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A Variation on Vampire Lore That Won't Die
Source: New York Times
FROM the outside Robert Neville's red brick home looks like all the other stately Greek revival town houses facing Washington Square Park. But the interior, actually a set inside a Brooklyn armory, is something else entirely. The kitchen is stacked top to bottom with what seems like several years' worth of canned goods and packaged food, and all the windows have floor-to-ceiling retractable steel doors that can be locked down at a moment's notice.
Robert Neville, after all, thinks he is the last man alive in a time when a biological plague has created a race of night-crawling human freaks who would like nothing better than to penetrate his sanctuary. As played by Will Smith, he is also one of the few noninfected characters in "I Am Legend," a Warner Brothers production that has been shooting in New York for release in December.
Directed by Francis Lawrence ("Constantine") and co-written and co-produced by Akiva Goldsman (an Oscar winner for "A Beautiful Mind"), "I Am Legend" is testimony to the unexpected durability of Richard Matheson's novel of the same name. It is the third film based on a book whose original impulse was to one-up the screen vampires of an earlier era.
First published in 1953, the novel is a taut, realistic chiller about a postapocalyptic world in which germ warfare creates a biological plague that turns humans into bloodsuckers. The idea was born, said Mr. Matheson, now 80 and living in the Los Angeles area, "when I was a teenager and saw Bela Lugosi in 'Dracula.' "
"I thought if the world was full of vampires, it would be more frightening than just one," he continued. "And I explained vampires in biological terms."
"I Am Legend" was almost immediately optioned for the movies (Hammer Films in Britain originally owned the rights), but it wasn't until 1964 that Vincent Price appeared in "The Last Man on Earth," a low-budget version shot in Italy. Then, in 1971, Warner released "The Omega Man," a more expensive studio production, starring Charlton Heston, that made extensive use of Los Angeles's deserted-looking downtown.
Both versions took certain liberties with Mr. Matheson's original concept, largely sidestepping its startlingly prescient, and philosophical, ending: In the book, some vampires have developed a pill that keeps the disease in check and allows them to live relatively normal lives. This element now plays as an AIDS metaphor, though the book was written 30 years before H.I.V. was even identified.
It is this idea of pandemic, along with the concepts of vampirism and the effects of solitude on the human psyche, that have kept Mr. Matheson's slim novel both contemporary and of interest to filmmakers. But the current version of "I Am Legend" nonetheless had a long road to the screen.
Warner Brothers has owned the rights to the book since 1970, and first decided to revive the project in 1994. "I Am Legend" was close to a start date in 1997, with Ridley Scott directing Arnold Schwarzenegger, but the studio pulled the plug when the budget climbed over $100 million, a huge sum at the time. (Studio executives declined to reveal the budget for the current version.) Then, in 2002, Michael Bay and Will Smith were set to hook up, but that pairing also fell through.
"There have been issues with the budget, script issues between director and actors, directors and the studio, even issues with what the creatures should look like," said Mr. Lawrence, the director.
About two years ago Warner was about to drop the project for good when the studio's president for production, Jeff Robinov, asked Mr. Smith if he would be willing to pair up with Mr. Goldsman to develop a new take on the material. Mr. Goldsman was one of the credited writers on "I, Robot," which starred Mr. Smith. And he admired Mr. Lawrence for his work on "Constantine," the 2005 fantasy-horror film.
Mr. Robinov says it is "the notion of isolation" that makes "I Am Legend" perennially attractive. "For an actor it involves a lot of character, the idea of being the last survivor," he said. "And for a director it's the story, the ability to create a different version of society, of where the world is at that point."
Mr. Lawrence agreed. "I've always been fascinated by man's isolation in an urban environment," he said. "How someone survives when they're by themselves for so long. Physically survives, mentally and emotionally survives with complete social deprivation."
This time out the story is set in 2009, three years after something called the KV virus, developed in a laboratory but mutated out of control, has created a planet of bloodthirsty but still recognizably human freaks. Mr. Smith's Neville, a former military scientist, has not been infected and is trying to find a cure for the pandemic. Manhattan had been quarantined back in 2006, and as far as Neville knows he is the only human left on the island, if not the world.
The story's location was moved from California (the book is set in Compton) to New York. In addition to the interiors of Neville's house, which were erected at the 66,000-square-foot Marcy Avenue Armory in Williamsburg, the production has shot in TriBeCa and on the aircraft carrier Intrepid. The filmmakers have also rented the 152,000-square-foot Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx, which they are using for a large special-effects-driven action sequence to be staged next month. And in a particularly brazen piece of logistics, the production company cleared the area around St. Patrick's Cathedral for a ghostly New York-without-humans sequence.
"It's hard to make Los Angeles feel empty," Mr. Goldsman said. "Here, you just have to look down Fifth Avenue empty, and you understand something. There's a conveyance of information and fantasy that is wonderful and amazing."
This version of the story also updates it to reflect current concerns. While the Heston film had a subtext with its roots in the early days of the environmental movement, the current film moves back toward Mr. Matheson's concept of a viral apocalypse.
"There is a little bit of an AIDS metaphor here, especially in terms of dealing with the infected, because the people Neville deals with are infected," said Mr. Lawrence. "They're not dead, they're not vampires, they have a chronic disease."
For Mr. Goldsman, Mr. Matheson's seeming ability to foretell an epidemic reflects the magic of sophisticated fantasy.
"People infected with AIDS have been on the forefront of understanding the truths about how viruses work, contagion works, stigma works, which is something I think Matheson was finding in that early novel," he said. "He is like H. G. Wells and William Gibson, people who do a little leapfrogging imaginatively. And you wait around long enough, and suddenly you're in one of their books."
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Wow, that's gonna be really awful.
And why do so many action scenes take place on bridges?
Quote from: matt35mm on January 14, 2007, 12:32:37 PM
And why do so many action scenes take place on bridges?
jumping onto train/car/bus/pedestrians beneath
things falling beyond reach
do you believe in god
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Trailer here. (http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/iamlegend/)
Release Date: December 14th, 2007 (wide)
Starring: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Dash Mihok, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Charlie Tahan
Directed by: Francis Lawrence (Constantine)
Premise: Based on Richard Matheson's novel - In a post-apocalyptic New York, one lone man fights to survive against a horde of vampire-like beings created when a cancer treatment went awry.
once again, pakour is the new kungfu.
Cast Away 1001 Days Later
could this be the first will smith movie i watch in 10 years?
..only xixax reviews will tell.
I watch all the Will Smith movies... including this one for sure.
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Quote from: I Am Legend posterThe Last Man On Earth Is Not Alone
Well, obviously, he's got a dog.
The Last Man's Best Friend On Earth.
The Last Man On Earth Has A New Trailer here. (http://www.worstpreviews.com/trailer.php?id=568&item=1)
Its not very encouraging when you open that on worsetrailers.com...
...this movie is going to be so awesome!
Quote from: Pubrick on June 07, 2007, 10:56:52 PM
Cast Away 1001 Days Later
Pretty much. And it's not a bad thing. I saw this in IMAX last night and it's pretty intense. It's not as good as 28 Days/Weeks but it's good fun for the most part. I mean, Will Smith as the last man on earth... if you're compelled to buy a ticket to see that, the best you can do is hope that there aren't too many shitty and/or wisecracky lines. And there aren't too many but that has an unfortunate side-effect of ALL of the dialogue being partially to explicitly expository. The scares would be kind of cheap if not for the fact that the entire film lives in that "it's too quiet, something has to happen" moment right before a big. It worked for me, although the CGI vampires/zombies/infected were pretty poorly rendered. Nothing I'll buy on DVD but it was enjoyable.
And it's got to be the hardest PG-13 ever. This is guaranteed to inspire a soccer mom letter-writing campaign. If there wasn't an MPAA fight, someone got something under some table somewhere, cash or... other services.
Quote from: H.(sparro)W. on December 15, 2007, 08:07:41 AMthe CGI vampires/zombies/infected were pretty poorly rendered.
God, yes. They looked like the dying aliens from Cocoon.
I went into this with much trepidation, being a big fan of the book. There are some things the film gets across, but a lot that it doesn't. For example, in the novel, the vampires spoke and baited Neville because they were co-workers of his. It added another layer of his isolation and depression. The vampires were still, in a way, human; they got smarter. The film only touches on this aspect. You also got a sense of just how loney he got because when he finally saw a woman, even a vampire one, he had the most lustful thoughts. The film fails to convey that loneliness and instead makes this Neville more a work-a-holic; that he still can find a cure. I am glad that they kept what happened to the population in flashback. And there is a heartbreaking scene with Neville and his dog in the lab that just holds on Smith's face. The film does have moments of tension and suspense. But overall, the film could have used voiceover, or make better use of the video diary. Mannequins do not a volleyball make. I won't even get into the differences between the endings.
Oh, also the book had no Bob Marley.
So I guess this flick made about ten billion dollars over the weekend. I still don't care.
i had so much fun with this one, but you have to see it during opening weekend or just forget it. its all about seeing it with a ridiculous crowd.
SPOILERS I GUESS BUT I MEAN WHO REALLY CARES
i loved how every time will smith was in trouble whatever was needed to maximize the drama or help big willy out was conveniently placed RIGHT there. like at the end, there happened to be a grenade and a picture of his family in some random drawer in the basement!?! too perfect..
END SPOILERS I GUESS
it made me want to listen to bob marley which is more than any other movie this year can say.
And did anyone else catch the Batman vs. Superman poster in Times Square? I can't remember if the release date was 5/15/09 or 5/15/10. A gag for fanboys or a promise of things to come?
Quote from: JG on December 16, 2007, 04:31:20 PM
it made me never want to listen to bob marley again which is more than any other movie this year can say.
yikes... that element was atrocious
it was watchable, but the movie was basically ruined by any use of dialogue... it was so awful and the ending was miserably forced.
the character effects were really crummy, but everything else was actually pretty good. I haven't been able to find much on the effects (probably because I didn't look THAT hard), but it looked like they used a lot of really great miniatures for new york and just super imposed smith driving around in the miniature.
Dark Knight trailer was ten times better than this movie.
Quote from: RegularKarate on December 19, 2007, 04:38:02 PM
the ending was miserably forced.
YES! YES! YES! So forced it made me sick! And while it gave me some amazing jolts, and cool moments of will smith alone in new york it fell flat just a bit and one of my relatives said that it broke a rule by killing the dog..."When you make a movie Michael, make sure you don't kill the dog, even if the dog turns into a vampire"
I just laughed and sighed.
can someone PM me the ending of this and the ending of Omega man? I am like really curious now.
Alternate Ending (http://forums.gametrailers.com/showthread.php?t=329096)
not sure how long it will last
WB plans 'I Am Legend' prequel
Will Smith, Francis Lawrence to return for film
Source: Variety
Warner Bros. has set in motion a prequel to the Will Smith starrer "I Am Legend."
The plan is for Smith to reprise his role as scientist Robert Neville, with Francis Lawrence returning to direct. Akiva Goldsman and his Weed Road banner will produce with James Lassiter, Smith's partner in Overbrook Entertainment.
The studio has set D.B. Weiss to write a script that is based on a detailed outline that was hatched over the past few months by Smith, Goldsman, Lassiter and Lawrence.
The prequel will chronicle the final days of humanity in New York before a man-made virus caused a plague that left Smith's character the lone survivor among a mutated mob in the city.
Making a prequel was the only way to extend a franchise that grossed $584 million worldwide for Warner Bros. and keep Smith in the lead role. His character was killed in the first film, after extracting a potential cure for the virus for the scattered survivors.
Weiss at present is scripting the adaptation of Neil Strauss' book "The Game" for Spyglass Entertainment. He's also working on a project for Relativity, "Kashmir."