Review – I Am Legend

Who knew the end of the world could be so depressing? Will Smith stars as the last man on earth, the sole survivor of a plague that killed most of the population and turned the rest into blood-crazed monsters (sort of like 28 Days Later only done entirely with CGI so they look really fake). Our hero and his dog explore post-apocalypse Manhattan, looking for other survivors, a cure for the plague, or at least something to help the guy maintain his sanity. The exciting moments – and there are some – are offset by the annoying moments (endless alarms going off, prolonged waits for the booga-booga moment, and so on) and the depressing moments (do I even have to tell you not to get too attached to the dog?). This is the third screen adaptation of Richard Matheson’s classic novella. Though it’s the first to use the title of the source story, it isn’t really any closer to Matheson’s tale than numbers one or two. And that’s a shame, because just a straight version of the original would – or at least could – be made into a genuinely good picture. Mildly amusing