Only yesterday I found a film on Youtube that I first watched in the year 2010. It is called ‘After Armageddon’, part documentary, part acting. I think they call such films ‘docu-dramas’.

A Little too Close to the Here and Now?

I clearly remember seeing this movie on TV when it was first aired. There are more than a few similarities to what is going on now. Perhaps more scary, there are some things that might happen in the near future if this present virus situation persists or gets worse. I would certainly not show this movie to anyone who believes even half of this coronavirsus bullshit. Fortunately, I do not, so I watched it with interest. It was made just a few years after hurricane Katrina devastated the New Orleans area. The documentary side of this film makes several references to the immediate aftermath of that natural disaster. How things broke down and especially how humans went feral in a very short space of time. That is very real and far more frightening than any virus.

Anyway, my main point is that this film was taken down the following day. After I had sent the link to several family and friends. Most odd eh? Are they worried that people may be getting a little too scared by what is happening? Maybe.

It reminded me of some other major human disaster movies. So, I checked a few.

Medical Disaster versus Documentaries

There are plenty to choose from, but I can only mention a few here. I know many people have been watching classic medical disaster movies during lockdown. The likes of ‘Outbreak’ starring Dustin Hoffman and ‘Contagion’ starring Matt Damon describe deadly viruses spreading from animals to humans. These are Hollywood fiction based on possible futures. Yet here we are. Almost. Again, not movies to show anyone nervous of the current pan(ic)demic.

Here is another one I remember being on TV – back in 2008. This one is more interesting than scary. It is called “Aftermath: Population Zero – The World without Humans”. It is a good mixture of supposition and facts (that we already know) plus a few too many bullshit references to ‘global warming’. (All that climate nonsense was still ramping up back in 2008.) This film is like a thought experiment.

Presidential Speech

Finally: This was a speech by the President of the USA after announcing a major potential disaster. In a movie. Do you know the actor and which film?

“Our society will continue as normal.
Work will go on. You will pay your bills.
There will be no hoarding. There will be no sudden profiteering.
I am freezing all wages. All prices.
What a bottle of water cost you yesterday, it will cost you tomorrow.”

Wise words; calmly delivered in the movie. However, such a speech is much easier in Hollywood. Reality is obviously far more difficult. Right now “paying your bills” is only possible for most people if the governments ensure that the ”work will go on”. And that is not happening right now is it?