I Am Legend Review
Early on in "I Am Legend," it becomes clear that Will Smith is playing a very different type of character in the film. Gone are the tough-guy exuberance, wise-cracking wit and boyish charm of his previous movies like "Men In Black," "I, Robot," and the "Bad Boys" films. Smith plays Dr. Robert Neville, who is the last known survivor of the human race living in a deserted, post-apocalyptic Manhattan. Smith's Neville is a broken man, teetering on the edge of sanity and wracked with intense loneliness and guilt. He sets up mannequins and dummies across the city, dresses them up and talks to them as if they were real people. He treats his faithful German shepherd, Sam, like a human being, engaging in imaginary conversations. He is terrified of the dark -with good reason - and sleeps at night in a bathtub, cowering in a fetal position with Sam. He lives in a regimented, prison-like existence, but at any given moment throughout the movie, you get the feeling that Neville is on the verge of a complete breakdown.
It's this character and Smith's performance that separates "I Am Legend" from nearly every other horror-themed action film in recent memory. Smith has steadily improved his acting range in the last several years, particularly with "Ali" and "The Pursuit of Happyness." But his performance in this film may be his best and most affecting effort to date, and it's certainly one of the finest acting turns I have ever seen in horror/science fiction/action genre picture. I realize that last sentence will at best be met with skepticism and at worst be regarded as absurd. But Smith's drastic departure from his typical style is ultimately what elevates "I Am Legend" from the likes of other monster movies.
Dr. Robert Neville, played brilliantly by Will Smith, and his faithful companion Sam stumble across something creepy in "I Am Legend."
"I Am Legend" is based on Richard Matheson's classic 1957 horror novel of the same name, which follows an apocalyptic plague that essentially wipes out the human race. Neville is a military scientist who was charged with containing the outbreak of KV, a virus that has a somewhat surprising origin. KV has killed approximately 90 percent of the world's human population and turned the remaining people - and some animals - into vampire-like savages. Neville is somehow immune to the disease and during the initial outbreak in New York, he sends his family away with other evacuees and elects to stay behind to find a cure. For three years, he has lived a life of solitude and been imprisoned by intense fear - not just of the malevolent creatures that lurk through the city at night but also of failure. Neville is convinced, with incredible hubris and stubbornness, that he will be the one to ultimately find a cure for KV. But that conviction is at odds with Neville's fragile, damaged psyche. He spends his days working in a small laboratory, diligently working on a cure, while broadcasting radio messages in hope that he will find other survivors.
"I Am Legend" is largely carried by Smith's brilliant and refreshing spin on the classic action hero, but it also benefits from Francis Lawrence's meticulous direction. Lawrence is probably best known for his music video work and had exactly one feature film credit prior to this, and it was the comic book adaptation "Constantine." That film was critically mauled, but I enjoyed it, mostly because Lawrence showed a keen eye for framing tense, stylish action scenes decorated with delicious imagery. Lawrence shows the same keen eye with "I Am Legend," but it's a much different kind of film. It could have ended up as an explosive, special effects-saturated action movie in lesser hands. Thankfully, it is not. Lawrence's picture is quiet and eerie. It is filled with amazing, epic shots of a deserted New York filled with abandoned cars, empty buildings and weeds growing in the cracks of the pavement. It's also filled with long stretches with no dialogue or action that are designed to build suspense and also accentuate Neville's solitude and paranoia as he roams the empty streets of the city. If nothing else, "I Am Legend" effectively creates a chilling, unsettling atmosphere with an unforgettable setting.
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