This movie broke my hearts a million times… nay, a gazillion times over. Ever since I got Zoe I have been more of an animal lover… I don’t know why but I am. Maybe because Zoe’s so cute most of the time.

This post might contain spoilers… I suggest if you hate spoilers stop reading it now.

Set in 2012, Robert Neville (Will Smith) is a military scientist staying in Ground Zero (New York City) trying to find a cure for another cure gone wrong. The start of the movie shows a television interview of a spokesperson who proudly told the world that they have found the cure for cancer - testing on 10,000+ sick humans and received a 100% success rate.

Three years later, the once lively and vibrant New York City became devoid of any humans, and instead was inhabited by some deers (or gazelles? Can’t tell), lions and Robert Neville with his trusty dog Samantha (Sam for short). Forced to live like a wild man, Robert Neville ventured out during the day to scrounge for food and occasionally visited a DVD shop which he treated like a rental store.

The years of solitude can change a man drastically. Craving for a human voice, a human touch and any human interaction at all… Robert Neville began talking to mannequins he set up at the DVD store to alleviate the feelings of loneliness and watching recorded television news. Every day, without fail he would broadcast to any non-infected survivors to come look for him at a pier at noon, when the sun is highest in the sky.

Throughout the movie, scenes from his past flashed back in his dreams - how he lost his family, how he lost everyone. It was no wonder he was no longer sane.

The only form of interaction he had was with his trusty and loyal dog, Sam. A beautiful German Shephard, she followed him wherever he wanted to go and instinctively knew to avoid dark areas where The Infected nested. The Infected monsters have a high rate of respiration, possess super human abilities and were completely devoid of bodily hair. They were also allergic to the sun (or more specifically, UV rays) which explained why Robert Neville and Sam dared to venture out during the day and boarded up tightly in the heavily modified home at night.

What I find surprising is the zombies in this movie. Unlike Resident Evil, the zombies here are intelligent (like real humans) only with insatiable appetite for flesh and blood. They have hierarchy. They learn to set up traps. They probably even love.

The most heartbreaking moment for me was when Sam saved Robert’s life by sparring with infected dogs. She had been so loyal, so protective… to have her turned in the end and when Robert was forced to suffocate her… was something I couldn’t cope for a while. I literally had to recollect and gather myself after watching that scene. And yes, I even cried. T_T

This isn’t what you call a happy movie. It shows resolution, love and hope that someday things may be different again. If you like fluff, better steer clear of this one, especially if you love dogs and can’t bear to see them die. On my part, I was totally unprepared for this and let’s just say that I was very surprised. And then some.

For those seeking a happier ending, there may be hope for you yet. Released only on DVD, an alternative ending may be included. You can read about it here under… what else? Alternative Ending.

I need a fluffy movie after this to detox. :\

This is old news but still raging over HK at the moment. Recently uncensored and naughty photos of Edison Chen, Gillian Chung and Cecilia Cheung has been plastered all over the internet in varying degrees of… kid-friendliness. Oh who am I kidding? It’s not kid-friendly at all whether it’s mosaic-ed or not!

WARNING: VERY NSFW!!!! (NOT SAFE FOR WORK)

XiaXue blogged about it with her usual humorous comments
Cowboy Caleb’s NSFW photos (uncensored)
Cecilia Cheung’s photos followed soon after
Here are all the photos in one location

What Happened After That?

Since I don’t live in HK I can’t really go around buying newspapers and scanning them here, only what I can get online.

Edison did not comment for a few days regarding this matter, but broke his silence on his blog yesterday.

Latest update today: Raunchy photos of Joey Yung (who has no history whatsoever with Edison Chen) surfaced alongside news of Gillian and Cecilia. Link here.

I got most of my gist (but you know how rumours are - don’t know they’re true or not) from comments left by readers on Cowboy Caleb’s site, so read them if you want more details. But…. take it with a pinch of salt, as usual.

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