I hate when moviegoers rant about how disappointed they always are at Hollywood adaptations of popular novels. “It wasn’t as good as the book”, they say, while continuing to nitpick at every single detail. Here’s a revelation, genius. Maybe that’s because you and the director are two different people who don’t share the same imagination. The beauty of books is that everything unfolds in your head as you choose to see it. So of course you’re going to be disappointed when a movie’s visuals don’t match your own.
Now, I don’t claim to have read Richard Matheson’s “I Am Legend” (yet), but I have read countless other books-turned-movies and have, at times, been genuinely disappointed with the direction, pace, or flow of certain box office versions, but not enough to deny the film’s primary objective of entertaining audiences – the majority of which are not book readers. That is exactly what the newest screen version of I Am Legend accomplishes though it still harbors a few imperfections.
Robert Neville, a military scientist, is faced with the burdening task of finding a cure for a virus originally meant to cure cancer. This virus, however, is not without its adverse effects, eliminating a large percentage of the world’s population and creating vampire-like creatures out of those who escape death’s stranglehold. Neville is the only one immune to the virus and, assumingly, the last man on earth. Accompanied by his loyal canine companion, Samantha, they cruise the desolate streets of New York by day as hunter-gatherers and confine themselves in Neville’s fortified town-home by night to avoid any unnecessary skirmishes with the mutated darkseekers.
The opening images portraying New York as a silent metropolis (save a cacophony of insects and a few chirping birds) are quite unnerving although it relies largely on effects to depict decaying buildings which ruin the scene’s overall realism. “28 Days Later” did a much better job of it with London as their backdrop. Rent the latter and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
The other oddity of this film was the presence of an actual villain. Though we are never told his name or how he rose to the ranks of alpha human-eater, his dominance is undeniable. But the decision to institute a villainous leader is pretty ridiculous, especially for a species that has supposedly lost all traces of human qualities. It gives the movie more of a comic book feel that further detracts from its believability.
Another notable disappointment: Sally Richardson is no longer as hot as she was in “A Low Down Dirty Shame”. Sigh.
But despite its few drawbacks, “I Am Legend” succeeds in establishing a relationship between viewer and protagonist thanks to another outstanding performance by Will Smith. Absent are the corny jokes and annoying quips that have played a hand in launching his career. Instead, we find an actor acting his butt off alongside a dog and a handful of mannequins. Because of this, the viewer can’t help but be drawn to Smith’s character. You feel his pain from losing his family, you feel his loneliness, you understand his madness, and in an endearing moment at the video store, you feel his loyalty to Samantha.
“Legend’s” director, Francis Lawrence, also does a good job of working the elements of light and dark to play with the audience’s emotions. In this case, light represents safety and darkness epitomizes fear. The most dramatic instance of this (for me) was Neville’s intestinal fortitude to leave the asylum of day in order to save Samantha from her misstep into a pitch, black warehouse. The audience’s sense of uneasiness heightens as Neville ventures deeper into the darkness and the light peering through the open doorway behind him slowly becomes a tiny speck of nothing. The old saying “Stay away from the light” couldn’t have been so wrong in this scenario. I still get goose bumps thinking about it.
But this is, by no means, a horror movie. This is an entertaining science fiction thriller where the terror emanates from the all-too-real fear of being alone. And given the fact that a loveable dog figures prominently in many scenes, expect there to be plenty of “Awwww!” moments too.
So to all the non-believers out there who are quick to push the book on others instead of the movie…go back to school, get a film degree, and make your own damn movie!
MUST OWN (when available on DVD)
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