Freaking You Out - Movies Well Predicted Covid-19 Decades Ago
The COVID-19 is frighteningly spreading across the world, leading to the closure of schools and most businesses. People have to stay home and keep social distance, wear a mask if they have to go outside, wash hands frequently, and perform disinfection to stay far away from the coronavirus. Actually, what we are going through can be find from pandemic movies. Film is always the epitome of reality. The movie Contagion is very similar to our lives under COVID-19. In this post we're going to introduce 10 best pandemic-themed movies with Contagion included.
It is now impossible to watch these movies from theaters because they are old movies and because cinemas are closed due to COVID-19 outbreak. But these movies are available on DVDs and you can still rent or buy discs from online stores safely even if we're in times of stress. If you happen to have these movie DVDs, take them off the shelf, put them into DVD drive, and then play them right now or digitize DVDs to make digital copies for backup or for playback on mobiles or other disc-less devices.
Now check our movie list, watch these films to pass your time or release your fears, see how terrible a virus can be, and learn some lessons for our lives.
10 Pandemic Movies with Horrible Viruses (DVD Release Date Included)
1. Contagion (2011)
DVD Release Date: January 3, 2012
Contagion narrates the MEV-1 virus transmission in a cool, matter-of-fact way, which bears a striking resemblance to what is happening now with COVID 19. As the fast-moving epidemic grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself. Ordinary people are struggling to survive in a society coming apart.
Mentioned virus: MEV-1
Signs and symptoms: fever, trance, foaming at the mouth, encephalitis
Transmission: Spread through respiratory systems and nonliving media
Source: bats and pigs
Infected: The R0 will be greater than 4, and even 1/12 people worldwide will be infected.
2. Outbreak (1995)
DVD release date: August 27, 1997
In 1969, a kind of virus similar to Ebola is discovered in the Africa jungle. To prevent the virus infecting others, two U.S. Army officers destroy the camp where it was found. 25 year later, an Africa white-headed capuchin monkey is brought into a California town, and the virus outbreak is starting.
Mentioned virus: Motaba, simlar to Ebola that has an average of about 50% death rate, is a hemorrhagic virus found in the African jungle. It has a 100% mortality rate and causes a deadly fever and intense bleeding internal and external. The virus killed all the people in a rural village only in a few days.
The host: A white-headed capuchin monkey from Africa.
Antiviruses: E-1101.
3. Virus (2019)
DVD release date: unknown, but available on Amazon
Virus is an Indian Malayalam-language fact-based film which follows the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala and tells how the virus is contained by the brilliant medical team.
Mentioned virus: Nipah
The source of infection: Bat
Transmission: Humans will get infected after direct contact with infected bats, infected pigs, or from other NiV infected people.
Signs and symptoms: Fever, headache, drowsiness, disorientation, mental confusion, coma, etc.
Death rate: 40%
Treatment: Treatment is restricted to supportive care.
4. I Am Legend (2007)
DVD Release Date: March 18, 2008
What if you're the only one in the world? What's worse than a virus is loneliness. I Am Legend is about a hero who wants to save the world ravaged by a virus. Years after a plague kills most of humanity and transforms the rest into monsters, the sole survivor in New York City struggles to find a cure.
Mentioned virus: N/A
Signs and symptoms: Transformed into monsters
Transmission: N/A
Source: N/A
Infected: All humanity except the protagonist.
5. 28 Days Later (2002)
DVD Release Date: October 21, 2003
Animal activists invade a laboratory with the intention of releasing chimpanzees that are undergoing experimentation, infected by a virus (that causes rage), leading to disastrous results. 28 days later, our protagonist, Jim, wakes up from a coma, alone, in an abandoned hospital, trying to looking for others and saving the future, but finding something worse than virus.
Mentioned virus: N/A
Signs and symptoms: N/A
Transmission: Blood
Source: Gorillas
Infected: London became the city of the dead, with only a few survivors.
6. The Hot Zone (2019)
DVD release date: July 30, 2019
The Hot Zone based on the book of the same name by Richard Preston has 6 episodes and tells the story of the spread of the EVD (Ebolavirus) in 1989 near Washington, D.C.
Mentioned virus: Ebolavirus
Transmission: It is transmitted through direct contact (such as through broken skin or mucous membranes in the eyes, nose, or mouth)
Signs and Symptoms: Fever, severe headache, muscle and joint pain, and abdominal (stomach) pain, weakness and fatigue, diarrhea and vomiting, abdominal (stomach) pain, unexplained hemorrhaging, bleeding or bruising, red eyes, skin rash, and hiccups (late stage).
Death rate: 50%-90%
Treatment: Provide fluids and electrolytes (body salts) through infusion into the vein (intravenously); Offer oxygen therapy to maintain oxygen status; Use medication to support blood pressure, reduce vomiting and diarrhea and to manage fever and pain. No antiviral drug.
7. Flu (2013)
DVD release date: March 18, 2014
Illegal immigrants from Southeast Asia have died in a shipping container, a sole survivor escapes. Smugglers are also sick. The next day, many people show symptoms. The chaos ensues when more and more people get infected in a South Korea city. People collapse in the street, hospitals are overwhelmed.
Mentioned virus: A mutated H5N1 strain. Different from H5N1, it's terrible that the infected begins vomiting blackened blood and can be killed within 36 hours.
The host: illegal immigrants in a shipping container.
8. Blindness (2008)
DVD release date: February 10, 2009
A young Japaneses become blind suddenly in his car. A passerby who drives him home, the doctor who identifies him nothing wrong all goes blind, except his wife. More and more citizens are struck blind. Society finally collapses. It seems to be hopeless.
Mentioned virus: N/A.
The host: A young Japanese professional.
9. 12 Monkeys (1995)
DVD Release Date: March 31, 1998
On the surface, 12 Monkeys is about time travel, telling a story that scientists of 2035 sent a volunteer back to 1996 to collect samples of the virus developed by the Army of the Twelve Monkeys 50 years ago, and track where did the virus start. But in a deeper way, what is the reality? Holding that the future is history or to stop everything and save lives, even if regarded as schizophrenic. It's more of a causal cycle.
Mentioned virus: N/A
Signs and symptoms: N/A
Transmission: N/A
Source: N/A
Infected: The human race is almost extinct, and the few that remain survive underground
10. Train to Busan (2016)
DVD release date: January 17, 2017
This isn't a realistic work. It is a zombie movie. A business man and his daughter board a train to Busan while a virus which will turn people into zombies starts spreading in South Korea.
Mentioned virus: N/A
Transmission: Water contact, savila, and virus-infected people biting the normal people can also lead to virus spreading.
Where to Get These Pandemic Movie DVDs for Watching While in Quarantine?
How can you watch these pandemic movies? Streaming is preferred absolutely. Unfortunately, these pandemic movies were released a long time ago, and 80% of them cannot be found on streaming services. What's worse, the stressed connection over COVID-19 also brings difficulty for streaming movies.
Given that, DVD becomes an optimal solution for enjoying these antique pandemic movies. There are various platforms that offer cheap DVD rent and purchase like Amazon, Deepdiscount and Bestbuy. To save your money better, we've compared the price of popular virus-related DVD movies among these 3 platforms.
Prices Comparison: Buy Popular Pandemic Movies from Different Platforms |
|||
Hot Pandemic Movies |
Amazon.com |
Deepdiscount.com |
Bestbuy.com |
Pandemic |
$13.99 |
$16.73 |
$13.99 |
Outbreak |
$9.99 |
$11.61 |
$9.99 |
Contagion |
$14.99 |
$7.15 |
$5.99 |
The seventh seal (The Criterion Collection) |
$22.99 |
$19.76 |
$22.99 |
Virus |
$9.99 |
$12.43 |
N/A |
Can't wait to enjoy your favored pandemic DVD movies now? Take your time and choose the best way to enjoy them at home.
Case 1: You've Bought These Old Discs When They Were First Released
>> Digitize Them for Better Viewing on Any Devices
If you've already owned these old discs when they were first released, you're suggested to convert DVD to MP4 or other digital formats. It not only brings better viewing on cross platforms, but also protects the movie sources better.
Case 2: What If Your DVD Disc Was Damaged?
>> Redeem It or Fix It via DVD Conversion
Physical disc has its lifespan. The chance of DVD damage increases with the time growing. What if your DVD was damaged? Don't panic. If you have the case, you can redeem the digital copy of movies purchased on DVD. If you don't have the case, ripping DVD is a nice option to fix the slightly damaged DVDs.
WinX DVD Ripper - Backup and rip DVD to MP4 (HEVC/H.264) with best balance in speed, quality and size.
▪ Conquer all types of DVDs, from new discs, 99-title, damaged, Japanese, regional, workout to non-standard DVDs.
▪ No.1 fast speed to digitize DVDs thanks to Hardware acceleration, multi-core utility and hyper-threading technology.
▪ Original quality guaranteed and even upscale 720p DVD to 1080p/4K for big screens.
▪ Convert pandemic DVD movies to MP4, MOV, MKV, iPad, iPhone, Android smartphones and tablets, and 420+ profiles.
▪ Backup DVD to VIDEO_TS folder and ISO image at 1:1 ratio; copy main/full title content as MPEG2 file.
▪ Skip the bad sectors on discs intelligently to fix the slightly damaged DVDs.
Please DO NOT use WinX DVD Ripper to rip rental DVDs.
WinX DVD Ripper also has an intuitive interface, enabling you to digitize virus-related DVD movies and other DVDs (such as new Knives Out DVD released amid COVID-19) within 3 steps.
Step 1: Load DVD source.
Insert your disc and launch the program. Click "DVD Disc" to import the DVD source. After loaded, the detailed info will be shown and the right title will be selected automatically.
Step 2: Choose output format.
Select your desired output format from the automatically popped up window. MP4 is always recommended. Of course, you can also directly choose the model of your device for easier playback.
Step 3: Digitize DVD now!
Click "RUN" button to start converting DVD to MP4. It won't take long, as the unique level-3 hardware acceleration (if your computer has configured with the required graphics) will boost DVD ripping speed to 5X faster than usual, merely 5 minutes only to rip a 2-hours long movie.
Disclaimer: Digiarty Software doesn't advocate ripping protected DVDs for commercial purpose & suggests referring to DVD copyright laws in your country before doing so.
Video Tutorial: How to Convert Pandemic DVDs to Digital Formats with WinX DVD Ripper
StayHomeStaySafe Entertainment Ways to Beat Stress and Kill Boredom During Covid-19 Crisis
You are not Will Smith in I Am Legend. Virus can attack everyone irrespective of country, race, and identity. Even if you're a government official, movie star, or a physical sports star, you can be defeated. So, staying at home is safer and helps limit the spread of coronavirus. No parties any more, but you still have many high-quality entertainment resources. Here we list some resources you can get when getting stuck at home.
Do some exercise to strengthen the body's resistance
Daily workouts goes digital in COVID-19 breakdown. No coach or equipment needed, a lot of good free fitness apps offer plans and tracking. For those who love workout resources on DVDs, there are also many choices. Below is a list of best DVD sellers in exercise and fitness.
Best DVD Sellers in Exercise & Fitness |
||||
Titles |
Price |
Rating |
Run Time |
DVD Release Date |
Gentle Yoga - Jane Adams |
$16.35 |
8.5/10 |
192.00 minutes |
Jan 01, 2014 |
Yoga for Beginners DVD |
$11.02 |
8.0/10 |
378 minutes |
October 24, 2006 |
Jillian Michaels - 30 Day Shred |
$4.95 |
8.5/10 |
60 Minutes |
Mar 18, 2018 |
Sweatin' To The Oldies |
$23.99 |
8.5/10 |
540 minutes |
December 5, 2017 |
Line Dance Lessons on DVD |
$22.01 |
8.0/10 |
174 minutes |
November 12, 2012 |
Find some movies for kids to keep them occupied
It's a challenging time with almost all kids home from school. Have a fun time with your kids by watching a DVD movie. Below is a list of best family and kids friendly choices from the DVD rental and buying service. If you have already watched these films, check our list of best new kids movies on DVD to find more.
Best DVD Sellers in Kids and Family |
|||
Titles |
Price |
Rating |
DVD Release Date |
Dolittle |
$17.99 |
5.5/10 |
April 7, 2020 |
A Goofy Movie |
$3.99 |
6.8/10 |
June 20, 2000 |
Abominable |
$10.00 |
7.0/10 |
December 17, 2019 |
FROZEN 2 |
$14.96 |
7.0/10 |
February 25, 2020 |
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids |
$3.99 |
6.3/10 |
October 8, 2002 |
Hop |
$4.99 |
5.4/10 |
March 23, 2012 |
Peter Rabbit |
$8.00 |
6.6/10 |
September 2, 2018 |
Play games to seek solace and community while in lockdown
Playing games is a good way to continue social distancing efforts. Even the WHO encourage people to play video games during Covid-19 pandemic. Pick up these popular games while waiting out the coronavirus - The Witcher 3, Red Dead Redemption 2, Civilization VI, Monster Hunter, Persona 5, Spore, Fortnite, Minecraft, etc.
It is difficult to predict when the coronavirus pandemic will be over and when our life will go back to normal. But the day when we can go to the cinema, the gym and other places will come. The greatest contribution we can make right now is to stay home to protect ourselves, even if it is boring to live like this.
