I Am Legend

Year: 2007
Director: Francis Lawrence
Cast: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Dash Mihok

I Am Legend apparently is the third adaptation of Richard Matheson's novel, about a man being the sole survivor of a virus that wiped out everyone on earth. It is a fascinating concept, though not really unfamiliar in this age, thanks to Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later.

Will Smith, everyone's favourite action hero, plays Robert Neville, a military scientist who was given the task of stopping a deadly virus, that spawned from a miracle cure for cancer that went bad. He failed. The virus wiped out billions of humans on earth, and the ones that didn't perish became flesh eating creatures that come out after dark.

Neville is immune to the virus, so he is the lone survivor, occupying New York City all by himself, with only his faithful dog, Sam for company. It's been 3 years since the infection hit, and he still can't find a cure. When he's not working on the antidote, he spends his time hunting, going to the DVD store, searching for fuel and provisions and waiting for any other survivors to answer his radio signal for contact. At night, he barricades his home and hides from the infected ones, scurrying for food in the dark outside.

Eventually he makes contact with a woman and a child, but their presence puts him at risk, as the infected discover his whereabouts.....

Credit goes to director Francis Lawrence for making a movie that isn't boring at all. It's a familiar idea to show on screen, but he manages to make it exciting, nail-biting, suspenseful, dramatic and heart-rending, and not necessarily in that order. Akiva Goldsman, the Oscar winning screenwriter, also deserves credit for the good dialogue, and inserting several funny moments, not least of which is a scene where Neville watches Shrek on TV. Also impressive is the set design, where the filmmakers convincingly turn the city that never sleeps to one that looks like it has slept for a long time. The streets are empty, filled with wild grass, cars are strewn all over, animals run wild on the roads.....if you've watched 28 Days Later, you'll know what I mean.

Smith does a great job playing Neville, as he conveys his character's sadness, disbelief and loneliness convincingly. However, I can't help but feel that in the hands of a different actor, we might have had a better portrayal. Smith is good, no doubt about it. But in Neville's shoes, he's just like most of the guys he's played on screen, the ones that can laugh in the face of despair. I will give him credit for his effort though.

Another bone I have to pick with the film is the CGI used to show the infected. In 28 Days Later (sorry for the repetitive comparisons), the infected are real extras with makeup effects, and very convincingly done. In here, the infected look like video game monsters, and kinda like distant cousins of the creatures in The Descent. Lawrence, who made the excellent Constantine, should have stuck with real, blood pumping actors for his film. It definitely would have made a difference.

I'm kind enough to give it a 4 star rating for its tremendous effort, but if you want a better action horror film in the same vein, try 28 Days Later. (4/5)