I Am Legend (2007)

Years after a plague kills most of humanity and transforms the rest into monsters, the sole survivor in New York City struggles valiantly to find a cure.

Director:

Francis Lawrence

Writers:

Mark Protosevich (screenplay), Akiva Goldsman (screenplay),

Stars:

Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan

9 wins & 18 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Will Smith	...	Robert Neville
Alice Braga	...	Anna
Charlie Tahan	...	Ethan
Salli Richardson-Whitfield	...	Zoe Neville (as Salli Richardson)
Willow Smith	...	Marley Neville
Darrell Foster	...	Mike - Military Escort
April Grace	...	TV Personality
Dash Mihok	...	Alpha Male
Joanna Numata	...	Alpha Female
Abbey	...	Sam
Kona	...	Sam
Samuel Glen	...	Military Driver - Jay
James McCauley	...	Male Evacuee
Marin Ireland	...	Woman Evacuee
Pedro Mojica	...	Sergeant

Storyline

Robert Neville is a scientist who was unable to stop the spread of the terrible virus that was incurable and man-made. Immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City and perhaps the world. For three years, Neville has faithfully sent out daily radio messages, desperate to find any other survivors who might be out there. But he is not alone. Mutant victims of the plague -- The Infected -- lurk in the shadows... watching Neville's every move... waiting for him to make a fatal mistake. Perhaps mankind's last, best hope, Neville is driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune blood. But he knows he is outnumbered... and quickly running out of time.

---

Plot Keywords:

survivor | cure | plague | virus | scientist | 

---

Taglines:

Welcome to earth. Population 1.

---

Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site [Brazil]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 December 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

I Am Legend: The IMAX Experience

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$150,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£11,009,365 (UK) (28 December 2007)

Gross:

$256,386,216 (USA) (4 April 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Village Roadshow Pictures, Weed Road Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min 104 min (Alternate ending)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the beginning while the Doctor is being interviewed about the cure for cancer, there is a news ticker at the bottom of the screen and one of the headlines is "Shaquille O'Neal to announce his retirement at the end of 2010 season".

---

Goofs

During the mass evacuation scene the M4 that the military is using clearly have the civilian 16" barrels. The military issued Colt M4 have 14.5" barrels.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
TV Personality: The world of medicine has seen its share of miracle cures, from the polio vaccine to heart transplants. But all past achievements may pale in comparison to the work of Dr. Alice Krippin. Thank you so much for joining us this morning.
Dr. Alice Krippin: Not at all.
TV Personality: So, Dr. Krippin, give it to me in a nutshell.
Dr. Alice Krippin: Well, the premise is quite simple - um, take something designed by nature and reprogram it to make it work for the body rather than against it.
TV Personality: You're talking about a virus?
Dr. Alice Krippin: Indeed, yes. In this...
[...]

---

Crazy Credits

During the opening title sequence, a news report is heard. Then the movie begins with the news reporter.

---

Connections

Referenced in HBO First Look: I Am Legend (2007)

---

Soundtracks

"Flying Talking Donkey"
(from Shrek)
Written by Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell
Courtesy of DreamWorks Animation L.L.C.

User Reviews

Gut-wrenching movie full of adventure and heart

I just saw this movie today, the day it opened here. And was deeply, deeply moved.

I've got to start with the scenes of a deserted New York City post-apocalypse. These were so very, very moving; and very, very convincing. The clips in the trailers for the movie were good, but you really have to see the full panoply of close-up shots, distance shots, etc to really appreciate the sheer scale of what this movie is depicting. There's something of On the Beach and Resident Evil and of any number of disaster movies and zombie movies here. But none of them do justice to the New York depicted here. This is a New York City we see large-scale and micro-scale in order to show us the environment in which the main character is acting.

And Will Smith is simply brilliant as the sole survivor, Robert Neville. Will delivers movingly and convincingly on a script that really focuses on giving us a picture of "what it would be like" ... to be the last man on earth, living off the land in NYC. This is the real strength of this movie: there's really not a lot of blood or gore or zombie scenes at all. Yet I was riveted as Robert goes through his "typical days" in NYC. Every moment was full of pathos and full of menace, too. And occasionally we got some relief from Smith's trademark humor that blended seamlessly with the rest of his performance to give us "what it would be like" with a powerful delivery that just leaves me almost breathless.

There's an effective use of flashbacks that partly tell us the story of how we got to where we're at in this grim New York City; and the flashbacks also serve to give us an overwhelming contrast between Life Before and Life After the apocalyptic disaster wiped out the city. Yet use of flashback was sparing, which I found all the more effective.

Cinematography was excellent throughout, the storyline and script are brilliant, the use of a dog, Samantha, as a key actor was perfect to show us both Robert as companion and Robert as lonely, isolated survivor.

I won't give away the ending, but think it was satisfying as far as it goes, but not nearly as appealing, from my angle, as the foregoing material. That brings up my one complaint: the title. By the end of the movie, we have some sense of the meaning of the title. Yet it still seems to me to feel cheesy and really unworthy of the movie.

But that's a minor plaint. If you haven't seen this movie, and would enjoy seeing a really powerful story about a survivor in post-apocalypse New York City, hey, go check out this flick. It's really worth it.