2012. New York has been razed to the ground by a virus created to cure cancer but which instead exterminated the population and transformed the survivors into photosensitive, bloodthirsty beings. The only survivor of the catastrophe is Robert Neville, a colonel in the army immune to the virus who during the day wanders with his dog through the streets of a New York now completely abandoned; while at night he is forced to take refuge in his fortified home to hide from the ferocious infected.
At the origin of it all is a novel written by Richard Matheson in 1954, "I Am Legend" (published in Italy in 1989 with the title "I Vampiri" and later reprinted with the original title); a novel that has become a legend in itself, as it seems to have been the source of inspiration for "Night of the Living Dead" by George Romero. Matheson's novel had two film adaptations before the 2007 movie, namely the excellent "The Last Man on Earth" (1964) by Ubaldo Ragona and the valid "1975: Eyes of Darkness" (1971) by Boris Sagal. Obviously, in an era of compulsive remake fever and real humanitarian fears, a new version of the American writer's novel was perfect for us, and here comes "I Am Legend", directed by Francis Lawrence, director of the comic film "Constantine" and starring the superstar Will Smith.
In reality, the premises were not the best for the horror movie enthusiast: a music video director who has directed a not very successful film; a very powerful Hollywood star, darling of the loud blockbusters; a record budget of 150 million dollars, a figure so high that it could easily damage a horror film that respects itself, due to a probable tendency to exaggeration. Yet the good Smith and Lawrence managed it and with "I Am Legend" not only did they create a box office hit (over 77 million dollars in the first weekend of release in the United States alone!), but they managed to bring to life a truly moving and high-impact film, not only visually, but above all emotionally.
Will Smith confirms he is an actor with a "A" capital and not just the likable bad boy of the July 4th blockbusters, managing to hold the scene alone for almost 2 hours of film, accompanied only by a German shepherd and the magnificent sets by Naomi Shohan. The drama of a man who remains the sole specimen of his species in a metropolis at the mercy of destruction has been rendered perfectly: long waits made of deer hunting in the traffic-jammed streets of Manhattan; habitual visits to the video rental store to exchange a few words with mannequins; daily trips to the dock with the hope of meeting some survivors who have heard the rescue message. Robert Neville's life unfolds in this way:
the most important city in the world in his hands and no one to share the conquest. On the contrary, the lack of a human presence to relate to is accompanied by the constant fear of what lives in the darkness, those bloodthirsty creatures that have nothing human left and hide from the sunlight.
The entire film is made up of the human drama and the solitude of the protagonist, taking many narrative pauses, interrupted from time to time by adrenaline-filled action and fear scenes featuring the infected. It is precisely these infected the weak point of the film: made entirely (and inexplicably) in computer graphics, they make their interventions excessively artificial. An unfortunate choice by Lawrence, since the creatures could have been made with entirely "artisanal" techniques, containing production costs and giving greater realism to the more purely horror scenes. Fortunately, however, the scenes in which the "monsters" act are dosed with competence, avoiding making the special effects intrusive.
In general, one can speak of a highly successful film, engaging and capable of capturing the viewer from the first to the last frame.
Lawrence directs with professionalism both the action scenes and the more reflective ones; excellent the photography of Andrew Lesnie and very well written the screenplay by Mark Protosevich ("Poseidon") and Akiva Goldsman ("The Da Vinci Code"), capable of alternating good dialogues (for example, the one about Bob Marley) with nice quotes (the poster depicting a hypothetical cinematic clash between Batman and Superman).
In conclusion, "I Am Legend" is everything one would not expect from what is announced as the blockbuster of the year, namely an intense and intelligent film, which does not forget to entertain.
Highly recommended!
The rating has been rounded up.
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