I'm seriously so pissed you think I read Twilight!

[elschmo]

I watched Contagion and Fright Night with Sis #2 over the past two weekends.

Contagion

1. THIS FILM. THIS FILM. I think I will remain at home from now on for ever, thanks.
   
   
2. I know it isn't the film's intention to make it seem as if Beth's death - hey, that rhymed - is comeuppance for her cheating on Mitch, but it sure does seem like it, and ... eh.
   
   
3. The scene in which they cut open her head was totally unexpected, though.
   
   
4. I thought Gwyneth Paltrow would have a bit role in the film, given the reviews I read for the film. They made it sound as if she was there to establish the fact that she was Patient Zero, and then she dies and that's it, she's no longer important. But she appears in flashbacks, which is cool. Do you know what's even cooler? That the ending is of how she became infected - she brought the entire film full circle.
   
   
5. OMG, Dr Mears. How she wanted to give that man her blanket, and then the next shot of her is of her dead ... I must not cry.
   
   
6. The same goes for Dr Cheever giving up his vaccination to the son of a janitor with whom he works at the disease centre. No, I do not have something in my eye, thanks.
   
   
7. So ... what happened to Dr Orantes in the end? The same can also be said for Dr Sussman and Dr Hextall; they were both responsible for the two biggest breakthroughs, but after some point, no one cared about them. These people helped saved your lives, come on!
   
   
8. To be honest, I'm more afraid of the lack of social order as depicted in the film than I am of the actual spread of the disease. You know, I can't help but imagine that that's what it could be like come 21st December, 2012.
   
   
9. There were people coughing and sneezing throughout. Not cool.
   
   
10. OMG, U2's "All I Want Is You": ♥♥♥
    
    
11. I like that it isn't too cliché. There are no obnoxious action sequences, outright protagonist and antagonist, sweeping romances, overbearing soundtrack, miracle cure, etc. It was rather realistic, pretty much, and that's what makes the film so unsettling. This could happen; someone bringing home a lethal virus and causing a full-blown epidemic - and no zombies coming out of it at the end.
    
    
12. The second you see Mrs Cheever on the phone with her friend, you just know that she was going to tell the latter that she was leaving town. You. Just. Know.
    
    
13. I'm not feeling the font used in the film.
    
    
14. I don't see Alan's value to the film. I'd rather they cut him - and Dr Orantes, maybe, on account of how unresolved her plotline is and how frustrating that is - and focus more on the Emhoffs and the CDC people instead. You know, to get both sides of the story, to see how two different groups of people - the officials and the citizens - deal with this kind of situation.
    
    
15. The close-ups of the various surfaces that the infected people touch: NO. JUST NO.

Fright Night

1. Oh, how I miss vampire movies like this.
   
   
2. I never quite got the appeal for David Tennant (never watched Doctor Who), but now I kinda do.
   
   
3. The censorship for this was terrible. Some words were left in; some words were butchered beyond recognition. I mean, if they must protect us from the evilness of the f-word, can't they just mute the word instead of chopping up scenes to make sure we don't even see the characters say the word? (I assume that that's the point, of course.) The latter is a hell lot more distracting, and because of how iffy the editing is, most of the dialogue ends up getting cut, and it's goodbye, continuity!
   
   
4. I gasped when Doris exploded - for lack of a better word - when she and Charley escaped Jerry's house. That was positively diabolical! Oh, and so was blowing up the Brewsters' house because he couldn't be invited in. Have I mentioned how I miss vampire movies like this?
   
   
5. Jay-Z's "99 Problems" reworked as a country-ish tune ... works, somehow.
   
   
6. I imagine that the 3D ticket would be worth it only for the end, where Jerry truly dies. It reminded me a bit of Voldemort's death in Deathly Hallows, actually.
   
   
7. Amy's vampire face is the new source of my nightmares, thanks.

Contagion is a taut medical thriller with a brilliant cast, but alas, some of the characters were pretty superfluous. Honestly, a lot of the film banks on its more realistic approach; otherwise, it wouldn't make a huge blip on most people's radar. Fright Night is a decent flick, too; it has the right mix of comedy and horror, and it's a breath of fresh air for the genre as of late, even if it is a remake.

Contagion: 3/5
Fright Night: 3/5