I Am Legend

The story, for those uninfected, is about what is essentially the last man on earth and how he not only copes with his own inevitable demise, but that of mankind. Which is not to say that everyone is laid to rest…

Robert Neville (Will Smith) is not alone. After a scientific accident induces a deadly plague from end to end of the earth, most die — but some survive in a cannibalistic zombie-like state, while just a handful of others are immune. But as far as Robert, a Manhattan scientist, knows, it's just him and his faithful German Shepherd Sam (played by Abby) against the brutal new world and its hellbent inhabitants. Robert does his level best to find a cure, but it's not easy when all you've got to eat is brain-blanding pre-packaged white rice and your only confidantes are empty-eyed mannequins from the city's department stores.

This is the third big screen adaptation of the legendary Richard Matheson's 1954 novella of the same name, and I Am Legend has a lot going for it. First of all, it's a great story. It's scary. Secondly, Will Smith brings pathos, gravitas and humor to the role of Robert Neville (Vincent Price played him maudlin in 1964's The Last Man On Earth, while Charlton Heston played him kick-ass in 1971's The Omega Man). Finally, DP Andrew Lesnie (Peter Jackson's lenser of choice) has a flair for the creepy claustrophobic contrasted with the vistas of devastation.

Smith is perhaps a little too familiar as himself in the humorous and lighter moments, but the entirety of his characterization is as close to flawless as anything I have seen in the genre pic this year. I felt for Robert and now even weeks after having seen the film, I can still remember many of the nuances of Smith's performance — in my usual vortex of forgettable film screenings, this is rare indeed.

However… There is a fine line between foreshadowing and broadcasting and unfortunately, director Francis Lawrence (2005's Constantine, and numerous music videos for pop tarts such as J-Lo and Britney) does not seem to know where that line lies. In I Am Legend, Lawrence lets us know when the scares are coming every New York minute and with all the subtlety of a huckster outside a Times Square strip joint circa 1972.

In addition to the M-TV school of direction, I Am Legend suffers badly from a case of CGI puppy love. Robert and his German Shepherd are basically the only real living things in the movie, as everything from infected humans to Robert's lab rats are pixilated to the point of ocular rape.

Some of the other problems lie in logic. On Robert's transpo alone — how does he find all those empty streets to drive on? Why does he park in front of his residence? Why don't the zombies siphon his gas tank? — the questions will have your mind in overdrive. But that's nitpicking. I'm willing to suspend disbelief on stuff like that.

For me, I Am Legend had so many peaks (acting, story) and valleys (direction, CGI) that it's nearly impossible to either recommend or discount. I'm feeling very Dickensian about it ("It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…"); I guess all I can say is: See it, and decide for yourself.

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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson