Review of I Am Legend (2007) by Xavier C — 09 Apr 2015

Simply put, it's great. They nailed the atmosphere in this. I was encapsulated by Dr. Neville as a character because there's so much to him. He's tough and he's vulnerable; he's even minded and emotional; he's logical and loses his mind at the same time. He's an entire cast in one, which any real human would be capable of being. Will Smith goes to levels of acting he'd never reached before in playing such a complex person. Robert's relationship with Sam is perfect, playing a key part in his character.

The atmosphere was great. Despite having a monster element to it, the real focus is establishing the setting with how barren and empty everything is. The creatures weren't introduced until it was ideal. I have to give props to the effective use of ambient noise to set the scene in lieu of music on various occasions.

Having seen the alternate and theatrical releases, the alternate ending is far better. It fits into a theme of the Darkseekers still having humanity, and (SPOILER ALERT) Neville survives in the end. This is so much better than having him die as a martyr like so many movie heroes.

For the alternate version 5/5.