'Outbreak' and the impact of coronavirus at the movies

Last night I revisited the hit airborne disease thriller Outbreak, which was suddenly streaming on Netflix presumably because of renewed interest thanks to the frightening coronavirus pandemic. I've read that Steven Soderbergh's all-star sleeper 2011 hit Contagion is also a streaming sensation right now.

The 1995 movie is an interesting curio, it's probably the last time Dustin Hoffman was draw as a traditional leading man in a man of action role that he's unusual choice for. If memory serves, the role was originally conceived for Harrison Ford, which makes a lot more sense when you see the film.

It's an effective movie -- it gets bogged down with a blah subplot about Hoffman and leading lady Rene Russo's troubled marriage and a last act that feels repetitive and a little silly, but it's certainly a memorable, visceral look at the impact of a runaway deadly infectious disease.

There's one scene in particular from the film that I'll always. An incredibly sick,  infected individual (for some reason) goes to a crowded movie. The camera follows the germs emanating from his mouth as they fan out of the crowd, presumably infecting several people in the room.

Now that we are all living under the shadow of coronavirus, we're used to flinching every time we hear someone cough or sneeze, and the movies are already starting to feel the heat from the disease.

The new Bond film -- No Time to Die -- which was scheduled to open on April 10 has been pushed all the way to November, in part because there is real concern that the film would underperform, especially in the crucial international market.

The latest Mission: Impossible film had to temporarily shut down production over fears of coronavirus, too. Meanwhile, the SXSW festival has been canceled entirely and the fate of the legendary Cannes film festival is up in the air.

A cynical read on what's happening is that it'll be a boon to Netflix and other streaming services which have been getting increasingly ambitious with their feature films as of late.

And yet, I love and don't want to miss enjoying the communal experience a film with an audience in a theater. The Invisible Man was a hoot and a terrific film across the board, but I wonder how enjoyable it would have been if I didn't see it with an audience that was as spooked and excited as I was by what was on screen.

If this pandemic becomes as destructive as it's expected to be this could wind up being a very dreary year for the movie business if not for the movies themselves -- which is a real shame because people could use escapism right now, from election anxiety, economic uncertainly, environmental changes and so much more.

Of course safety is more important than any movie -- and hopefully people who are ill will have the good sense to avoid a crowded theater, especially when there is so much quality at our finger tips at home. And in the meantime, I'm going to have to be a lot more selective when I buy a ticket, because I might be walking into a danger zone.