Pandemic (2007) (TV)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Director:

Armand Mastroianni

Writers:

Bryce Zabel (writer)
Jackie Zabel (writer)

Release Date:

26 May 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

The bird flu virus spreads through Los Angeles as a doctor from the CDC races to find a vaccine. |

Plot Keywords:

Bird Flu | Flu | Virus | Bird | One Word Title

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Tiffani Thiessen	...	Kayla Martin
Vincent Spano	...	Troy Whitlock
Faye Dunaway	...	Govenor Shaefer
Eric Roberts	...	Mayor Dalesandro
Bruce Boxleitner	...	Friedlander
Bob Gunton	...	Sorkosky
Alex Paez	...	Roberto Ruiz
James DuMont	...	Phil Duin
French Stewart	...	Dr. Carl Ratner
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Darryl Armbruster	...	Talent agent
René Ashton	...	Kelly
Candice Azzara	...	Heidi
Dana Barron	...	Lindsey
Matt Battaglia	...	Frank
Alan Blumenfeld
Gabriel Bologna	...	Pharmacist
Wendy Braun	...	Stephanie Benson
Austin Brooks	...	Air Traffic Controller
Scott Michael Campbell	...	Rick Foxhoven
Jo Champa	...	Aria Beutefeldt
Tony Clarno	...	Charlie
Robert Curtis Brown	...	Hendler
Brionne Davis	...	ATM guy
Charles Duckworth	...	Derek
John Dybdahl	...	Truck Driver
Paul Edney	...	Airport Police Officer
Gina Fricchione	...	TV Reporter
Matt Gould	...	Jake Laramie
Verne Graham	...	Mounty
Denise Grayson	...	Airline Passenger
Mike Grief	...	Marcus Guerguerian
Shashawnee Hall	...	FBI Agent Pete Sampson
Kelly Heyer	...	Brooke Florin
Isabella Hofmann	...	Mrs. Smith
Brandy Howard	...	Orley
John Kapelos	...	Michael Torino
David Lengel	...	Jack
Barry Livingston	...	Dr. Winston Tamm
Michael Massee	...	Edward Vicente
Rod McCary	...	Judge
Tom Mesmer	...	Passenger
Thomas A. Miller	...	Police Officer
David Newham	...	Joe Tooley
Robert Norsworthy	...	Harry Firestone
Kyra Lin Oser	...	Scientist (as Kyra Lin)
Marty Papazian
Tiara Parker	...	Tonya
Colby Paul	...	Gil Whitlock
Stephen Ramsey	...	Gibby Smolack
Anthony Reynolds	...	Soldier
Robin Riker	...	Sarah Adams Caplan
Sandra Robinson	...	Carla Florin
Onahoua Rodriguez	...	Angela Ruiz
Rigo Sanchez	...	Mr. Culp
Mik Scriba	...	Coleman
Kyle Searles	...	Ames
Barry Sigismondi	...	Chris Fentress
Rico Simonini	...	Valdez
Alex Skuby	...	Captain Nick Salter
Renée Taylor	...	Kathryn Hadorn
Brian Tee	...	Danny
William Tempel	...	Officer Hashimoto
Tamlyn Tomita	...	Melissa Lo
Theo Wilson	...	Henry Littlefield

Runtime:

USA:180 min (with commercials)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Certification:

Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Hallmark

Goofs:

Factual errors: When the airliner is on approach to LAX the airline company dispatcher directs the plane to change heading and uses a four digit number. Headings are only given in a three digit number.

Quotes:

[making a statement to the press]
Mayor Dalesandro: Los Angeles has always had it's share of trials and natural disasters; earthquakes, floods, and now this riptide virus. But we are a strong city, full of strong people. Governor.
Govenor Shaefer: Today we have hope to go with that strength. A treatment has been found that will buy us the time necessary to develop a lasting vaccine. It is a blessing within a curse, but it will soon be available to us all. In moments like this there are always many people to thank, our First Responders, our Police, Fireman, and Paramedics. People who put the lives and safety of others above their own.
[...]

Writer is Poorly Informed

Given any good story you need a good topic, premise, plot, focus and character. Given a story of scientific and legal in nature a writer must have good familiarity in these realm. He has none of it. It's a made for t.v. show. Given a good story line, most amateur writing will focus on too many characters, in this case, a wanted criminal, a rifle crazed man, a rogue FBI agent, two politicians competing for power, an all powerful CDC officer who don't really have a power, and the not too serious emergency response team. Characters are cardboard cliché', a plot whose ending found a cure for her daughter who got Riptide? The premise is too unbelievable, the plot lacks focus. This writer should watch more blockbusters. Originally one of the best movie Rwanda Hotel had too many characters, until the writer found out and decided to focus on one man. Most movies are focused on relatively few major actor not exceeding 2-3. Take Something's Gotta Give, Jerry Maguire, Rain Man, Die Hard, for example focused on relatively few characters, mostly 2-3 making up 80% of the movie screen. And those characters are a strong one, take the Dark Knight, the Joker, Batman, Superman, Snow White, etc. Given the basics, there is problem about the lack of understanding protocols and laws. The CDC, just can't walk around everywhere, certain laws have to be considered when an act of quarantine is considered. For one thing, the first law is Title 42 United States Code Section 264 (Section 361 of the Public Health Service Act) gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) responsibility for preventing the introduction, transmission, and spread of communicable diseases from foreign countries into the United States and within the United States and its territories/possessions. The second issue of the President, by Executive Order, which is Under the procedures required under the PHS Act, the list of diseases for which quarantine is authorized must first be specified in an Executive Order of the President, on recommendation of the HHS Secretary. By amending the list to include types of influenza that either cause or have the potential to cause a pandemic. As to the knowledge of Tamifl and ways or eradicating the virus, where are sanitation procedures, in place? The seriousness of quarantine, the authority's control over the situation, the closing of public places, the media frenzy into the area, the military action in closing off the area, instead of CDC giving the "idea" of closing off the region. The sudden shock of death. The movie is like there is fire in the house, and people are walking out of the house while they are sleepwalking. If there's any problem about making movies, it's the crappy writing I see all the time. To prevent this I believe that each scenes or plots are organized into modules where parts can be deleted, and characters are focused only 2-3 character through an entire time line of events, and the methodology of quarantine control, should ignore the obvious solution such as vaccines, someone who is immunized to the disease, and other cliché's so common in virus plagued. And in any T.V. drama, people should start being more serious of the circumstances instead of just waking in their sleep. In any event H3N7 virus and other things are interesting, but sanitation, and organized quarantine procedures the writer has difficult understanding the magnitude of the problem, as in most t.v. shows I have seen. To make a good story, the character must huff and puff until the house is blown down. It doesn't start by just sleep walking around the house either.