Review of Outbreak (1995) by Ben L — 18 Sep 2016

Now this is how you make a movie about a dangerous virus strain and the team that is trying to find a cure. The movie starts with a number of quick scenes that establish how the virus originates and spreads, and also scenes that introduce our lead characters. I love how we establish things about the characters' personalities with nothing more than a few well-placed lines. For example, "That's the one order he actually intends to obey" is all that is needed to let us know that Dustin Hoffman is playing a rebel who is willing to break the rules in order to get the job done. There's definitely some gore in the film as we watch people die horrible deaths, but it's actually mild considering what could have been done in an R-rated film like this one (and I appreciate that.) My favorite part of any film like this one is watching the team as they use logic and deduction to figure out how to design a vaccine. The movie goes a little over-the-top in the climax because it not only has that scientific investigation stuff, but it also turns into an action movie. I have some logical problems with that entire final act, and I also struggle accepting how the time from exposure to death seems to vary for different people. Yet there's just so much high-quality storytelling and acting that I end up overlooking most of the flaws.

Hoffman fully commits to his role, and gives some crazy speeches, but you can't deny his passion. Kevin Spacey is fun as the wise-cracking assistant, and Cuba Gooding Jr. is great as the recruit who is driven but still wet behind the ears. Rene Russo delivers my least favorite performance in the film, because she comes off as condescending and rude, but I think that's intended in the script to help us like Hoffman more. Morgan Freeman is always flawless, and absolutely nailed everything they asked him to do. However, for me, one of the real standout performances of the movie is delivered by Donald Sutherland. No one plays a furious villain quite like him. There were a number of other familiar faces in the movie, and I thought they all did well. Outbreak might just be the best film ever made about a viral epidemic. They did a superb job of balancing all the necessary aspects and making it fun to watch as well. There are some quips thrown in for a few laughs, there are genuine emotional moments, and there is a climax that (despite its logical shortcomings) is guaranteed to get your heart pounding. I was delighted to watch Outbreak again, and I think it's one film I just might want to own.