Caltex

I've always thought that Zombies were a play on the Rabies virus. Made 100X worse, with the undead spin. Rabies causes aggression, insomnia, hallucinations, and the increased aggression can lead to what could be seen as "super strength".

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Wraith

I also thought the book did a better job of showing the effects of being "the last man on earth". His desire to kill the vampire that called for him to come out every night becoming obsession. His desperate need for companionship, first with the dog, and with Ruth. It really highlighted better the constant sense of Neville's total isolation. If anyone hasn't read it, I highly recommend it.

P.S. Omega Man really wasn't that bad for its day and age, but it was only very loosely based on the novel.

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"Oh people, know that you have committed great sins. If you ask me what proof I have for these words, I say it is because I am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you!" -- Genghis Khan, Bukhara 1220

defenderofthesmall

yeah i think the book does the whole stages of grieve for the loss of humanity better, and also when the dog he tries to be freinds with dies thatsssssss so sad

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If it can happen it will

Sebelius for VP, not Hillary

Wraith,

I sent you a PM. Please check your PM box. Thanks. Sorry for interrupting the thread. I will delete this post later.


WEB

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Forum Rule 3: Discuss the Issue, not your opponent.

Change

It is not completely a fact, 28 hours, superhuman abilities, 'zombiefication', that is not possible but a virus that wipes out the world is.

It should be "played" with but people should be careful and smarter with what they are doing, people that know what they are doing.

Future Leader

That is true, safe science is smart science, but a virus that can wipe out the world? I dont think it's possible. Virus like AIDS can't be stopped, but it doesnt spread fast enough to wipe us out. Take a contrast like ebola, ebola can kill its host in less then a week, it kills its host before any real spreading can happen, kinda like grass fires in Africa, they burn out too fast.

LiveUninhibited

AIDS is usually spread through voluntary actions that many consider immoral. One exception was hemophiliacs, esp. when the syndrome first became "prevalent" in America, so there would always be a significant proportion of the population sheltered from it.

As for ebola, yes it's true that a virus that could cause a widespread pandemic would need a long incubation period, probably years. And it would need to be airborne or otherwise easily spread by casual contact. Even then, I'm sure there would be populations in the world sheltered from it, and the meek really would inherit the earth.

But note that a long incubation period makes viruses poor for weaponized purposes, so at least it is unlikely that such a virus would come from our government.

The Misanthrope

I think advancements in science are quite capable of killing off humanity, are at least a large portion of it. When you create and play with bigger and better toys, that is always going to be a frightening possibility.

I think they included the book's original ending in the DVD release of the movie. I heard they scrapped the book's ending because it was controversial for some reason, which implies that wantonly killing each other is less controversial than understanding each other.

That, and there is always the possibility that some portion of humanity can survive the virus, adapt to it after millions and millions of years, and ultimately incorporate it into their anatomy. I could be wrong though.

Freedom Rider

"The Last Man On Earth", the 1964 film with Vincent Price, is the best version. (its definitely the one that's closest to the book, anyway, although its still a bit different from the book).