Francis Lawrence directing his first film since 2005’s Constantine comes up with something special for I Am Legend. New York City, 2012 is visually stunning. The way in which Lawrence creates a world after an infection hits and destroys all of the world’s population, except for a sole survivor is breathtaking. Writers Akiva Goldsman, (who is behind such greats as, The Client, Batman Forever, A Time To Kill, A Beautiful Mind, I Robot, Cinderella Man, and The Da Vinci Code) teams up with screenwriter Mark Protesevish (The Cell, Poseidon) to make an eerie, suspenseful, dreadful, thriller, where Will Smith plays to perfection, yet again.
I Am Legend, based on the classic horror novel by writer Richard Matheson, stars Will Smith (The Pursuit Of Happyness, I Robot, Hitch, Independence Day, Bad Boys I and II) as Robert Neville, a brilliant scientist who is immune to the man-made, incurable, unstoppable infection that has plagued the world, leaving him as the only survivor on earth. Neville himself can not cure the virus no matter how in depth his procedures are, causing him to walk the streets of New York with only his trustworthy German Shepherd Sam for support. Daily, when the sun is highest in the sky, Neville broadcasts radio messages on all AM radio frequencies desperately looking for another survivor -anywhere in the world- that is immune to the infection like he is. After three years of searching, Neville figures no one is out there. However, the one thing that Robert Neville is sure of is, even though he is the last man of earth, he is not alone. In the darkness lie the infected. The infected mutants that used to be human populate the shadows, the alleys, and every other dark corner in New York City. Outnumbered, physically outmatched, and nearly out of time, Neville is mankind’s last hope to find the cure, and reverse the effects of the infection.
The first hour of this movie is not only astonishing, it is freaky. The loneliness that is slowly setting on Will Smith’s character begins to set on the audience (well, as least it did for me). His desire to be the one who saves the world is compelling. Knowing that he is the last hope of humanity drives him to do all in his power to accomplish that goal. The playful banter he exchanges with his trusty Shepherd Sam is hilarious and impressing. Also, as the days drag on, he slowly begins having full conversations with the mannequins that he has properly placed for the following day. All of these little additions into the story are priceless. These are not for comic relief –as funny as they sometimes are- they are more to show the audience how the loneliness has taken its toll on Neville and now there is no going back. As sad as it is for me to say, near the ends of the film, the story gets too into itself, causing it to slowly but surely fall apart. Leaving us with just another average thriller, instead of what could have been.
'Pat the Movie Guy' gives I Am Legend --- 3 Scoops
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