Post by bladestarr on May 26, 2008 0:56:47 GMT -5
I am going to try to do something new for me. I will not do "Before" and "After" sections. This review, and hopefully all my future ones, will be safe to read before you see the movie. And on we go.
Westley does I Am Legend
How can you tell when you're starting to get old? For me, I can tell my age by the fact that certain things that didn't used to bother me now do. What I mean is that I used to be able to watch a whole horror movie marathon with a blank stare, because I had become desensitized to it all very young. I could watch people being hacked up into little pieces without flinching. I could also watch the most powerful "tear jerker" movies without even getting dewy-eyed. I was blasé about things for the most part. Even my beloved comedies barely got a chuckle out of me.
Now, the more time I spend in this world, the more that changes. I don't know if it has to do with coming closer to my own death and realizing that the clock of my life is ticking down with less than a century of time remaining, or if it's something that happens to us biologically that changes the way we react to the world as our bodies stop growing and start their own decay.
What does this have to do with I Am Legend? Everything. This is a "Will Smith movie". It is a movie about a lone man living in a world where everyone and everything he knew is dead. It is a world where every day is a monotonous routine. It is a world of decay. Frankly, it is a movie that ten years ago, I would be yawning through. I can actually visualize my younger self watching this movie and wondering "when do we get to the cool parts?" and "why am I watching a lame-ass Will Smith movie?"
This movie is not your typical "Will Smith movie". While I still see Mr. Smith as a "pleasing personality" (i.e. someone that people hire because fans love to see them on the screen whether they can act or not), he does adequate justice representing a man that is trying to keep his sanity better than Tom Hanks talking to a volleyball.
The place is an EMPTY New York City. The year is 2012, and three years ago, a "miraculous cure for cancer" mutated into a virus that has wiped out 90% of the world's population... and they are the LUCKY ones. Most of the other 10% have turned into "Dark Seekers", basically vampire-zombies that are allergic to UV light. Needless to say, those that didn't die or turn into Seekers didn't live very long. Except for Robert Neville (Will Smith) who is immune to the virus and has a strong military training that helps him stay alive.
Why does he care whether he lives or dies? Why does he care if he's sane or not? Because he has a mission. He also happens to be a virologist who has spent the last 3 years trying to find out WHY he is immune and what he can do to "make it all better" and turn the creatures back into humans. It is his life and his obsession. It is this sense of purpose that is the heart and soul of the movie. He survives because as long as he does, there is hope for the rest of humanity.
This is a good movie as long as you don't go in expecting a dumb action flick with tons of excitement at every turn. There IS no soundtrack, no background music to tell you how to feel... and because of that you share Neville's loneliness. Neville is surrounded daily by a wall of silence where once there were a million voices. Living in his world, you will learn to appreciate what you have, the little things that make life meaningful. Fresh food. Companionship. The background noise of HUMANITY which surrounds you. After watching this movie, you will learn to cherish it.
At the end of the movie, I cried... but I will not tell you if they were tears of sorrow or joy. I just.... cried. Man, I'm getting old.
I will not tell you what actually happens during the movie because that will really spoil it, but what I will tell you is this...
Westley does I Am Legend
How can you tell when you're starting to get old? For me, I can tell my age by the fact that certain things that didn't used to bother me now do. What I mean is that I used to be able to watch a whole horror movie marathon with a blank stare, because I had become desensitized to it all very young. I could watch people being hacked up into little pieces without flinching. I could also watch the most powerful "tear jerker" movies without even getting dewy-eyed. I was blasé about things for the most part. Even my beloved comedies barely got a chuckle out of me.
Now, the more time I spend in this world, the more that changes. I don't know if it has to do with coming closer to my own death and realizing that the clock of my life is ticking down with less than a century of time remaining, or if it's something that happens to us biologically that changes the way we react to the world as our bodies stop growing and start their own decay.
What does this have to do with I Am Legend? Everything. This is a "Will Smith movie". It is a movie about a lone man living in a world where everyone and everything he knew is dead. It is a world where every day is a monotonous routine. It is a world of decay. Frankly, it is a movie that ten years ago, I would be yawning through. I can actually visualize my younger self watching this movie and wondering "when do we get to the cool parts?" and "why am I watching a lame-ass Will Smith movie?"
This movie is not your typical "Will Smith movie". While I still see Mr. Smith as a "pleasing personality" (i.e. someone that people hire because fans love to see them on the screen whether they can act or not), he does adequate justice representing a man that is trying to keep his sanity better than Tom Hanks talking to a volleyball.
The place is an EMPTY New York City. The year is 2012, and three years ago, a "miraculous cure for cancer" mutated into a virus that has wiped out 90% of the world's population... and they are the LUCKY ones. Most of the other 10% have turned into "Dark Seekers", basically vampire-zombies that are allergic to UV light. Needless to say, those that didn't die or turn into Seekers didn't live very long. Except for Robert Neville (Will Smith) who is immune to the virus and has a strong military training that helps him stay alive.
Why does he care whether he lives or dies? Why does he care if he's sane or not? Because he has a mission. He also happens to be a virologist who has spent the last 3 years trying to find out WHY he is immune and what he can do to "make it all better" and turn the creatures back into humans. It is his life and his obsession. It is this sense of purpose that is the heart and soul of the movie. He survives because as long as he does, there is hope for the rest of humanity.
This is a good movie as long as you don't go in expecting a dumb action flick with tons of excitement at every turn. There IS no soundtrack, no background music to tell you how to feel... and because of that you share Neville's loneliness. Neville is surrounded daily by a wall of silence where once there were a million voices. Living in his world, you will learn to appreciate what you have, the little things that make life meaningful. Fresh food. Companionship. The background noise of HUMANITY which surrounds you. After watching this movie, you will learn to cherish it.
At the end of the movie, I cried... but I will not tell you if they were tears of sorrow or joy. I just.... cried. Man, I'm getting old.
I will not tell you what actually happens during the movie because that will really spoil it, but what I will tell you is this...
