Carriers (film)

Plot

An infectious virus has spread worldwide, killing almost the entire population. Two brothers, Brian and Daniel "Danny" Green, along with Brians girlfriend, Bobby, and Dannys school friend, Kate, are heading to Turtle Beach in the southwestern United States, a secluded beach motel where they believe they can wait for the viral pandemic to die out and so they can start a new life. They strictly follow a set of rules that they believe will keep them all alive and stop them from becoming infected.

On their way there, they meet a man, Frank Holloway, and his infected young daughter Jodie. After attempting to drive away from them, their car breaks down. The four end up returning to Frank in order to acquire his jeep, and are forced to take Frank and Jodie to a nearby high school where a serum for the pandemic is rumored to have been developed. Upon arrival they discover that the serum does not work, and the only doctor still alive is about to commit suicide with a remaining group of infected children (whom he plans to kill through non-voluntary euthanasia). Meanwhile, Bobby is accidentally infected by Jodie while trying to help her when she coughs blood on her. She hides her infection from the others by wiping her face and hiding her blood covered shirt. Jodie tells her father that she needs the toilet, however she cant walk there alone due to the illness. Frank carries Jodie to the toilet, telling Danny that he knows hes a good person. However, Brian leaves Frank and Jodie behind and takes their car.

After this, they stop at a golf course hotel. Brian almost becomes infected after nearly slipping into a swimming pool containing the body of an infected man, however Danny manages to grab him in time. Bobby talks herself into believing she is not infected, as she is still unsure that Jodies blood infected her. However, despite Bobbys efforts to prevent it, Brian kisses her and inadvertently infects himself. Bobby berates Kate for believing her parents may still be alive, and suddenly a small group of armed survivalists, who are using the golf course as a base, ambush and capture the group. After a tense Mexican standoff, they declare their intent to keep the girls. As they force the girls to disrobe to check them for infection, they discover Bobbys rashes and bruises and force them away at gunpoint. Kate stresses that they will end up dead if Bobby continues to travel with them, and Brian ends up leaving a weeping Bobby behind at a deserted gas station.

They almost run out of fuel but encounter two women heading in the opposite direction to them. Danny asks for help, stating that he has a pregnant wife in the car and that he is a fellow Christian, but they refuse. A desperate Brian shoots them for their fuel when they try to drive away, and ends up being shot in the leg himself. Danny breaks into a seemingly abandoned house in search of medical supplies to treat his brothers wound, and he is forced to shoot a stray dog that attempts to attack him.

Danny soon discovers that his brother is also infected after tending to Brians shot wound. Kate urges Danny to leave Brian whilst he is sleeping, but as the two try to leave Brian wakes up and it is discovered that he has the car keys. Brian refuses to give Danny the correct car keys unless he can continue to travel with them, despite Dannys pleas. Brian admits that he doesnt want to end up alone like the rest of the infected and tells Danny to shoot him if he wants the keys. At Brians urging, Danny shoots Brian and burns his mask and infected body. Afterwards, Danny and Kate reach Turtle Beach, but Danny realizes that without his brother the place that had seemed so special to them as kids is now empty and that he is alone.

Cast

Production

Filmed in New Mexico in late 2006, Carriers was not released by Paramount Vantage until September 2009, following the success of Pines appearance in Star Trek, released earlier in 2009.

Release

Carriers was released on 4 September 2009 in US cinemas, while the DVD followed on 29 December 2009. It grossed $90.8k in US and $5,802,422 worldwide.

Awards and nominations

Kiernan Shipka was nominated for Best Performance in a Feature Film – Supporting Young Actress at the Young Artist Awards (2010).

Reception

As of March 2015, Carriers received mixed reviews with a 64% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 33 reviews. The movie was praised for its story, theme and acting performance but the critics focus on the movies ending.

Rob Nelson, a top critic from Variety said: "Put into extremely limited release by Paramount Vantage after spending years in studio lockdown, Carriers has moments of genuinely communicable horror and thus deserves better than a de facto theatrical quarantine". Paul Chambers from CNN Radio said: "A little more realistic than a zombie flick. Some renegade virus could make the world a "survival of the fittest" ordeal. A very interesting story with some nice reveals". Charles Cassady from Common Sense Media said: "Gloom, not thrills, in sci-fi drama of worldwide plague".