"I Am Legend" seems to hold back

Rating: 5/10 (28 December 2007)

For a post-apocalyptic horror film, "I Am Legend" seems to hold back from the intense drama that one would expect. It does this is several ways:
The Dark Seekers (as the monsters were named during production) aren't as developed of a threat to truly give a sense of danger and tension to the film. They are presented as one-dimensional, serving primarily as the enemy to Robert Neville without developing a firm hero/villain relationship. The Dark Seekers are simply characterized as being completely inhuman and any sign to the contrary is made void. It is shown that Robert wants to cure them, but there isn't much emphasis on the humanity that he sees in the Dark Seekers as an important plot point. Had there been greater development on the Dark Seekers as characters, "I Am Legend" would've been a better movie.
What I will compliment on is the psychological drama that Will Smith and the filmmakers have portrayed in Robert Neville and his disconnection from the rest of humanity. His interaction with the mannequins were humorous, but the lifelessness of the dolls made such moments very eerie and shows you just how close to the edge Robert really is. Again, the psychological drama would have expanded and a new level of anxiety would have been reached had the Dark Seekers been developed as more human characters and Robert Neville been driven to save what humanity was left in them.
One aspect of "I Am Legend" that I do have a discrepancy against is how quick the film ended upon the arrival of Anna and Ethan. They didn't become involved in Robert Neville's efforts and so there wasn't the development of psychological attachment that would've made Anna and Ethan truly significant characters.
The reason for Robert Neville to become a "legend" in this interpretation doesn't seem to ring in consideration with everything that he has gone through. The legacy that Robert Neville should be remembered for shouldn't necessarily be the cure itself, but the drama that he underwent to obtain it. Unfortunately, the emphasis on this major plot point seems to be lost in favor of focusing on Robert Neville as being "the last man on Earth."
Rating: *** - Good