Review - National Treasure: Book Of Secrets

I was a big fan of the first National Treasure movie, and thus I was quite enthused when word of a sequel reached my ears. And I'm glad to say, that the sophomore jinx didn't hit Book Of Secrets.
The movie is enough that you didn't have to see the original to follow this story...as a matter of fact, this movie barely makes any reference to the original (quite an unusual turn of events). Ben Gates' great-great grandfather has been presented as a possible co-conspirator in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. With the assistance of his father, his sidekick Riley, his estranged girlfriend Abigail, and his mother Emily...Ben goes off on another incredible search to protect his family name.
There are some excellent performances in the movie...and with a cast that includes Nicolas Cage, Jon Voight, Ed Harris, and Helen Mirren, that is pretty much a foregone conclusion. The story is entertaining, and carries on at a good pace. The ending of the story almost guaranteed a sequel.
All in all, an excellent movie!

Review - I Am Legend

I'll admit it...when I first saw the trailers...I was intrigued. I had already rented an earlier version of this movie off Netflix (The Omega Man, with Charlton Heston in the title role). Still, I put off seeing this movie.
It wasn't terrible. Granted...we've come to expect so much better from Will Smith...but it wasn't entirely Will's fault this time around. The special effects for such a big-budget film were not very impressive. In fact, they were quite underwhelming. The story is about the same as Omega Man - a military scientist is the last man alive in New York City after a man-made disease wipes out the majority of the human race. Most of those unaffected by the disease are now more animal than human...unable to tolerate sunlight (or any bright light for that matter). It is interesting to see how a person would stand being the only person left on Earth...and what it might do to their psychological state.
Decent characters...decent story...bad special effects. I Am Legend isn't the best movie you could spend money to go see...but it isn't the worst, either.