I Am Legend

I Robot in the flesh… so to speak, okay I am just kidding. Will Smith versus stiff CG things… Robot or vampire zombie thing, it all seems the same. The passion of Will Smith’s acting, the dark foreboding nature of the story… The world coming to an end, but let’s stop dwelling on the similarities and delve into I am Legend

I Am Legend is a story that has been told many times before in films, adapted from the book of the same name… we have seen it as The Last Man on Earth with Vincent Price and Omega Man with Charleston Heston. This version stars Will Smith as Robert Neville, a soldier turned scientist who is seemingly the sole human survivor of a massive viral outbreak. The virus, which was originally meant as a cure for man’s fatal diseases turns out to be the cause of 90% of the human race dying and the majority of the rest becoming blood seeking zombies (Vampires in the original tale). Robert has lost everything to the virus and we are treated to beautiful shots of his daily life coupled with his beloved dog Samantha. I must pause here in the plot synopsis to remark on how beautifully portrayed the relationship between Samantha and Robert was. Will Smith does a remarkable job in these scenes and any viewer can relate to the deep, deep need and love these two creatures have for one another and it is hard to even explain it in writing because it was done so well.

This movie becomes difficult to review based on certain elements being spoilers for new viewers, so I will sum it up by saying the acting overall was phenomenal. Aside from the man/dog love and the cool story driving it, I must say that without a doubt, the budget must have been spent on cinematography. Ruined and devastated New York sends a chill through you in every scene. The props looked so real, I felt that the camera crew went into an alternate reality and filmed the movie to capture the emotion. The music was decent and the sound sent chills down my spine. One of the best scenes had Robert searching frantically for his lost Samantha inside a dark abandoned building, the camera following his every move and emotion as he shone the light and quickly covers it in anticipation of something coming to take his life. I Am Legend caters heavily on the deep thought crowd with enough crazy events to get the action fan kicking.

The fact that this film targets a deep thought of “what if” in the audience, makes me confused as to the direction that was taken with the vamps. Gone are the intelligent, mysterious blood suckers of the older films and books and in there place enters the stereotypical dumb zombie of Night of The Living Dead. Why! When the credits rolled at the end, it felt as if a huge chunk of goodness was unfairly lifted from this movie due to the way the bad guys were portrayed. The CG on them looked extremely awful, worst than any CG zombie I’ve seen in awhile and their movement was jerky and extremely unnatural. Think Resident Evil with a lower budget. I was very disappointed in the antagonist side of I Am Legend.

So to sum it up, the Cinematography was awesome, the acting was very good and the direction was carried out gracefully. Unfortunately the story was compromised for crappy CG dullards and the music left something to be desired. It is definitely worth seeing, but make sure you eat something first, since this will be a light meal leaving you wanting more after the credits roll.

Written by Greg Dragon – who has written 365 reviews on Spicy Movie Dogs.

Cinephile and opinion writer, Greg Dragon has been a fan of movies since the 80's when Kung Fu theater was all the rage and Roger Moore was James Bond. As an opinion writer that has reviewed Box Office releases on a number of prominent websites, Greg is the founder and lead critic of Spicy Movie Dogs.