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Will
Smith takes over the position once held by Harrison Ford and Tom
Cruise as Hollywood's new golden boy/thinking man's action hero
in I Am Legend.
The film begins with the news that scientists have created a cure
for cancer in the form of a virus, only for it to cause a deadly
plague which has wiped out the majority of the worlds population
and turned the rest into vampiric creatures. The worlds seemingly
only lone survivor is the immune, high ranking military scientist
Robert Neville (Will Smith), who has been trying to find a cure
for the disease whilst living a life of dread and isolation in New
York City.
The main reason to watch this movie is Will Smith's captivating
and multi-layered performance, which elevates the film from the
boggy depths of Francis Lawrence's poor direction. As a part of
a small group of actors who inhabit both acting chops and credible
action bravura (Tom Cruise, Matt Damon and Christian Bale complete
the group), Smith is perfectly cast as the lone survivor who spends
his days with his trusty German Shepherd rummaging the city for
supplies, and night clamped down in his secure house as the infected
bellow in the streets. Additionally, the images of a deserted and
battered New York City are mind boggling, Lawrence no doubt owing
a debt of gratitude to Danny Boyle and his 2003 zombie film 28
Days Later… which set the tone for such
sequences.
However, the films deviations from its source material (Richard
Matheson's classic novel of the same name) has ruined its ability
to become one of the better sci-fi films in some time: a character
driven, post-apocalyptic thriller that would have dealt with mankind's
self destructive nature and its struggle with life, death, science
and faith. Also, a predictable ending undermines its interesting
set up. Furthermore, the film is hindered by some shocking visual
effects, especially in regards to its creature creations which are
way too animated to be taken seriously. If there was ever a film
which needed some old school grit in regards to its visual and make
up effects, than this would be it.
As stated before, I Am Legend could have been something special,
yet Lawrence's decisions in regards to the films tone and SFX brings
down the quality of the movie. Luckily for him, he had a lead actor
with the talent and name recognition to push the film through, albeit
just barely.
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