I am Legend (2007)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2007
	Director: Francis Lawrence (Constantine, The Hunger Games 2-3)
	Actors: Will Smith (After Earth, Independence Day, Ray), Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan
	Country: USA
	Genre: SF, Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 06.08.2018, in-flight entertainment, 10" tablet screen.
Synopsis: Robert Neville, military scientist, believes to be the sole survivor on Earth to a contamination that killed most of the population, turning the rest into flesh-eating monsters that in turn decimated the few immune. His daily routine revolves around finding a cure.
Review: As far as zombie/infested movies go, this is not a bad one in fact. And one of the few with such a big budget together with World War Z. It was released after the big success of the "fast-zombies" or "infected" movies 28 Days Later and Dawn of the Dead (the remake). When I saw it at its release it seemed to me tailored for mega-star Will Smith, but not very original nor interesting. This time around I could still see the attractive entertainment at the surface: vast desolated landscapes, car race in the city, progressive apparition of monsters shot like a Silent Hill video game, including jump scares. It can also seem annoying that in spite of the story, we see almost no blood in order to guarantee a PG-13 rating in the USA. But I could focus more on the real interest of the movie which is the acting of Will Smith, not the usual bad-ass here even though he is strong and clever and good-looking and cool. But he puts much more emphasis on the mental state of Robert Neville, and manages to convey many emotions. The story slowly unfolds, and the encounter with the other survivors bring some fresh air (although the kid is useless) and takes Neville in another direction. This story strongly reminded me of a black & white movie I have seen eons ago: The World, the Flesh and the Devil. Both are inspired by similar stories written at the same time (the mid 50's) but I am Legend is the one adapted from Richard Matheson's novel with the same title, an adaptation that was already attempted several times including in the 1971 The Omega Man with Charlton Heston.
Rating: 7 /10