I Am Legend! (There are no more new stories to be written any more?)

I reread "I Am Legend" (1954) this morning, by Richard Matheson.  (My, that man can WRITE!)"   It was just a good as the first two or three times I read it; there are some stories that cannot be improved.

The cover noted that there was a 2007 MOVIE version available, starring Will Smith.

I remember another movie version: "The Omega Man" starring Charlton Heston.

This afternoon I was performing my usual Spring Cleaning by fumigating my house to kill the Spring Spiders. I went to the movies so I wouldn't be poisoned by the Bug Bomb..

I was torn between the new Mad Max movie, or the Earthquake/Disaster film "San Andreas" starring The Rock.  It was loud, but very entertaining.

The reason I didn't go to the Mad Max movie is because it didn't have Mel Gibson in it.  Apparently, he is no longer popular, due to his drunken rants against views several years ago.

Well, I still prefer Mel as Mad Max.  Hey, I don't like Jane Fonda because of her appearances in Viet Cong propaganda films in the 1970's, but I liked here in her movies ("Fun with Dick and Jane", "Barbarella", and "Cat Ballou") so while I deplore her politics, I watch her movies.  And I listen to Barbra Streisand's music and enjoy it, even if she is a political yentl!

So, I watched the remake of "2012", and it the only complaint I had was that (1) I had seen the movie of which it was a clone, and (2) I ran out of popcorn before the movie was over, and (3) the air conditioning was WAY too cold!

When I came back home, I considered that I had just seen the same movie, read the same book, more than once:

I Am Legend (the book)

I Am Legend (the movie, with Will Smith)

The Omega Man (the movie, with Charlton Heston)

Also, the "Mad Max" franchise was pretty much all the same, except that I won't contend that the latest (sans Mel) is the same movie write large.

I'm pretty sure that those of you who read a lot are aware that successful books lead to successful movies, and we go see them because we like the characters, or the actors.  (Who hasn't seen almost all of the John Wayne Movies, the Clint Eastwood movies, and .. well, name your own favorite actors.)

We're watching and reading variations on a theme.

I kind of wish we would find new themes.  These forms of literature grab out attention because they are fresh, and we are excited by new ideas.

There's a reason why I haven't been to a movie theater (before today) for five years.  I wasn't disappointed by the movie, but I found that I wanted to press REWIND so I could see some detail that I THINK I missed before.  ( I guess I've been spoiled by DVDs,)

I have got to get out of the house more!