I Am Legend (B or 3/4 stars)
Robert Neville (Will Smith) is a genius scientist, but even 'he' could not contain an awful virus that was ravaging the population of the world. This virus was created by a female doctor who thought she'd found the cure to Cancer (well-played by Emma Thompson). Having acquired immunity, Neville is the last known human survivor in what is left of Manhattan, and perhaps the world. 'Human', I say; not species. He is surrounded by 'infecteds' who can only exist in the dark. Neville wants to correct mankind's mistake before any hope for a zombie-less world is lost forever. Will Smith is great, here. And the 1st 2/3's of the film is engrossing. Even the missteps (late in the film) couldn't prevent me from really enjoying Francis Lawrence's 'I Am Legend'.
NYC, 2012: The most deserted looking place on the planet. Never thought you'd see that written down, heh? Right off the bat, the film will drop your jaw to your chest by creating an incredibly realistic depopulated city; great special effects here. Half-hung billboards, tall grass, fleeting animals (all romping through Times Square, etc.). We quickly learn that Neville, an ex-military scientist, is partly to blame for what has happened (since 2009's outbreak). The cure for Cancer had mutated & spread. These carnivorous 'infecteds' had devoured/infected everything. So for 3 yrs., Neville had barricaded himself in his apartment every night, and would spend his days scavenging for food & supplies with his faithful dog, Sam. Desperate for human life, he'd even speak to mannequins for friendship.
Neville is sad & lonely. Sad, because we see, in flashback, the demise of the human race, including his loving family. Barely sane, Neville even rents DVDs of old news programs so that the sound of the human voice rings through his padlocked apartment. He uses a private lab in the basement of his apartment to continue research on the disease. Neville sets up traps all over the city, is able to catch the gnashing infecteds, & then injects them with several disease-reversal compounds; of course, he hasn't been successful, yet. With dangerous infecteds lurking in the shadows, can Neville survive? Can his dog? Are there any other humans alive who can aid or keep him company? As mankind's last hope, will Neville be able to find the elusive cure to the deadly outbreak before it's too late?
Will Smith's turn as Dr. Neville is effortless here; it almost puts him in Oscar contention. Because he's outnumbered by the infecteds, we feel his desperation, his psychological torment, his pain, & the memories that haunt him (flashback sequences to the ferocious end of the world as He knows it). The first hour of the film is a wonderful nightmare, for him, and for us (to experience). I can't properly convey in this review how haunting, eerie, & awesome it is to watch a sort of war torn, emptied Manhattan. Various action/CGI sequences in this hour are handled extremely well. The tension in all the 'who's the hunter, who's the hunted?' segments is quite palpable. In general, 'I Am Legend' passes the grade as a futuristic allegory, a zombie thriller, & also as a one-man-against-the-world genre film.
But it does have its' minor issues. While most of the effects (and action sequences) are top notch ... the zombies, themselves, look like video game creatures. They aren't scary, AT ALL. And that's a huge problem when it comes to a movie with a plot such as this one. In fact, I don't know why they had to be CGI-ed creatures, at all. The mystique that's created in the first 30 min. or so starts to dwindle as soon as the cheap-looking zombies show up. The other problem is that the script takes a turn in the end. Once scientifically sound & emotionally immersive, the last 30 min. becomes slightly schlocky. Once an introspective, acutely Sci-Fi experience, 'I Am Legend' then debases itself into a TOO-fast-paced monster flick; where the climax is quite cliched. It's like we get 2 movies in one, and the 1st one is far superior. STILL, it's the kind of movie that drives the masses into the theaters, and the overall outcome is more than satisfying.
NYC, 2012: The most deserted looking place on the planet. Never thought you'd see that written down, heh? Right off the bat, the film will drop your jaw to your chest by creating an incredibly realistic depopulated city; great special effects here. Half-hung billboards, tall grass, fleeting animals (all romping through Times Square, etc.). We quickly learn that Neville, an ex-military scientist, is partly to blame for what has happened (since 2009's outbreak). The cure for Cancer had mutated & spread. These carnivorous 'infecteds' had devoured/infected everything. So for 3 yrs., Neville had barricaded himself in his apartment every night, and would spend his days scavenging for food & supplies with his faithful dog, Sam. Desperate for human life, he'd even speak to mannequins for friendship.
Neville is sad & lonely. Sad, because we see, in flashback, the demise of the human race, including his loving family. Barely sane, Neville even rents DVDs of old news programs so that the sound of the human voice rings through his padlocked apartment. He uses a private lab in the basement of his apartment to continue research on the disease. Neville sets up traps all over the city, is able to catch the gnashing infecteds, & then injects them with several disease-reversal compounds; of course, he hasn't been successful, yet. With dangerous infecteds lurking in the shadows, can Neville survive? Can his dog? Are there any other humans alive who can aid or keep him company? As mankind's last hope, will Neville be able to find the elusive cure to the deadly outbreak before it's too late?
Will Smith's turn as Dr. Neville is effortless here; it almost puts him in Oscar contention. Because he's outnumbered by the infecteds, we feel his desperation, his psychological torment, his pain, & the memories that haunt him (flashback sequences to the ferocious end of the world as He knows it). The first hour of the film is a wonderful nightmare, for him, and for us (to experience). I can't properly convey in this review how haunting, eerie, & awesome it is to watch a sort of war torn, emptied Manhattan. Various action/CGI sequences in this hour are handled extremely well. The tension in all the 'who's the hunter, who's the hunted?' segments is quite palpable. In general, 'I Am Legend' passes the grade as a futuristic allegory, a zombie thriller, & also as a one-man-against-the-world genre film.
But it does have its' minor issues. While most of the effects (and action sequences) are top notch ... the zombies, themselves, look like video game creatures. They aren't scary, AT ALL. And that's a huge problem when it comes to a movie with a plot such as this one. In fact, I don't know why they had to be CGI-ed creatures, at all. The mystique that's created in the first 30 min. or so starts to dwindle as soon as the cheap-looking zombies show up. The other problem is that the script takes a turn in the end. Once scientifically sound & emotionally immersive, the last 30 min. becomes slightly schlocky. Once an introspective, acutely Sci-Fi experience, 'I Am Legend' then debases itself into a TOO-fast-paced monster flick; where the climax is quite cliched. It's like we get 2 movies in one, and the 1st one is far superior. STILL, it's the kind of movie that drives the masses into the theaters, and the overall outcome is more than satisfying.