| I AM LEGEND |
 2007 - USADirector: Francis Lawrence
- Reviewed by Linda
Now, Will, who is strangely immune to the man-made virus, is the last man in New York. He speeds around in a fancy sports car (groan) while shooting at wild animals running through the streets. He "checks out" videos from his favorite video store, where he has propped up mannequins whom he pretends are regular customers and employees. He goes through other people's apartments looking for food, things, stuff. He has philosophical conversations with his dog. And he is sure to get home by dusk, so that he can lock himself and his dog in his armored fortress of a house. You see, when the shadows are long, then the dusk turns into night, that is when the monsters come out. But these monsters are human. At least they used to be. The rampant virus, however, has turned them into blood-thirsty beasties. Watch out, Will, watch out! Three years is a long time. Poor Will. And as a military scientist of some sort, he was partly responsible for this wonder cure, so he feels that it is his responsibility to "fix it". Experimenting on the beasties to cure them will only make them cranky though, so he'd better watch out. Ooops. Not to give anything away beyond that, from what I've heard, I Am Legend strays a bit from the original book source, and plot-wise is a bit different from the other two film incarnations of Richard Matheson's novel, The Omega Man (1971, starring Charlton Heston) and The Last Man on Earth (1964). I head read some negative remarks about this film, so my expectations were low, but I was surprised that I enjoyed the movie, and was actually quite moved by parts of it. Unlike many sci-fi/action thrillers of late, I Am Legend takes a bit of a different approach. There is no rap-metal propelling action scenes. There are no catch phrases that will leave you chuckling as you leave the theater. Surprisingly, the film is rather melancholy, with a somber and quiet score to match. I left the theater feeling rather bleak, surprised at the seriousness of the film. Yes, it strays a bit as soon as the story becomes a showdown between Will and the beasties, especially one particularly angry ringleader. And yes, the beasties look quite a bit CGI-ed when they are out in the open. But you can't help but root for Will and his dire situation. If you were in the same boat, you have to admit, it would be a good thing if Will Smith had your back. DVD NOTESThe single-disc version of I Am Legend on DVD has scant, yet curious extras. The only extra on the DVD itself are four animated "comics" expanding the lore of the story. They range from less than a couple minutes to around 10 minutes. The best of them is "Shelter" (which is only titled that from the menu), which takes place in New Delhi, India, following one family fleeing the plague by locking themselves in a shelter—and their grown daughter out. If you pop the DVD into your computer, you can watch two featurettes, "Cautionary Tale: The Science of I Am Legend" and "Creating I Am Legend"—however an internet connection is required. Even with a High Speed connection, you need to be patient. |
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Will Smith has now proven that he can basically carry a movie all by himself. Though I Am Legend doesn't go as far as Will having conversations with a volleyball named Wilson, through the majority of the film, Will is all there is. Oh, except for his Good Dog. Will and Sam the Dog are all alone in Manhattan, everyone's favorite site for futuristic and/or sci-fi disasters. It is a mere three years into the future, and a virus has wiped out literally all of humanity. Or at least the "human" part of humanity. In a wild grasp for a cure for cancer, a wonder drug has gone awry, and according to the snippets of news reports we are given, have basically turned into an accelerated form of rabies. Ooops.
