When Beth, a woman on a business trip to Vegas, comes down with a vicious virus, her husband Mitch rushes her to the hospital. Shortly after arrival, she dies, and the virus cannot immediately be properly identified. When Mitch comes home and finds his son also dead, he is quarantined from the rest of the public, but it's soon revealed he is immune to the virus and free to go. When Mitch and his other child try to leave town, they learn that the state borders have been sealed. Meanwhile, in Atlanta at the Center for Disease Control, they attempt to figure out where the virus came from, how it spreads, and most importantly of all, how to cure it. A doctor named Mears sets out to organize the control of the disease, but inadvertently catches it and dies shortly after. Dr. Hextall, a curt and brilliant young woman, discovers that the disease is a mix of two existing viruses: a bat virus and a pig virus. While Hextall gets hard at work trying to create a vaccine to help fight this virus, spreading like wildfire and killing millions, a conspiracy theorist posts on his blog that a particular plant will cure the illness. This, however, only makes the illness spread more quickly, as the sick and healthy both seek out this flower that will keep them safe. All of the storylines intersect heading toward the end, as we watch Mitch try to find a way to keep his daughter safe and Hextall test her vaccines on herself in order to hopefully rush them into production.
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Best part of story, including ending:
The film has a fascinating premise, but it's sadly underwhelming, as it moves along at a snail's pace and leaves a lot to be desired.
Best scene in story:
In one scene, Mitch and his daughter have locked themselves in a home, and we watch as looters break into and threaten the lives of their neighbors. It creates tension lacking in most of the rest of the film.
Opinion about the main character:
Hextall is a brilliant woman with a lot on her plate, and Jennifer Ehle portrays her with dignity-- it helps that she is constantly flanked by bigger name actors as well.
