We’re all preoccupied these days with the pandemic that’s taken over the world, and for a good reason, but at the same time, we can’t leave the house, and we have all this extra time on our hands. This means that we have too much time to think about things, which is never good. To take your mind off the situation – but not really, because it seems impossible at the moment – we’ve gathered the list of the best pandemic movies you can watch. We appreciate taking your mind completely off this situation seems impossible, and so you don’t have to.
Contagion, 2011
The first and most obvious one is the 2011 star-studded film Contagion. This is probably not the first time you hear about this movie since the outbreak of the current pandemic. Some of you might find this movie to be boring during this time, since, well, it’s too realistic – it’s almost as if the filmmakers predicted this pandemic and turned it into a Hollywood blockbuster. Part of the reason why it’s so realistic is that prior to the filming, the production was informed by The World Health Organization and scientists about the depiction of pandemics.
Twelve Monkeys, 1995
Any movie that features Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt is a sure bet, so you can’t go wrong with the classic thriller Twelve Monkeys. The movie portrays the post-apocalyptic U.S., after most of humanity was vanished by a deadly virus. This is ought to get you in the right spirit, and it also might take down your stress levels just a little bit, since you can be thankful it’s nothing but a sci-fi movie.
The Last Man on Earth, 1964
The 1964 film was the first Hollywood adaptation of Richard Matherson’s novel I Am Legend. As the name suggests, it revolves around Dr. Robert Morgan, the last human left on the earth after a virulent plague turned the entire humanity into vampires. For the genre fans, this movie is completely fictional and a lot more gory than the previous two, and it won’t make you feel as if you’re watching a documentary on the present situation.
Outbreak, 1995
You can see by now that pandemic movies don’t have original names, but they don’t really need it anyway. Outbreak revolves around a worldwide pandemic that started with monkeys in Africa. The monkeys, who are smuggled into the U.S., carry a strain of ilnfluenza, and you can probably tell where this is going. Wolfgang Petersen’s movie is another must-see pandemic film.
The Walking Dead
This isn’t a film, but a series, but we figured we have infinite time for binge-watching these days, so why not suggest a long series as well. Robert Kirkman’s praised show started its way in 2010 and has since become a household name around the country, so it doesn’t require too much introduction. If you’re not familiar with it, you can guess the general story line by the name of the show, and if you are familiar with it, you know it’s one of the best pandemic Hollywood productions out there.
