Smallpox 2002: Silent Weapon

In 1977, smallpox was eradicated worldwide following an intensive vaccination programme, but at the end of the 20th century it is in the spotlight again as a potential bio-terrorist weapon, because highly contagious and lethal. SMALLPOX 2002: SILENT WEAPON shows how a deliberately infected person can victimise 60 million people worldwide. SMALLPOX 2002 is a mockumentary that utilises practically the full documentary repertoire to present a credible worst-case scenario; interviews with experts and surviving relatives, a victim’s video diary and archive footage. The line between dramatised and real scenes is sometimes hard to define. In addition, the makers use thriller elements and a score that is reminiscent of the X-files. We see how a country is seized by fear, how public life comes to a grinding halt, how streets are blocked and people are gathered in quarantine centres. Many experts and actors in the film are actually scientists who are worried about the lack of vaccines in the event of a bio-terrorist attack. The film visualises their nightmare.