I Am Legend
DIR: Francis Lawrence • WRI: Mark Protosevich, Akiva Goldsman • PROD: Akiva Goldsman, David Heyman, James Lassiter, Neal H. Moritz, Erwin Stoff, Tracy Tormé, Jeffrey Wetzel. • DOP: Andrew Lesnie • ED: Wayne Wahrman • DES: Naomi Shohan • CAST: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Salli Richardson, Dash Mihok

It’s easy to be cynical about I Am Legend. Richard Matheson’s seminal novel of the same name has been adapted for the screen twice, the first time in a schlocky Vincent Price vehicle The Last Man on Earth, and more famously, in ham-fisted Christ allegory The Omega Man, which saw Charlton Heston taking on vampires that were essentially just very, very pale people. Neither version did true justice to Matheson’s classic source material, which is why a third version of the story has always been a solid proposition to studios. In fact, at one point in the ‘80s the film was even in pre-production with Arnold Schwarzenegger as the last man on earth and Ridley Scott in the director’s chair before the budget became too unwieldy. Years later, and one of the great vampire stories is at last realised by the writer responsible for Batman and Robin, a director who got his break directing J-Lo videos and with the Fresh Prince as the lead.

And yet, as a big budget, Christmas blockbuster picture, I Am Legend proves surprisingly satisfying. Director Francis Lawrence, whose only other film, comic book adaptation Constantine, also proved surprisingly decent, proves himself as a genuine genre talent, mounting great action sequences and offering some interesting character moments and smart ideas. Will Smith provides a surprisingly solemn lead, keeping the wisecracks to a minimum. And while the story still drifts from Matheson's perfect blueprint, it still offers enough original ideas and surprising turns to earn its title.

The opening is striking. After a brief television clip that hints at what’s to come and features a surprise cameo, the film kicks off three years after the world's population has been all but eradicated. Robert Neville (Smith) hurtles around an empty New York in a sports car, hunting game in an overgrown central park. It sets the tone for much of what’s to follow - a smart, funny and frequently surprising day in the life story of the last human being on the planet. Neville is a scientist who, it is revealed through brief, brilliantly executed flashbacks, worked on a project originally designed to cure cancer but instead either killed everyone on earth or turned them into flesh hungry monsters who are unable to withstand UV light, and so only come out at night. The script quite noticeably never refers to these creatures as vampires; something that may irritate fans of Matheson’s novel (the title of which came from the fact that, in a world populated by vampires, the human is the creature of legend). In fact, initially, they're barely even glimpsed, in truly terrifying scenes that see Smiths expression turn from jovial to terrified as soon as he chases his dog into the dark.

Just as well, too, given that the monsters themselves are actually the weakest link in the entire film. I Am Legend is at its best when it keeps things realistic, and as soon as the ‘dark seekers’ show up, any tension and suspense is ruined. Products of some of the worst CGI in recent memory, the creatures – little more than pale, hairless humans – are perfect examples of lazy Hollywood mindset when it comes to special effects. Why not get Stan Winston or Rick Baker to create living, breathing monsters, instead of blowing millions on antagonists that look like they’ve stepped put of an N64? It doesn’t help that the third act turns the film into a full on, dumb action movie, and the ending, while considerably daring for a $150 million blockbuster, nonetheless falls short of expectations.

Scott Townsend
(Read biog here)

Rated 15A (see IFCO website for details)
I Am Legend is released on 28th December 2007
I Am Legend – Official website