Should not be titled after the Richard Matheson classic...

Rating: 4/10 (7 January 2008)

I didn't expect much when I went to see this film but it disappointed none the less. I read the novel by Richard Matheson about 10 years ago and loved it. The premise (back then) was quite original and at only 160 pages, gripped me hard and did not let go. You really felt that you were inside Robert Neville's head and were experiencing what he was experiencing.
The film reflected hardly a shred of the classic piece of literature. I can't be asked typing out all of the differences but the main differences are as follows. Robert Neville was not a military scientist, he was an average Joe living in LA. Robert Neville did not have a child, only a wife who ended up infected with the virus and returned as a vampire. Robert Neville did not have a dog, he talked to himself mostly and yelled obscenities at the heckling vampires on his front lawn. The strange woman character in the book was found by him and was infected with the virus. He did not have some high tech lab where he was working on the cure. And last but not least....the vampires. In the film they were coherent and spoke. They were conscious and tormented Robert Neville which fuelled his madness & loneliness. They were not CGI, Resident Evil style monsters.
To be honest, I did not even feel that the film itself was a decent one even if I had not read the book. The portrayal of Robert Neville was quite shallow and the ending was severely rushed. I would not recommend this film as anything more than maybe a Blockbuster rental on a rainy Sunday afternoon.