I Am Legend

Last night, I went to go see the Will Smith latest box office smash (77.4 million according to deadlinehollywooddaily.com), I am Legend. As a person who has read the book, I went to it understanding the basic plot of it. Yet, whenever you watch a movie, it can be more or less than what you read. This movie nevertheless, has suspense, and it has action and drama.

The movie is set in New York city in modern times. A vaccine that was thought to cure cancer, killed 5.4 billion people, transformed 588 million into into a primal state driven by cannibalistic hunger burnt by sunlight, and 12 million immune. Of the 12 million immune, majority of them are killed.

The movie has you watch the mental deterioration of a Robert Neville(Smith), a virologist who was assigned ground zero in New York in order to work on a cure to the virus. His only companion is a dog that he promised his daughter that he would watch.

There are moments in the film where all you here is silence. One scene is set in the center of Time Square. The quietness and emptiness is quite a view. To see Time Square sounding and looking somewhere in the center of a forest is something that bring a different feeling among you. The sound of each bird and the herd of deers running and the lions attacking in Time Square is an awe struck moment that leaves you speechless. The director makes sure that you feel you are there as the camera shakes as if you are running with him just observing him, which in essence is the idea that the director might have been trying to get across. What is the effect of a man being left alone for such a long time.

The movie does have problems. The movie does not explain what went wrong with the virus or how the virus went airborn. The movie does not fully explained Neville's solntion to the problem either. Unlike the book, the movie fails to show comparison to historical figures to show how the ending justifys the actions.

I like the movie, but for a good understanding, I say watch the movie, then read the book. It it will help you understand a wonderful story to a limited timed movie.

B-

Beyonce B Day

Pros: Still Unique ideas and sounds
Cons: Fails in Compared to other work

Every top artist always goes through the pressures of topping themselves, though some never do it. And while their works is still better than the others out there, the collection disappoint because they are capable of so much more. Michael Jackson after Thriller, Stevie Wonder after Songs In the Key of Life, and most recently, Beyonce after Dangerously In Love
This is not to say that B'day is not a bad album. Songs like Deja Vu, The first single off the sure fire muti-platinum album is good. A strong use of horns and drums to accompany the powerful voice that is Beyonce is more than pleasurable to the ears. Ne-Yo brings his magic touch with Irreplaceable, easily the best track that the album has to offer. But most of the dance songs sound bland such as Get Me Bodied and Upgrade You, while the slow smooth songs are boring such as Kitty Kat. Ring the Alarm is just not a song of Beyonce's caliber. The album is still great compared to other R&B albums that we heard over the past year, it is just that B's day of recording a worthy follow-up to the masterpiece Dangerously In Love is not accomplished well.

Sicko Review

Michael Moore has often been criticized for theorizing his video rather than hard facts. I think that Sicko, the latest film from Moore, will change that opinion. Sicko looks at all healthcare in Western civilization and why America is without it. Moore argues simply by rebutting critics of universal healthcare with facts and interviews from people. He shows the failure of healthcare in America and the success in other countries. A funny part is when in London, 2 people respond “This is not America” when Moore asked a question about paying the hospital before they left. Some might find the length a little long but the information makes up for the length.