Film #21 — 2/5 Zombie Films; 8/9 Decades
By C. Ramsay
“Please say hello to me.”
Considering the creatures in this adaptation of I Am Legend are stylistically hybridized as vampiric zombies, I’m considering it enough of a fit to be included in the Hooptober zombie category this year.
There’s a lot to like about this one, contrary to what some might argue. The pacing throughout most of the film is consistent and contributes to the atmosphere, blending introspective scenes with stress-inducing action sequences, and splicing in flashbacks during well-suited moments. The news segment that’s used to open the film, with the audio filtering in before we see the accompanying video, is great for providing enough exposition to inform the audience of what went wrong before cutting to the present day to allow us to visually witness the aftermath as we’re introduced to Will Smith’s Robert Neville, an immune army virologist. The worldbuilding layered into the advancing plot is rich, with extra details for information we’ve previously learned about being peppered in to shift or deepen context. The logistics of how Neville gets through his days are considered highly important, not only in how he physically survives and sustains himself, but also in what he does to try to stay sane as the supposedly last remaining uninfected person. Whichever expository details might be missing from inclusion as a focal point in different scenes can often be found in the set design, perhaps never outright discussed, but waiting nevertheless to be discovered in the background. The interior of Neville’s home, for example, is flooded with objects that are revelatory to his personality prior to the virus, something we’re never witness to otherwise, and which then also act to more deeply contextualize his current interests and goals. Although the score and soundtrack are good, and feel utilized to continue to round out Neville’s characterization, it’s their absence during key scenes that’s most effective. The quiet, occasionally accentuated by the sounds of rapid breathing or animalistic wails in the night, is what’s most deafening.
For anyone who has read Richard Matheson’s 1954 short novel of the same name, this adaptation will obviously come across as extremely different; however, we still get a glimmer of Neville’s original characterization. His refusal to acknowledge the intelligence of the infected does nothing but hinder his chances of survival, yet he remains insistent that social behaviour amongst them has completely degraded because it doesn’t appear as he’d expect it to, even though they’re very clearly exhibiting it. The design of the infected is cool in concept, but the CGI definitely doesn’t hold up, and it’s disappointing to learn that prosthetics and practicals were supposedly originally going to be used but were switched out in favour of what ended up in the film. The effects are tolerable during the first half as the infected are seen much less often, but the final act is when things really start to fall apart via the CGI, how the plot is handled, and the communal characterization of the vampires. This adaptation completely flips the thesis of the novel—where the text argues the dangers of conservative traditionalism, the movie ends up arguing the importance of its protection, even going so far as to root it in religion.
An excellent overall performance from Will Smith, and some fantastic dog acting from Abbey and Kona, who play Neville’s only living companion, Sam, this is a fairly well-executed adaptation that at least commits to what it’s choosing to be. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t stick the landing.
Star rating (/5): ★★★½
Recommend?: Yes