a highly-contagious US pandemic that the military seeks to contain via fire and destruction.  In reality, the variant of Ebola that was found spreading through imported lab monkeys in Reston, VA (known as the Reston virus) turned out to be relatively harmless to humans.

Unlike my previous review on the film Contagion (2011), which treats a worldwide epidemic like a serious drama, Outbreak (1995) is a very action-packed 90s film, heavily reliant on a sense of adventure and intrigue and never-give-up attitude.  This film is very clearly a work of fiction, keeping you entertained by all the running around, explosions, military procedures, and fear of the virus escaping into the greater public.  The previous film focused on how people dealt with a widespread virus in the real world; this one is a fantastical race against the clock to stop the virus from getting out in the first place.

Col Daniels and his ex-wife have a sub-plot about their difficult divorce to give a hint of romance to this film, as that was practically required in 90s films.  Their sassy best friend, Casey, seems to be there to keep them focused on their difficult task and not at each other's throats.  There's also Maj Salt, who behaves like a young, immature enlisted kid.  As a military member myself, it kind of broke the illusion to see this bright-eyed, bushy-tailed Major who jumped at the smallest scary thing.  By that rank, officers are usually pretty well-seasoned and mature.  But I digress...

RECOMMENDATION:
If you want a terrifying look at how bad our situation with COVID-19 could've been, I'd recommend watching Contagion (2011).  But if you just want some fun action and edge-of-your-seat excitement, all wrapped up with a happy ending, then maybe Outbreak (1995) is more your thing.  Although I would highly recommend reading The Hot Zone as well.  It was an incredible real-world look into some of the most deadly viruses known to man.  I first read it in 12th grade biology class and it was a captivating read from start to finish.