Too much CGI

Rating: 2/10 (10 March 2008)

Having read the inspiration for this film, it is not worthy of its title. I don't think (and this is just a personal opinion) that Will Smith was a good choice as the lead because Will Smith is a sure sign of light-hearted popcorn-flicks which don't take themselves seriously enough (ala Independence Day) so you know what you're getting before you even watch the film, some committee sitting around deciding who they can cast to pull in casual viewers.
Hollywood's over-reliance on CGI for almost everything these days was another film-ruiner for me. The "infected" could have easily been better portrayed with a bit of make-up on some extras....even bad acting is better than ropey CGI. There are also too many things in the film where you have to work out yourself various ideas makers were trying to portray, what they were going for, because they were so badly conveyed, but suffice to say I can't tell you what half of those things are because it may spoil your enjoyment. The film starts in a deserted New York which could have had such an impact if it had been portrayed by the director just a little darker and more grim, but this scene leads on to the traditional action-film loud beginning to get the popcorn-muncher's attention and the introduction of some bad CGI, which basically brings the film to a rather disappointing start. At least they went easy on the comic relief.
The whole thing comes off a bit one-dimensional, the same old zombie flick, warmed over for 2007 (Oh look they're shaking the camera around a bit! How contemporary), done worse than many recent others of the same genre.
So, in summary, too much CGI, too much product placement, too much Will Smith, not enough film.