"I Am Legend"

I had to read this one -- the movie, I Am Legend, will be out this holiday season. Yes...I admit to all -- I love classic horror. This is one of the best and has been since 1954. Movies and stories have tried to mimic this novella by Richard Matheson, but few have succeeded. Past movie adaptations were mediocre, at best, so I'm hopeful that this movie will stay somewhat true to the story and that Will Smith will portray Robert Neville as in the book.

Although the science is dated, this is one of the first takes on vampirism as scientifically plausible. Robert Neville is possibly the last man on earth, surviving a plague that took every man, woman, child, and animal. His days are spent gathering food, eliminating the threat, and preparing for the onslaught and terror that comes with the night. For that terror is the undead, who want him as part of their own -- and then they want him as the threat to their very existence.

Although this is a great horror story in the classic sense, it is an interesting view of a man who is the last -- the loneliness, the apathy, the courage and ingenuity, and the fear of stepping over the grey line of insanity. All in all, a good read, a must-read for horror buffs, but definitely not for everyone.