Thanks to the Coronavirus, the majority of us have been spending a lot more time on the couch lately. While Contagion and Outbreak have surged in popularity, with good reason, there’s a broad spectrum of cinema dedicated to global pandemics and here’s a bunch (in no particular) you can stream from home.
12 Monkeys (1995) – Available on Showtime (or Hulu with add-on) or rental via Amazon, YouTube, Google Play, Vudu
The visionary Terry Gilliam of Monty Python directed this wildly ambitious Sci-Fi classic based on the even more pioneering 1962 French black-and-white short film La Jetée by Chris Marker. Set in the 2030s, a virus has devastated the planet and the surviving human population lives underground and James Cole (Bruce Willis), a convict in an experimental program, is sent back in time to look for a way to stop the virus. This was kind of the perfect storm for this uniquely bizarre movie to get made, with Bruce Willis at the height of his popularity and Brad Pitt ascending to superstardom with one of his most eccentric and memorable roles. This remains one of my all-time favorites and it’s a great way to kick off this list.
REC (2007) – Available for rental on Amazon, YouTube, Vudu, and Google Play
This Spanish horror film breathed new life into the hand-held/found-footage genre. Unlike predecessors like The Blair Witch Project, directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza made a completely engrossing experience that took place in real-time. Following a group of emergency workers, along with the reporter and cameraman who cover them, they are called to a dark apartment building to investigate a distress call from an old woman trapped in her unit. Unknown to the crew, a mysterious outbreak is spreading through the building while containment efforts are put in place outside. The claustrophobic nature of the shoot and effective scare tactics make this one of the more memorable horror films of its kind. The American remake, Quarantine (2008), features a strong lead performance from Jennifer Carpenter and does a good job capturing the overall atmosphere.
Infection (2004) – Available for rent on Amazon and Vudu
There is something uniquely charming about Japanese horror films. They have a kind of quirky energy to them that you just don’t find elsewhere and Infection is a prime example. Set in a rundown hospital, a shady doctor and his staff engage in a wrongful death coverup and a contagious illness is let loose when a patient is liquified by a mysterious illness. Director Masayuki Ochiai has a good eye for environmental creepiness but the cerebral scares are much more tangible. I originally watched this late night on some cable network but it has stuck with me over the years.
The Host (2006) – Available on Hulu & YouTube (free) and for rent on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play and Vudu
A South Korean city goes into full containment mode after the appearance of a monster in the Han River. Fear of contamination and infection force the government to take drastic quarantine measures while a man and his family search for his daughter who was taken by the creature. I had heard about this film a lot of the last few years but I finally got around to watching this and I was not disappointed. It has everything I love about foreign horror movies and you can see the attention to character, sense of humor, and filmmaking talent from Bong Joon Ho in only his third full-length feature. Smart, funny, terrifying, and satirical all in one.
Cabin Fever (2002) – Available on SlingTV and Showtime, for rent on Amazon, YouTube, Vudu, Google Play, and iTunes
This was Eli Roth’s feature directorial debut and, if you’re familiar with his work, you can see the foundation for many of his later projects. The story centers around a group friends who rent an isolated cabin in the woods and what should be a great vacation turns into a nightmare after they cross path with a man who’s infected with a mysterious disease. Clearly made on a low budget, the gore elements are done really well and the cast does a good job with limited resources. It’s probably not Roth’s crown jewel but it was effective at the time and holds up as a solid piece of low-budget horror. He even executive produced the 2016 remake of the same name.
Pontypool (2008) – Available for rent on iTunes
This Bruce McDonald film stands alone in the realm of zombie-adjacent horror. When a small town is overrun by a highly contagious disease that’s turning people into aggressive zombie-like creatures, a radio show host and his small crew do their best to survive the outbreak and report from the eye of the storm. Stephen McHattie gives a great performance in the lead role as Grant Mazzy, a once-prominent radio personality whose career downturn landed him at a small station in Ontario, Canada. The virus here spreads a little differently than you might think and that’s a big part of the fun. Pontypool remains one of my favorite contemporary horror films.
28 Days Later… (2002) – Available on Hulu and for rent on Amazon, YouTube, Vudu, Google Play, and iTunes
There’s a strong argument to be made that 28 Days Later reinvented, or at the very least, reinvigorated the Zombie genre. Sure, the creatures here aren’t technically of the classic flesh-eating variety but, in this story, the highly contagious rage virus tore across the globe and left a desolate, post-apocalyptic world in its wake. Director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland had a great understanding of the psychological burden of setting the story in such a world…both the need for hope and the sheer weight of hopelessness. Many properties have been built off the back of that premise but very few have been able to pull it off as successfully.
World War Z (2013) – Available on Hulu and for rent on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube
This Marc Forster film serves as a particularly interesting entry in the zombie-apocalypse genre. Based on the novel by Max Brooks, it stands as a unique blend of big-budget action and personal drama. Amid a global outbreak, a former United Nations investigator leaves his family behind on a mission to search for a cure. While it may not go down as his best role, Pitt’s fragile humanity shines through. When in the market for a high-quality zombie-apocalypse movie, this is a solid choice.
The Crazies (2010) – Available on Tubi and for rent on Amazon, iTunes, and Vudu
This is a remake of the 1973 George A. Romero film but it’s one of the rare instances where an update was beneficial. Let’s be honest, this isn’t a great movie by any means
I Am Legend (2007) – Available for rent on Amazon, Vudu, iTunes, Google Play, and You Tube.
I will always defend this as some of Will Smith’s best work. Sure, his Oscar nominations came from Ali and The Pursuit of Happyness but this is right up there with those performances. Based on 1971’s The Omega Man, Doctor Robert Neville is the last person alive in New York City, and maybe even on earth. However, he hunts the remaining mutant population in a tireless effort to cure the disease he couldn’t stop from destroying the world. It’s almost worth it just for the visuals of an empty NYC but Smith gives a passionate, heartfelt, and captivating performance. This is one of my favorites and one of only a few movies I’ll watch whenever it’s on.
I know a lot of the stuff on this list is either scary, depressing, or both. That’s just the name of the game when it comes to films about infectious disease and outbreaks. I’ll have to make a second sweep and put together a list of lighthearted zombie-apocalypse movies to balance it out.