Quick "I Am Legend" Gripes
by Motte Brown on 12/21/2007 at 12:01 AM
It's almost impossible to not to give away some plot lines when describing I Am Legend so if you haven't seen it, be warned.
I found the movie both entertaining and disappointing ... if that's even possible. The visual of an apocalyptic New York City was cool, the pace was right on and Will Smith was enjoyable to watch. But then there were those computer-generated (CG) "night feeders" Smith's character had to battle for the second half of the movie. I mean, I've seen better CG effects in 1995's Jumanji; and more convincing zombies in Michael Jackson's Thriller video.
And that's not my only complaint.
I simply did not have enough will power to suspend my disbelief to fancy that virus-infected mutants could have the strength of Superman, the speed of Flash, the wall climbing ability of Spiderman and the sun allergy of Dracula. After a while, I half expected to see them turn invisible or stretch like Elastigirl from The Incredibles.
Still, I enjoyed it in a campy-zombie-popcorn-munching sort of way. What about you?
1. Ryan said the following at 6:29 AM on Dec 21:
It sounds like your latter gripe is more with the story line rather than the movie itself. I saw the movie and was not especially impressed either, but isn't it unfair to judge this movie for following script that was purchased by the producer from an original author? If the producer, whatever his name is, deviated from the story-line to make the zombies more fanciful then I agree with you. Remember, however, that classics like Lord of the Rings have some pretty unbelievable characters too – even in the context of the fantasy world called Middle Earth.
2. BB said the following at 7:41 AM on Dec 21:
Seriously? Have you never seen a vampire movie before?
Watch underworld and you will see:
Vampires are much stronger then us.
Vampires are much quicker then us.
Vampires can stick to walls.
Vampires are allergic to light.
And, the vampire curse is actually a virus and that is why it can be transmitted via bodily fluids.
Underworld is not the only one however. Interview with a vampire, Dracula 2000, and about every other vampire movie shows this.
Why this movie works. The virus killed bad cells (cancer cells) thus helping good cells grow. Lifting weights as you may know tears down our muscles so that they can grow back stronger. What happens if our ability to grow back good cells is enhanced? Our muscle endurance, muscle strength, and muscle twitch fibers (quickness) would all be increased to a superhuman level. This is similar to steroids and the men I know who take steroids can have similar issues with rage and typically love to eat rare meat.
Suspension of disbelief typically means you ignore what is scientifically impossible. Basically looking at the movie, very little was impossible but some was just improbable.
Over all, I thought the movie to be very realistic. Then again, I had seen "the Omega Man" with Charleston Heston and knew this was a vampire flick. To me, this was one of the best movies of the year.
3. tom said the following at 8:28 AM on Dec 21:
Hey, watch Plan 9 From Outer Space and you'll learn that vampires are Martian!! Who knew?
4. P&P said the following at 8:36 AM on Dec 21:
I haven't seen "Legend" yet, but I enjoyed "28 Days Later" and "28 Weeks Later." I really hope they make a "28 Months Later," where the virus spreads globally and they're forced to fight zombies on the South Pole.
Suspend your disbelief and enjoy the ride.
5. Adam D said the following at 9:04 AM on Dec 21:
I agree that too many films use CG because it is the cheapest way to make something realistic, when none of it looks realistic. And you'd think with this movie because they did such a great job with the set they could do a better job with the vampires. I also didn't appreciate the sappy ending.
6. tom said the following at 9:21 AM on Dec 21:
P&P
Silly you. Don't you know zombies would never survive at the South Pole!? The penguins would eat them all!
7. Melissa said the following at 10:03 AM on Dec 21:
We read the book for one of my college seminars, and that left me with a bias against the movie. The book is drastically more depressing, in my opinion, as the human race is never saved, like in the end of the movie. The girl that comes to the house is also a vampire in the book, and there is nothing about a cancer cure. Overall, it was okay. It was worth my money to go see it, and I would suspect it would have been more well received by myself had it followed the book more closely. Plus, what do you expect from a vampire movie, really?
8. Justin said the following at 10:31 AM on Dec 21:
Read the book. It's much better.
The movie tracked the book, until the very end, when the directors with a nicer ending.
In the book (spoiler alert), the girl who saves him is really a vampire, and the vampires use her to find out where he lives.
I suspect that the book ending didn't test well with audiences, so they ended up shooting a different more audience friendly ending.
9. Marc from Peoria said the following at 11:39 AM on Dec 21:
Avast! Thar be spoilers in these waters!
My primary issue with this movie had to do with its pacing. The creators really took their time establishing Neville's situation, really getting us into his head. And then when there were twenty minutes left in the movie, the directors said "shoot! we've got to wrap this up!" So they hurriedly introduced some new protagonists, killed off Neville, gave us a brief epilogue, and called it a day.
My second gripe (of two) revolves around the creators' apparent indecision about the nature of these creatures. When we were first introduced to the zombies, they were portrayed as stupid -- crazy strong and fast, yes, but nonetheless stupid -- creatures who had been reduced to their basic primal instincts of avoiding pain and consuming people (when the sun goes down). And then they tried to introduce some kind of über-zombie that set an elaborate trap for Neville, kept dogs as pets, and rallied his fellow zombies to attack Neville's house. All acts of intelligence and self-restraint.
Well? Which is it?
Annoying.
10. Josh said the following at 11:49 AM on Dec 21:
I think we're all missing the biggest plot hole of the movie....
The scenes from "Shrek" were totally out of sequence! The first scene was from the end after they've rescued Fiona, then the next scene was from the beginning when Donkey meets Shrek for the first time! Ruined the movie for me.
/actually liked it a lot.
//left finger indentations in the arm chairs.
11. Jennifer said the following at 12:58 PM on Dec 21:
I knew going into the theater that I wasn't going to like the movie...I hate being scared/surprised. I would rather watch Doris Day in a musical but seeing how none were playing and my friends insisted on this movie, I went. Now granted I watched most of the movie slouched in my chair with a napkin in front of my face, I thought the character development with Will Smith was wonderful. I was quite confused with the creatures, as Marc stated.
I do wish I could have left the room with my typical happy go lucky feelings but I’m glad I had the wisdom to grab napkins on the way in the door.
12. Heather said the following at 4:34 PM on Dec 21:
I understand what you are saying about the vampirisms being disappointing if only because it seems off-task with what the rest of the movie is trying to accomplish. We get this harrowing look at Will Smith's character living alone in the city--character-centered realism. And the vampires (with cheap-looking CGI) that don't match up. If you're going to suspend disbelief it needs to be consistent througout.
(Words of a middle-school theatre teacher)
13. Paula said the following at 3:23 AM on Dec 22:
Pardon me - since when are Christians so taken with vampires? Could it be that there are more edifying subjects with which to occupy our thoughts?
14. Shelley said the following at 8:28 AM on Dec 22:
I, like Jennifer, have a bit of a time staying behind the safety of a napkin or my hand when things get a little scary! I didn't quite know what to expect other than sort of scary things that were going to chase down Will Smith. That said, I wasn't dissappointed by a lack of said scary things...haha. After the movie, quite a few of our group were scratching our heads with many of the same frustrations and questions you guys posed. (Shrek sequences were not mentioned, but stellar catch!)When I got home, I had to mentally reconcile what I had seen so I wouldn't have bad dreams...I'm WAY to creative in my head at night! Anyway, I got to thinking and came up with some good analogies to set my mind at ease. What if the viral mutant peeps were like those who are stuck in sin...having sought a cure that they believed would give them a better life which they accepted, but unfortunately, they're sucked in deeper to worse than before with no hope...but there is an ultimate cure...THE LIGHT (mentioned at the end)! They chase down and try to kill the very thing that is trying to provide an ultimate cure. Well, beside the fact that Mr. Smith killed quite a few in the process...he still mananges to "be still and hear" what he needs to do there at the end. AND he sacrifices himself so he can destroy the evil that would prevent the messenger from getting away. Hum. Well, helped me sleep better. Cheers.
15. Eric said the following at 9:38 AM on Dec 22:
Josh,
Your misunderstanding of the zombies is one of the central conceits of the movie. The zombies have actually developed a coherent structure, and are quite intelligent. What Neville MISTAKES for the devolution of their survival instincts is actually a dark mirror of a fundamental emotions: a deep care and concern for the female zombie that Neville captures, driving the male into a rage and hatching the plan.
Neville simply misunderstands that behavior, showing that he doesn't really understand the zombies. He just THINKS he does.
16. Daniel Gidley said the following at 3:57 PM on Dec 23:
I absolutly loved the movie and thought that the whole concept of earth being still, so still that she says" its so quite now we can hear GOD speak" there is a power beyond those words that i cant seem to comprhend. We get so busy we sometimes lose all the things everyday HE is telling us, and teaching us. I was so amazed with the fact GOD was mentioned that i didnt care about much else, i hope that GOD would use the words of the actress, and the plot of the dark and light and that we need to be the light to effect someones heart for HIM.
17. BB said the following at 10:08 AM on Dec 24:
Tom,
The last March of the penguins... sounds like the making of a good story. I picture a group of penguins sitting around talking with an egg under their feet when a vampire/zombie comes running through and breaks a few of them. They all get mad and decide to attack similar to the scene in the lord of the rings where the tree ents attack.
Remember this time for the penguins are going to WARRRRRRRR!
18. Ann said the following at 3:15 PM on Dec 30:
Just saw the movie. Too much thriller action with the vampires. Otherwise enjoyed the empty New York feel, the man suriving on his own with his dog and the flashbacks to how it happened and the ending. Would have appreciated more insight into how everyone got there and the rest of the survivors that we see at the end. Maybe more of an insight also on the mutants and how they live and feel (if they do) etc. Did they have to focus so much on the thriller aspect and fighting the mutants! Freaky and unnecessary in my opinion...
Wouldn't recommend this movie due to that fact.
19. shanka said the following at 5:49 PM on Jan 1:
jeez, paula, are christians only able to speak with "thees" and "thous" and the like? i'm sure every word Jesus spoke wasn't about the kingdom. that was his purpose, yes, but He was fully human, too. lol i bet He and the apostles shared a fart joke every now and then. every 20, 30 something guy i know sure does.
20. ernesto said the following at 9:36 AM on Jan 4:
just saw it last night and wondered if anyone find the gospelesque story line disturbing.
-- spoilers---
the atheist being the savior of the world being inmune to the disease, having the cure in his blood and dying for this cure to be passed on, I was like, Cmon, Is this a joke, another pun on the gospel by hollywood using the power of the GReatest Story ever into a vampire science fiction framework.