Pandemic (2016)
Matt Boiselle
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Starring Rachel Nichols, Mekhi Phifer, Alfie Allen
Directed by John Suits
Director John Suits has certainly built up quite the wall for himself with his latest “rampantly spreading” disease flick, Pandemic. By supplying himself with not only a solid cast, but a structured storyline and all-out fun visual displays, the movie will be sure to entice any virus aficionado into giving this a hardened look, so let’s pull back the bio-containment curtain and have ourselves a peek, shall we?
With the backbone of the plot focusing on the eradication of the world’s population by a multi-tiered infectious malady, the movie tosses us directly into the belly of the beast, and we’re forced at times to succumb to helmet-mounted, GoPro-type footage for our action-viewing needs.
Our team of germ-warriors is lead by Doctor Lauren (Nichols), alongside Gunner (Phifer), Wheeler (Allen), and cartographer Denise (Missi Pyle). Their mission leads them into a survivor-laden school where their immediate surroundings become compromised by the infected that roam outside like crazed dogs. The illness that claims the lives of thousands starts off much like an advanced case of the flu and progresses rapidly downwards, eventually rendering its victim into nothing more than a speed-freak hunting for flesh.
Interestingly enough, one particular characteristic of the disease allows the infected to still use cognitive aspects of the mind, as we witness different plans of attack by the zombie-like antagonists. After a while, it becomes clear to the rest of the small team that the doctor just might have another agenda at hand, which certainly isn’t conducive to protecting the innocent survivors, but their own keesters as well.
One of the film’s biggest upsides is the use of intense, face-first action – you’re looking right at it whether you want to deal with it or not, and it’s reminiscent of a first-person shooter game at times, with lots of blood being sprayed around and multiple attackers swarming the screen to depict an overwhelming onslaught of activity. Performances were strong, especially from Phifer as the not-too-eager-to-make-friends trigger man, and Paul Guilfoyle (“CSI”) as Doctor Greer, although on the flipside of things, it was the amount and severity of the action in the film that detracted from the invasive look at each character. After a while, it felt as if you’d just been watching a bunch of strangers kicking the infecteds’ asses for 90 minutes (not that it’s a terrible thing).
Overall, Pandemic is a fun film to partake in, and I can definitely recommend it to fans of in-your-face action – give it a look when the plague comes to your front door on April 1st (no foolin’).
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
