Film Review: I Am Legend
A few nights ago I went to the midnight showing of I Am Legend with a few friends. I love the midnight showing atmosphere from the excitement and anticipation to the great crowd reactions. The trailer for the movie had me really excited, but many films within the last year have been huge disappointments (my last midnight showing was Spider-Man 3). Was Legend any different?
I Am Legend stars the Fresh Prince himself as Robert Neville, a scientist living in New York. As the trailer very simply states, Will Smith is playing the last man on earth. A virus has wiped out everything, leaving Neville entirely alone, save his dog Sam.
The story actually is based on the book of the same name. After reading the Wikipedia article I found out that is a very loosely based adaption. Whereas the books deals with vampires, the movie is simply biological. Neville is still trying to find a cure for the virus that wiped out the entire planet, three years after New York City was quarantined (unsuccessfully).
The film has plenty that it does very well. For one, the suspense is excellent. I recalled memories of Sunshine as each scene reached its highest point. As Neville patrols the barren city of New York we get a sense of how devastating the virus was. Every time he has an encounter with an infected human, you will be on the edge of your seat the whole time. The only problem is that the infected humans are created with horrible CGI that takes a little away from the gravity of each scene. I would have preferred they go with actors and make them a little more human; the movie would have benefitted greatly in my opinion.
I enjoyed the non-action scenes in which we got to really understand Smith’s character. The actual plot was in many ways secondary to the exploration of Robert Neville, and honestly I wish there was even more focus in this regard. I also love the way that we learned key parts of the plot through Neville’s memory.
The last quarter of the film stands in stark contrast to the first three, mainly because it switches its focus from Neville to the overarching story. I definitely preferred the first portion, but even with its weaknesses the film ends strong. I Am Legend is a decent science-fiction film, but it could have been a lot better. If you want to go to the theater it is a solid choice, but you are not missing anything by waiting for the DVD.
7/10
