Sorry, this movie sucks

Simply A Masterpiece

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Going by votes and what seems to be the general consensus in the other reviews, I expected considerably worse from this. It's by all means watchable, if I wouldn't quite classify it a "must" to view. I don't know all the facts about what this was based on, though I do recall the fear and some of what the papers said about it all. I am not the person to ask about whether or not this was a realistic depiction. I could see those into the kind of film enjoying this. The plot is interesting and develops well pretty much throughout the entire thing. The acting varies, and there are certainly no award winning performances herein, but there really aren't any moments that are downright painful to sit through on account of it, either. Pacing is adequate if not more than that. Cinematography and editing, with few exceptions(one mainly being due to the excessive use of the same sound), was a pleasant surprise. Not too simple... you can tell that it's a recent movie... but not overly stylized or anything of the sort, either. Merely a reasonably firm grip on the tricks of the technical aspects of film-making, and fairly effective use of them. There are dramatic bits that work in this. Some of it is potentially disturbing. The various reactions to the occurrences are varied and come off genuine. This does seem to lack a satisfying conclusion, however... what happens is not necessarily, by definition, bad, I'm just not sure it was what was called for here. I recommend this to fans of disaster flicks. 6/10

I would ignore all the negative comments people have been posting. It's well worth watching.Not bad for a made for TV movie and much better than Pandemic. The storyline not only gives a realistic perspective, but a plausible one at that.If I had any complaint at all it would be that they never finished it. I was forced to search to see if my DVD was incomplete. To my dismay the continuation to the next wave would be left to the mind of a viewer. With the number of things my mind can come up with "The Stand" comes to mind, that or total annihilation.

As a professional business continuity planner, one who has worked extensively in the pandemic flu planning field, let me tell you now that this movie is not about an impossible doomsday scenario. The H5N1 virus is a very real threat and every government on every level has been preparing for it for years. What was pleasantly surprising about this movie (which, frankly, I did not expect very much from) was its accuracy - both in portraying facts and possible situations. They did a very good job of giving background on the pandemics of the past - 1918, 57, and 68. They also showed the infections coming in waves, just as they have in past pandemics and in all probability will when the next one hits.Watching this movie was like watching the scenario that plays in the head of every pandemic flu planner when they write response protocols and imagine how quickly this could move and how devastating it could be. I know I've seen this movie many times in my own head already. The fact is that it is a matter of "when", not "if". Historically, we have had pandemics on average once every 30 years (which means we are currently overdue for one). It is enormously unlikely that after an established record like that, we would never have one again. It may not be the H5N1, but it's very likely a pandemic flu will happen again.The acting was good, especially Joely Richardson's performance. The characters were well-developed and watching the communities after the first wave hit brought tears to my eyes a few times. The bravery and resiliency of the American people is truly amazing. Scott Cohen also did a very real, believable job as Governor Newsome.This movie is definitely scary, but what's more scary is being unprepared. Health departments in most large cities are developing or running education campaigns for the public to create awareness for common-sense precautions, as they say in the movie, so hopefully people will start paying attention to the ads that tell them to cover their coughs, wash their hands, and stay home when they're sick.On a final note, despite being quite impressed with the quality of this movie, the ending was a little disappointing. I was hoping for something a bit more resolutory, but I suppose it would have been difficult to end the movie on a very cheery note.Definitely worth your time to see!

What garbage, is there actually no part II? If this movie actually ends the way it did, everyone involved with this movie should be ashamed. This movie is nothing close to a movie like Outbreak, which was actually a fairly decent movie. This movie was rushed in hopes of being able to gain a few easy dollars. I started watching the movie under the assumption that it would be bad, but I never imagined it would be this bad. This movie was nothing more then a way to exploit the fears of the American people for profit! If you have not seen this movie, don't bother. Movie is full of poorly developed characters and poor acting. I really hope the production of this movie was only a couple of weeks. Stay away! Don't be fooled by the hype!