Theatre of the Dead #14 - I am Legend (2007)

Director: Francis Lawrence Stars: Will Smith, Alice Braga

Review:

I am Legend (2007) is a movie adapation of the 1954 novel in the same name written by Richard Matheson, which is the inspiration of the whole zombie idea, and influenced even Night of the Living Dead (1968). It stars Will Smith and showcases some beautiful visual. But I hate this movie. To me this movie is pointless and un-necessary, and nothing more than a ATM for the production company to milk the movie-goers.

The only man around wandering on abandoned empty street?

I understand it based on the novel, but I couldnt help but feel it just captured the success of 28 Days Later, and the production said, "You know what, I can make a better movie with higher production value!" The main idea surrounds Will Smith being the last man on earth and his loneliness, which very much like the first half of 28 Days Later. It did nothing that hadnt been done, and despite that fact that the visual is better and it shows the whole New York city being abandoned, but I feel sick knowing there is no heart in it and the whole thing is solely for the production to cash in.

Will Smith's acting has always been screaming commercial to me. He is not bad and on the contrary, he is really good, but it makes you feel it is cold and calculated in every possible way for you to pay to get into the theatre. He makes everybody like him, and that is evidence of lacking personality. There goes the right word which I have been searching to describe this movie. This movie has no personality. It is carefully calculated that most of the crowd would walk in and pay, and that is all this movie cares.



The movie starts with some Dr. being interviewed on TV about her new vaccine or something. Apparently it's a virus that has genetically engineered to help human rather than do harm. It poses good theory that some experts actually praises the high possibility that it actually happens. I am no expert in bio-chemistry and all I care is what does it have to do with the movie. And you know what? Absolutely nothing. It can be the some research for new Viagra which went wrong and that would not make any difference. The zombies here are afraid of daylight, but does it matters anything? Nope. It just makes excuses for our hero to hang out during daytime.

You were hurt so bad that could get up? Damned!

The plot is alright with some moments that can be nitpicked. When Will Smith is trapped (and Yes, trapped by the zombies), and paralyzed his legs, he used his hands to drag himself away. But we have only seen him hurt in one leg. Cant he jump with a single leg or something? So he dragged himself for a while, under some screaming of the zombies coming, and after a while he finally jumped with a single leg. Why didnt he do that at first? Is he so hurt that he would rather be eaten by the zombies?

Oh so you can. Maybe you just wasnt in the mood back then.

Towards the end he met some other survivors, who told him there is a whole survivor's colony up on the north, since the virus wouldnt stand the cold. "How did you know that?" Will Smith asked. "God told me so." Oh great. Evangelicalism in "Signs" (2002) style. If God can be so specific to tell you the whole fact, why havnt he told you the cure of the virus directly? Oh right it is because Will Smith that should become legend, not you. Whatever.

"God told me." If I start praying now will God tell me the next lottery number?

And zombies can lay traps. Ok I can deal with that. But zombie that have a wife and cares about her? Remember all those moments a zombie bite off the flesh of its loved ones? Remember the gravity of one become a mindless corpse that have no feeling but hunger and eat anyone he sees, even his family? And now one that is emotionally comprised and cares about his women?

I am Legend (2007) is nothing about a trap to make us take our money from our pockets. It is so derivative that I despise it. And I know that it may be supposed to talk about nature and how wrong we are to alter it with science, and I call that whole idea bullshit. It is a block-buster movie and that's it. Zombie movies so far were low-budget and bold to display gore and violence, and this movie has no balls. That single fact could make it lame.