Carriers

"The rules are simple. You break them, you die..."

2009 1h 24m EN

😐

6.0

MID

★6.0TMDB · 1,531

ActionDramaHorrorScience FictionThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A deadly virus has spread across the globe. Contagion is everywhere, no one is safe, and no one can be trusted. Four friends race through the back roads of the American West on their way to a secluded utopian beach in the Gulf of Mexico where they could peacefully wait out the pandemic. Their plans take a grim turn when their car breaks down on an isolated road starting a chain of events that will seal their fates.

“The rules are simple. You break them, you die...”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Lou Taylor Pucci
Danny Green
Chris Pine
Brian Green
Piper Perabo
Bobby
Emily VanCamp
Kate
Christopher Meloni
Frank Holloway
Kiernan Shipka
Jodie Holloway
Ron McClary
Preacher
Mark Moses
Doctor

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Àlex Pastor
Writers: David Pastor, Àlex Pastor
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

84 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 17 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Àlex Pastor, shot by Benoît Debie. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Peter Nashel. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Craig McKay shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lou Taylor Pucci and Chris Pine and Piper Perabo carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The rules are simple. You break them, you die...".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0806203 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Àlex Pastor directs. Benoît Debie behind the camera. Peter Nashel scores. Craig McKay cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

184 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Released 17 years ago.
3Directed by Àlex Pastor, shot by Benoît Debie. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Peter Nashel. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Craig McKay shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Lou Taylor Pucci and Chris Pine and Piper Perabo carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The rules are simple. You break them, you die...".
8IMDB entry: tt0806203 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 8 themes, including "beach", "infection", "survival", "biohazard".
10Released under 10 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Benoît Debie
Original score: Peter Nashel
Editing: Craig McKay
Production design: Clark Hunter
Costume design: Jill Newell
Makeup / hair: Todd McIntosh
Sound: Bob Chefalas
Stunt coordinator: Brian Smyj
Runtime: 84 min · 1h 24m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $5,805,279
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Carriers (2009)

Also by

Àlex Pastor

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2020-03-22
★ 8/10
Post-Apocalyptic Horror "Carriers" (2009) is easily one of the best post-apocalyptic films. The story involves four youths in Southwest USA seeking sanctuary from a lethal virus that has wiped out much of the population and continues to do so. To all intents and purposes Government no longer exists and society is now a world without laws. To survive, they live by a set of rules of their own making: Avoid anyone with the disease, trust no one (not even your friends/family), immediately sterilize anything a carrier touches and realize that anyone with the disease is already dead. The four youths are Danny (Lou Taylor Pucci), his brother Brian (Chris Pine), his girlfriend Bobby (Piper Perabo) and Danny's school friend Kate (Emily VanCampo). Over the course of a handful of days they are continually forced to make difficult moral decisions that no human being should ever have to make. They soon discover that the real enemy is not the sinister pandemic, but the darkness within their own hearts. Unlike semi-goofy post-apocalyptic films like the Mad Max series, "Carriers" is deadly serious from beginning to end. This works in the film's favor because if the filmmakers take the material seriously the viewer can as well. One of the moral conundrums explored is what do you do if a loved one gets the disease? Since anyone with the disease is as good as dead, do you mercifully kill them? Leave them behind to suffer and die alone? Or stay with them, which is tantamount to suicide since you'll catch the virus as well? The film also explores one's reaction to such a pandemic: Do we forsake all sense of morality in an attempt to survive -- lie, steal, forsake and murder -- or do we hold on to our moral compass, come what may? Is life worth living if you must become an immoral, wicked savage to survive? Isn't it better to live with dignity at all costs -- fight with nobility and die with dignity when and if we must? "Carriers" is to be commended for provoking such poignant questions. Some denounce the film on the grounds that it's too downbeat and depressing, but wouldn't a lawless society with a highly contagious lethal virus on the loose be a very dire situation? In other words, the downbeat vibe reflects the reality of the story. This doesn't mean that every character has to be some moralless savage, as one of the main characters becomes, but it definitely makes the proceedings believable for the viewer. That said, I admit that I would have preferred if the film offered more glimpses of hope, faith and human dignity, but the filmmakers obviously wanted to explore the element of a near-hopeless-situation and the film should be accepted and respected on that level. One obvious plothole is the perfectly maintained lawn of the golf course at the abandoned resort. The film was shot in desolate regions of New Mexico & Texas and runs a short-but-sweet 84 minutes. FINAL SAY: "Carriers" is an excellent -- albeit decidedly melancholic -- depiction of a post-apocalyptic world where conventional law & order are non-existent. The film successfully stimulates moral reflection and is engrossing from beginning to end. Although it looses points for being too downbeat... ENDING SPOILER ALERT ...especially the climax. C'mon, the dude makes it to the remote beach and he has a hot lass at his side; they could be the new Adam & Eve, but all he does is whine like it's the end of the world or something. GRADE: A-

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