I Am Legend - A Real Popcorn Tosser!

When I saw the first trailer for I Am Legend, I got chills. I'm a sci-fi nut, and a Will Smith fan, so put the two together... when can I buy my ticket? But then I heard a little more about the movie... oh, he has to fight off mutant zombies at night. That worried me. And then there's the dog. The dog is Will's only friend, like Wilson to Tom Hanks' character in Castaway, and we all know what happened to Wilson. But today, my desire and curiosity overroad my zomby dread and canine concerns.

All I can say is... Wow.

SPOILER ALERT: I'm going to do my best not to give away major plot points, but if you'd rather not have anything given away, then stop reading here and go see the movie!

This was soooooo not what I expected, and I mean that in a good way. Smith gives a nuanced performance as Robert Neville, one of the last living humans after a "miracle drug" goes haywire and either kills or mutates the majority of the population. During the first quarter of the movie, we follow Neville as he goes through his day, fighting to survive, to stay sane, and to find a cure for the horrible virus. It's not until about 30 minutes into the movie that you see the first mutated human.

About those mutants... they are NOT zombies. They can be killed, and when they die, they stay dead. But they are mutated. Unfortunately, they're the standard mutants that have shown up in tons of other sci fi flicks. Why is it that when the human genetic code is altered, the resulting beings suddenly have superhuman powers, like the ability to climb walls as if they grew huge suction cups on their hands and feet? I don't have many complaints with this movie, but that's one of them.

And about the dog... I'm not going to tell you what happens to Sam. Suffice it to say, she's a heroic character. Yes, I said SHE. Sam is short for Samantha, but you don't know that till later. I assumed Sam was a male until a pivotal point in the movie when Neville calls her "Samantha." For me, this was an emotional twist that made me appreciate the man/dog relationship even more (and not in a weird way).

The biggest surprise was the strong spiritual message in the movie. Again, I won't give away the ending, but Neville quite understandably has gone through a crisis of faith. At one point he says, "God didn't do this. We did this." You think he's standing up for the Big Guy, but really, he's denying God's existance altogether. Because if God did this, then there is a God, and no way can he rationalize such actions from a loving deity. There will be people who don't like the ending. I thought it was great.

As for the acting, Will Smith owns the movie. He carries it on his broad, muscular shoulders (as is evident in the shirtless pullup scene) and gives an awesome performance. Robert Neville is a tortured character, a man who continues to say "I can fix this" even when all evidence is to the contrary. Smith portrays this man's pain, desperation, and borderline madness with amazing skill. Not since Tom Hanks spoke to a volleyball have you rooted so much for one man in a desperate situation.

This is not a particularly gory movie. There is some blood, but not gallons of it. The mutants are ugly, but not necessarily creepy, and you don't spend much time with them till the last quarter of the film. If you're a fan of futuristic thrillers and/or the incomparable Will Smith, I highly recommend this movie. And if you've already seen it, leave a comment here. I'd love to know your thoughts.