I am Legend Debuts the Holiday Movie Season: The story of Robert Neville combating a deadly human made virus is told once again.

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 06:24:00 GMT

By Hunter Kerhart

Robert Neville faces seemingly impossible emotional losses. (Photograph: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/deed.en)

Robert Neville (Will Smith), a brilliant scientist is bestowed with the unimaginable ability to cure a virus. In New York City roughly around 2010, there's a break-through in medical research, the cure for cancer. This milestone would cure a patient that was diagnosed with cancer. However, as time elapsed the cure mutated into a virus that malformed, and viciously took away a humans humanity, causing them to feed on others flesh. This landmark cure, now a catastrophic virus, was unleashed into atmosphere mutating nearly every human being on the planet. Three years later, Manhattan a barren wasteland filled with a myriad of empty cars and office buildings, is home to one man, Doctor Robert Neville. Robert was not infected and was considered immune to the virus. Being the only person left in Manhattan, at least to his knowledge, he scours the city with his dog Sam. Throughout the day Robert and Sam search the city for any new animals that might be used as test subjects to find a cure for the virus. At night Robert and Sam hold up the house from the infected preying on fresh human flesh. The movie is loosely based on the classical novel by Richard Matheson and the previous 1971 adaptation, The Omega Man . I am Legend serves as a frightening film. Similar to a decent amount of horror flicks, it packs a lot of comic relief. Fighting infected humans in the day, to coming home and joking with Sam somewhat relieves the tension for the audience. This helps to keep us from being too tense and afraid of looking at the screen. However, the movie lacks some background on how the infected humans become to the present state of uncontrolled symptoms of rabies and rage. Indeed, the movie might have been better off expurgating the infected humans all together and concentrating on Roberts's cacophonously conceivable dilemma in the extermination of mankind. However, in spite of the unnecessary concentration on the infected humans, I am Legend excels in all other categories, especially in Roberts habitual day to day moments and rituals that he performs even in his devastated life. Those rituals are the only things that keep Robert from breaking and keep him in check, which are the unnervingly effective and significantly compelling. (3 out of 5 stars)

The Beckman Chronicle

I am Legend Debuts the Holiday Movie Season: The story of Robert Neville combating a deadly human made virus is told once again.