‘I Am Legend’ Doesn’t Live Up to its Name
Will Smith carries the latest, decent adaptation of the influential novel
written by Akiva Goldsman and Mark Protosevich
directed by Francis Lawrence
I’m not a big reader, but Richard Matheson’s classic novel, I Am Legend, is my favorite book. It’s been acclaimed by and influential to everyone from Stephen King to George Romero. Studios have tried to adapt the story to film on multiple occasions, most notably in 1964 with The Last Man on Earth and 1971 with The Omega Man. The former is a great film with Vincent Price that doesn’t stray too far from the source material, while the latter, starring Charlton Heston, is a cheesy picture that deviates from the novel quite a bit. 2007 brings us I Am Legend with Will Smith as the last man on earth, but he’s not alone.
In 2009 a “cure” for cancer was found and praised as one of mankind’s greatest discoveries. It turns out to be a virus, however, and wipes out 90% of the world’s population. While 1% of people are immune, the remaining inhabitants become infected. The “night seekers” crave blood but are burned by ultraviolet light and therefore do their hunting at night. It’s three years later, and Robert Neville (Smith), a former military virologist, is the sole survivor in New York City (as opposed to the novel’s Los Angeles) and, perhaps, the world. His only companion is Sam, his German Shepherd. By day he searches for food (non-perishables and the occasional deer), talks to mannequins, rents and watches movies (he loves Shrek), and transmits a radio broadcast seeking fellow survivors. Prior to nightfall he must return home and lock up, where he performs experiments on infected test subjects that he catches in an attempt to find a cure.
The movie starts off strong as we observe how Neville copes with the situation, interspersed with flashbacks to the quarantine of Manhattan where we meet Neville’s family, but about halfway through things slowly go downhill, resulting in a rather disappointing final act. The overall tone of the film shifts with the introduction of new characters. I don’t want to go into detail for those of you have plan to see the film, but the muddled ending is a bit of a disappointment, although it’s not as bad as it could have been.
The film has little relation to its source material other than the title, Neville’s name, and the general plot. It’s closer to a remake of The Omega Man with some modern, 28 Days Later influence. Thankfully it’s not as lame this time. The infected are less like vampires/zombies, and there is little focus on Neville’s hunt to take them out, but rather his experiments to save them. That’s an acceptable change, but unfortunately the night seekers are computer generated. They look decent as far as CGI people go, but I think it would have been far more effective to see a human mutated with make up, since these beings were supposed to be human not too long ago. Simply put, they just aren’t scary. The other CGI isn’t bad, thankfully. There are some animals that are pretty well done, and the destruction and decay of the post-apocalyptic Big Apple look good, thanks to the cinematography of Andrew Lesnie (The Lord of the Rings trilogy).
While the monsters aren’t as frightening as they could be, the movie still has it’s moments of terror. Aside from a handful of jump scares, we get some great, tense scenes, such as when Sam wonders into a “hive” and we get our first glimpse of the infected. Although this particular scene ran a little long, director Francis Lawrence (Constantine) knows how to build the suspense and have it pay off.
The role of Neville calls for someone who can carry a movie, and thankfully The Fresh Prince does just that. On the surface it’s a pretty typical role for him as the bad ass hero, but this is a more emotional performance. We do get a little touch of humor, such as when Neville tries to get Sam to eat her vegetables, but Smith also manages to be convincingly somber as the strain of being the only living being takes its toll. However, the film turns the overall sullen tone of the novel into another action hero tale. Still, it’s impressive of Smith to do such a big role justice, in what I believe is his best performance since Ali. The dog who played Sam was extremely well trained, as it seemed to actually act rather than just perform.
I Am Legend has its faults, from plot holes to minor discrepancies, but with elements of many genres — horror, action, drama, thriller, sci-fi, and others — it’s a good popcorn flick. It may not be legendary, but it’s still a decent film that will hold me over until we finally get a true adaptation of the book.
Horror 101 gives I Am Legend a 69 out of 101
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Disappointing. I’ll see it anyways.
[...] the highest opening for a Sill Smith picture, and the largest December weekend debut. Read our review to find out if it’s worth the [...]
For those interested, Armando and myself are having a roundtable discussion about the film, which will be posted soon.
I Am Legend is a great horror movie there are some disappointing parts of the movie like the humans that were had the virus could have look more Disgusting.but other than that it was a good horror movie.i would give it a 9/10
and it didnt really show you how the people got the virus or what they really are.
[...] Warner Home Video will release I Am Legend on DVD March 18th in both single-disc and two-disc editions. Both will include four animated comics and DVD-Rom features, while the special edition will also have an alternate theatrical version of the film with a “controversial” ending. I’m interested in the alternate ending, but I’d like to see featurettes on the effects and whatnot. I wouldn’t be surprised if they double dipped down the road. You can see the art for each version over at DVD Active and read our review of the film here. [...]
[...] Am Legend, the record-breaking, Will Smith-starring novel adaptation. You can read my review of it here as well as a roundtable discussion here. Also noteworthy is the release of the After Dark [...]
[...] Warner Bros. will be releasing an ‘Ultimate Collector’s Edition’ box set of I Am Legend later this year on DVD and Blu-ray, according to Digital Bits. The set will include an alternate version of the film with the “controversial ending,” all-new special features such as a new filmmaker commentary, deleted scenes, “iconic” premium collectible items and more. Stay tuned for the official release date. Read our review of the Richard Matheson adaption here. [...]
[...] Will Smith to Return for ‘I Am Legend’ Prequel Director Francis Lawrence has confirmed that he is working on a prequel to I Am Legend, his 2007 horror hit adaptation of the Richard Matheson novel. It’s no surprise that another film is in the works, given that the first broke records. I’m happy to report that Will Smith, who was fantastic in the original, will return as Dr. Robert Neville. I don’t know what part of the story they will tell, considering we saw most of Neville’s backstory in flashbacks, but it seems that as though are only in the very early stages of planning. You can read our review of the first film here. [...]