Cordon (TV series)
| Cordon | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Carl Joos |
| Directed by | Tim Mielants |
| Country of origin | Belgium |
| Original language(s) | Flemish |
| No. of seasons | 1 in production |
| Production | |
| Location(s) | Antwerp |
| Production company(s) | Eyeworks |
| Distributor | VTM |
| Release | |
| Original release | 10 March 2014 |
Cordon is a 2014 Belgian Flemish-language drama series in 10 parts. It was first broadcast on vtm. The series was written by Carl Joos, directed by Tim Mielants and produced by Eyeworks. The series was also broadcast in the UK on BBC Four from 28 June to 25 July 2015, in five 2-part installments.
Plot
- Series One
Cordon begins with the arrival of an illegal Afghan immigrant in a container in Antwerp, Belgium. Shortly afterwards he visits the fictional National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIIDA) in the city to get inoculated against local infections. Commissioner Lex Faes is informed by higher authorities that he must arrest the immigrant at the home of his relations. Faes sends his best friend, Inspector Jokke Deelen, to pick up the suspect and take him to NIIDA. However after the man is in custody Faes is told that the man might have a viral infection so Jokke is ordered to remain at the center.
Subsequently the city neighborhood around the center is sealed off from the outside world to contain the virus. Containers are placed across the entrance to all road junctions. Three gates (sluices) control access through which medical supplies and food are sent. Faes is placed in control of the southern section of the cordon. However adding to his problems, is the knowledge that his girlfriend is trapped at her place of work within the cordon.
As people start to become seriously ill with the virus and start dying, public order begins to break down within the containment area. Murder, violence and theft take hold. Criminals seize control of the food distribution centers while others break into properties or rob from the weak. Meanwhile a jaded journalist takes the persona The Horsemen, blogging about the unfolding disaster. He soon discovers that the official line coming from Sabine Lommers, the Minister for Health, is not the whole truth. With the help of Faes, they discover that the virus was not brought into Antwerp by the Afghan immigrant. Its origin was more likely to be NIIDA itself.
The series reaches its climax when Faes realises he is being set up by state's secret service because his investigations are getting too close to the source of the outbreak. The journalist, who he thought was helping him, admits he's been "got to" and has joined the official cover-up concerning the cause of the virus. Meanwhile Jokke, who has become disillusioned after seeing so many people he cared for die, rescues a young boy from criminals who are selling his bodily fluids (urine, blood) as a cure because he seems immune. He takes the boy to NIIDA, where Dr. Cannaerts, the center's professor, says that the boy's antibodies are stopping the virus, meaning there might be a cure. However, he tells Jokke, the boy was still infected, meaning the policeman is too.
As Jokke is dying Cannaerts gives him his confession. The viral outbreak was caused by one of his own trainees who carelessly opened a package of man-made mutated avian flu from Brazil. Cannaerts admits he should have followed protocols for such a dangerous disease but it was the pathogen he needed to complete his research (before he took up a senior position at the United Nations) so he had it delivered secretly by courier. His work and knowledge of the virus helped the authorities put measures in place to quarantine the area around NIIDA. Angered by these revelations, and the fact that the doctor has no intentions of admitting his culpability, Jokke attacks Cannaerts, deliberately infecting him.
Faes also discovers that his team has been compromised by a mole who has been feeding information to the criminals inside the cordon. When he finds that the rosters have been changed so part of the cordon has been left unguarded, he joins some soldiers to investigate the district's sewers. Within these tunnels he finds his girlfriend Jana who is trying to escape. However he also finds the insider: his own deputy Nald. When the corrupt cop goes for his gun, Faes shoots him dead. He then reconciles with Jana; accepting their fate, they return to the rubbish-strewn streets of the decaying cordon together.
Cast
- Wouter Hendrickx as Jokke Deelen
- Liesa Van der Aa as Jana
- Tom Dewispelaere as Commissioner Lex Faes
- Veerle Baetens as Katja
- Mieke De Groote as Sabine Lommers
- Johan Van Assche as Dr. Cannaerts
- Koen De Sutter as Leo Gryspeerts
- Zoë Thielemans as Ineke
- Ricko Otto as Tyl
- Hugo Van Den Berghe as Bert
- Robbie Cleiren as Ineke's father
- Sven De Ridder as Nald
- Steve Geerts as Toon
- Greet Verstraete as Suzy
- Jelte Blommaert as Quinten
- Frieda Pittoors as Micheline
- Mathijs Scheepers as Bram
- Koen De Bouw as Bob Blyweerts
- Inge Paulussen as Ineke's mother
- Marthe Schneider as Lien
- Geert Van Rampelberg as Sam
- Tibo Vandenborre as Mees
- Jan Hammenecker as bus driver
- Michael Pas as newspaper editor
- Nico Sturm as Dr. Devreese
- Jan Bijvoet as Luc Blyweerts
- Maïthé Foucher as Britney
- Greg Timmermans as Dennis
- Warre Borgmans as director
Second series
Filming of a second season of Cordon took place in 2015.[1]
Remake
On 8 May 2015 Eyeworks, the company that produced the Flemish series, announced that a US-version will be broadcast on American network The CW.[2] The series, retitled Containment, is set in the US city of Atlanta and will be produced by Julie Plec and directed by David Nutter.[3] The series debuted on April 19, 2016.[4]
References
- ↑ "Goed nieuws: tweede seizoen van Cordon op komst". Vtm. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
- ↑ "VTM-reeks 'Cordon' krijgt Amerikaanse remake". DeMorgen. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
- ↑ Walker, Andre (15 June 2015). "New CW Series Filming in Atlanta Explores How a Major City Would Contain a Deadly Virus Outbreak". Georgia Unfiltered. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ↑ The CW press release (February 11, 2016). "The CW Sets Upcoming Premiere Dates and Returns". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 11 February 2016.