I didn’t quite get the hype around the supposedly prophetic film Contagion, till I actually hit play. Contagion was a film that made big bucks when it came out in 2011, and I do believe the makers would have thought, “That’s it, a good return.” But no. That wasn’t it. When fiction turned into the very truth of our lives in 2020, Contagion hit all charts again, becoming one of the top 10 on iTunes movie rentals. ‘Why’, you ask? Because it is nothing short of prophetic. Here’s a list of things the film predicted about the 2020 coronavirus outbreak:
1. A virus that is spread through consumption of a meat which was in contact with a bat causes a pandemic.
Yep, that’s what it is. And we all know that current research on the coronavirus trying to find out where the heck it really came from is narrowing down to a pangolin and...(you guessed it)... a bat.
2. The disease affects the brain as well as the respiratory system.
And as we all know by now (hopefully...I’m looking at you WhatsApp addicts) the COVID-19 flu also attacks the respiratory system, “with symptoms such as a cough, fever, and in more severe cases, difficulty breathing.”
3. The disease is spread by coming in contact with an infected person, or touching it off “formites” and then touching your face.
Yeah - it really is that freakishly similar. This disease, just like the COVID-19, is spread through coming in contact with other infected people, or touching it off “formites” (objects that have come in contact with an infected person and now carry the virus too.) The doctors in the film also talk about how often an average human being touches their face, which is also something our real life doctors constantly warn us against. It is basically like we’re living the film, ngl.
4. Quarantine and social distancing.
The film talks about asking people to practice social distancing to break the chain of the virus being spread, whereas those who are suspected to have caught the virus are seen quarantined - just like in real life today.
5. Airports shut, shops looted, city on a lockdown.
Worldwide, countries are closing up their borders, for both domestic and international travel. People have also been panic-buying things, and numerous videos of empty stores have come out, which is the same as in the film, where things have taken more dramatic turns and people have started looting shops.
6. Numerous deaths, including those of medical professionals.
The film sees people die in millions, with Kate Winslet, who plays a health professional, also losing her life to the virus. Similar is the unfortunate case in the world today, where thousands of doctors are losing their lives while treating COVID-19 patients. The Chinese doctor who acted as a whistleblower on the disease also succumbed to the virus.
Here’s hoping governments are able to control the COVID-19 pandemic soon, and that no such films turn into reality again.
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