Carriers

Starring: Chris Pine, Lou Taylor Pucci, Piper Perabo, Emily VanCamp, Christopher Meloni, Kiernan Shipka, Ron McClary, Mark Moses
Directed by: David Pastor, Alex Pastor
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Horror, Drama, Thriller
2009

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Four friends flee a deadly pandemic, trying to avoid contact with other humans and the germs that spread easily.

Review:

Tim: I feel like i am saying this more and more recently. My biggest problem with Carriers is that there isn't a single likable character in the film. I am all for movies portraying people in a realistic light, but I have to have someone in the film that I want to live- even just a little. If I don't care about the characters, then nothing else matters. The scares aren't scary, the thrills aren't thrilling. Who cares if hateful people live or die? This movie makes that mistake, giving us a bunch of selfish, stupid, whiny people. I didn't give a crap about any of them.

I like movies about disease. While Carriers almost feels like a zombie movie, it certainly is not. It's a movie about a deadly disease that ravages the world, and a small band of survivors try to stay alive. I like the small, independent movie feel to it. However, the script is a bit of a mess, and the movie is quite underwhelming.

The cast wasn't very good at all. I like Chris Pine as an actor, but he's just such an unlikable jerk in this movie. I suppose the performance is believable enough, but he's just not someone you can care about at all. His relationship with Piper Perabo felt forced (not much chemistry), and Perabo herself has a stupid character, so it's hard to feel much sympathy for her. I was horribly bored by Lou Taylor Pucci and his weak, silly performance. His character had nothing exciting about him, and Pucci added nothing to the role. Emily VanCamp was just overwhelmingly boring and forgettable. I remember next to nothing about her part in the film.

There are a few somewhat intense parts throughout the movie, but most of the time is spent wondering why the characters are acting in such stupid ways. I know the movie tries to touch on themes about humanity and morality, but honestly, those were lost amid the film's many weaknesses. The big "point" to the movie is that humans are more dangerous to each other than even the deadliest of diseases. This theme has been touched upon many times before, and in significantly better movies. The message is lost, though, because the script is too flawed.

I'm a bit surprised I was so disappointed in Carriers. I thought it had a good deal going for it. Unfortunately, the movie is poorly directed and badly written (not good for the writing/directing duo of the Pastor brothers). This is a poorly made movie all around.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 5.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Mist, Contagion, Bottle Shock, 28 Days Later