I Am Legend was released in 2007, and directed by Francis Lawrence, a relative newcomer to the directing business, who's only other piece of work worth mentioning was Constantine. The movie is based on a 1954 novel by Richard Matheson, which has been adapted for the silver screen twice before, as The Last Man on Earth in 1964, and as The Omega Man in 1971. The movie stars Will Smith in the lead role, and also features his daughter, Willow Smith, in a bit-part role.
Scientist Dr Robert Neville (Will Smith), fails to prevent the spread of a man-made, incurable, deadly virus, that is released into the air of New York City. As the city is vacated, Neville decides to stay in order to attempt to created a cure for the virus that he feels partly responsible for. During the mayhem of the evacuation, Neville sees his family perish in a helicopter crash.
Three years later, Neville, who is somehow immune to the deadly virus, is the sole survivor in what is left of New York City, and maybe the world. Although he is the sole-survivor, he is not alone. The infected, who failed to evacuate, have genetically mutated into blood-thirsty creatures, who lurk in the shadows. Neville, using his own immune blood, continues to work on a cure for the virus, in the hope of reversing the effects it has had on the infected. As the infected become more knowledgable and daring, Neville faces a race against time to find the cure, before he becomes their victim.
I have very much mixed feelings about this film. Having been a big fan of The Omega Man, and also of Will Smith, I really wanted to enjoy this film, and to be honest I did, but maybe not to the degree I had hoped. This is a really good movie, however there are many features in the film that could have been better, and could have made the film the blockbuster that it should have been.
There are three key elements to this film, that in my opinion, almost ruin it. Firstly, the movie is too short, at around 1h30m, it feels as though as soon as the film gets going, it's over already. Also, the CGI used to create the infected creatures in the film, is almost laughable at times. I have seen better CGI used in movies over 10 years ago, so there is no excuse for the awful quality used in this movie. Finally, the ending is very dissapointing. The brief and sudden ending that occurs, leaves me feeling that something has been left out, and asking more questions than I have had answers for. There is an alternative ending that I have seen, which I feel is slightly better, however not to the extent that it leaves me feeling satisfied.
It is a real shame that these faults occur in the movie, as there is also a lot of positives in the film. Will Smith is, as always, very dependable in an action movies, and in this film, he is no different. The stunning visual effects of an abandoned, somewhat ruined downtown New York City, is brilliant. The movie does manage to create a lot of tension, especially as Dr Robert Neville becomes involved in a game of cat and mouse with the infected, although I don't feel that it matched up to the tension levels of The Omega Man. There is definitely something missing in this film, that The Omega Man had.
Despite all the cons, there are definitely enough pro's to make this film a really good watch. Possibly, people who have not seen The Omega Man or The Last Man on Earth, will find the film even more pleasing. I have seen the film on a couple of occassions now, and I do feel that it seemed slightly better each time I did. I would definitely recommend this movie, however I would suggest that you do not go into it expecting too much.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
i love this movie. but i heard that there are two different endings of this movie..
EVIT 12.10.2008 13:04
Great review. I didn't particularly like the film, hated the CGI monsters and the ending. As a fan of Matheson I disliked the ending big time. Of all the three adaptation this one is definitely the worst... I wonder why no one ever did the ending like in the book. It's a great ending, they probably think it's not good enough for cinema. Mah!?
JenJen1982 16.09.2008 09:32
Really good review, although the film dragged out a bit for me
It seems strange to find a 1954 vampire novel in Millennium's "SF Masterworks" classic ... more
reprints series. I Am Legend, though, was a trailblazing and later much imitated story that reinvented the vampire myth as SF. Without losing the horror, it presen...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
It seems strange to find a 1954 vampire novel in Millennium's "SF Masterworks" classic ... more
reprints series.I Am Legend, though, was a trailblazing and later much imitated story that reinvented the vampire myth as SF. Without losing the horror, it present...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
It seems strange to find a 1954 vampire novel in Millennium's "SF Masterworks" classic ... more
reprints series.I Am Legend, though, was a trailblazing and later much imitated story that reinvented the vampire myth as SF. Without losing the horror, it present...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
It seems strange to find a 1954 vampire novel in Millennium's "SF Masterworks" classic ... more
reprints series. I Am Legend, though, was a trailblazing and later much imitated story that reinvented the vampire myth as SF. Without losing the horror, it presen...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Advantages: Good set design, good acting. Story line had potential to be good. Disadvantages: The way the film is filmed is too similar to alot of other films, why make this film???
stephbond89 07.09.2009 ·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of I Am Legend (DVD)
Advantages: Stark portrayal of the madness of loneliness and terror Disadvantages: A bit slow, fails to take the risks of not being quite so mainstream
Calypte 01.05.2008 (01.05.2008)
·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of I Am Legend (DVD)
Aug 25th, 2008
exceptional by (3%):
very helpful by (97%):
