My wife and I were in a "USA Original Movie", so I have a special fondness for these, usually made on a tight budget and shooting schedule. "Evolution's Child" presents a very novel premise - sperm from a frozen 3000-yr-old man from the Bronze Age is taken for DNA study. Strictly accidentally it is used for an 'in vitro' fertilization, and the mix-up isn't discovered until the mother is several months pregnant, too late to do anything. From this start, the film could have gone in a variety of different directions.
Turns out the frozen man was an ancient "doctor", perhaps a Shaman. The young boy, conveniently named "Adam", shows multiple antibodies in his bloodstream - small pox, bubonic plague, rabies - that could only be explained by his heredity, although I didn't think those sorts of things could be passed on this way. He also has visions, and hears sounds, of the ancient way of life. He has an unusual ability to communicate with animals - the gaze of a cat, a "whistle" sound that can attract fish, or calm fighting dogs. He "heals" a lady's headache by touching her temple.
For a while it looks like only the doctor involved will know the truth. However, his office and computer hard-drive are robbed, and soon the whole world finds out, and want to study the boy. So the doctor runs away with Adam, to try and protect both of them.
CAUTION -- SPOILERS FOLLOW -- Adam gets very sick from a common virus. His system cannot fight it off and he becomes gravely ill. (I don't know why he didn't get immunity from his mom??) The doctor is sorry for never telling the parents, everyone is sad, the boy tells his parents he loves them, he dies, the doctor gets arrested,
I feel the script took the easy way out. It would have been much more difficult to handle his surviving and growing old with his interesting powers, but also much more interesting, and perhaps much, much longer. Imagine how it would have been if the "Superman" series had been handled this way, if the young Clark Kent had died. This concept could easily have been taken all the way as a series of films, or perhaps a new TV series. Oh, well...
Pretty good film, that falls way short of its potential, I rate it "4" of 10 for concept.
Turns out the frozen man was an ancient "doctor", perhaps a Shaman. The young boy, conveniently named "Adam", shows multiple antibodies in his bloodstream - small pox, bubonic plague, rabies - that could only be explained by his heredity, although I didn't think those sorts of things could be passed on this way. He also has visions, and hears sounds, of the ancient way of life. He has an unusual ability to communicate with animals - the gaze of a cat, a "whistle" sound that can attract fish, or calm fighting dogs. He "heals" a lady's headache by touching her temple.
For a while it looks like only the doctor involved will know the truth. However, his office and computer hard-drive are robbed, and soon the whole world finds out, and want to study the boy. So the doctor runs away with Adam, to try and protect both of them.
CAUTION -- SPOILERS FOLLOW -- Adam gets very sick from a common virus. His system cannot fight it off and he becomes gravely ill. (I don't know why he didn't get immunity from his mom??) The doctor is sorry for never telling the parents, everyone is sad, the boy tells his parents he loves them, he dies, the doctor gets arrested,
I feel the script took the easy way out. It would have been much more difficult to handle his surviving and growing old with his interesting powers, but also much more interesting, and perhaps much, much longer. Imagine how it would have been if the "Superman" series had been handled this way, if the young Clark Kent had died. This concept could easily have been taken all the way as a series of films, or perhaps a new TV series. Oh, well...
Pretty good film, that falls way short of its potential, I rate it "4" of 10 for concept.