 | Category: | Movies | | Genre: | Science Fiction & Fantasy |
I generally find Will Smith mildly irritating. He has this kind of over the top, loud, obnoxious screen persona in many of his movies that just rubs me the wrong way. So I was a little concerned when I heard that he had been cast in a movie as the last man alive. The whole movie would necessarily revolve around his character. Could he possibly pull that off?
The answer, surprisingly, is yes. There were some flashback scenes that I didn't think worked quite as well as they could have -- though they did work -- but the meat of the movie, Will Smith wandering around a completely deserted Manhattan, is so brilliantly done that that alone is the worth the price of a movie ticket.
We discover, through the flashbacks, how Will Smith came to find himself in this situation. He wanders the streets of Manhattan by day hunting deer (somewhat ineffectively I must say) and looting apartments. Which doesn't seem like stealing, since everyone is gone.
While this goes on we watch him have conversations with animals and mannequins and other inanimate objects, and watch the slow unravelling of his mind. And if the scenes of Manhattan devoid of people and full of wildlife are worth the cost of the ticket, Will Smith's performance of his psychological deterioration is what makes this a movie people will come back to when those effects are no longer impressive.
Much has been said in other reviews about how the first two thirds of this film are great and how the ending was horrible. I waited awhile to write this review to see how it sat with me after a few days, and I have to say I disagree about it being horrible. I don't even feel like it was tacked on. It was a bit inconsistent in tone, but I think that was actually necessary if there was going to be any sort of dramatic resolution. I have not read the book the movie was based on, so maybe I'd feel differently if I had. But what I CAN tell you is this: this is one of the best movies of 2007, and worth paying to see in the theater. It will not be the same on your television set.
Go check it out.
(Rated R for disturbing zombie-related violence. Leave your kids at home.)
 | It's at the theater right now?
And hey, Merry Christmas ;) |
 | jvon wrote on Dec 25, '07 Yep this is out right now. Even in Canada, I bet. ;)
Merry Christmas to you too!
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| I never pay attention to what is in the theaters! I can't even think of a movie I've thought about going to see, since Harry Potter. |
 | I still cannot find the need to see this movie. It seems like it would be something I would probably enjoy though. |
| jvon wrote on Dec 25, '07 It really was pretty good. The best reason to see it is because it will NOT be the same watching it at home, not even with an HD setup. You'll never get the audio right, with the wind blowing through the trees and the birds and stuff. It was so strange being in Manhattan (very accurate, I assume most of it was real) and hearing all that.
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| hm. I think I might just find it too unnerving then. I like the city with all it's noise. I was in Rockefeller Center around 2 am once in the snow and the quiet was unnerving. |
| jvon wrote on Dec 25, '07 It was definitely eerie. I think the zombies were more unnerving though. They weren't the slow, lurching zombies, they were more the crazy badass zombies like in "28 Days Later".
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| Huh, so you mean like being caught in alphabet city after dark? |
| jvon wrote on Dec 25, '07 It's not so bad there now. You should go back and check it out. :)
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 | You are just about talk me in to seeing this movie. I'm not a big fan of Will Smith. The only movie he made that I watched is the "Pursuit Of Happiness" (true story) and like it a lot. |
 | Aaron and I want to see this... |
| jvon wrote on Dec 26, '07 |
 | I could not agree with your review more, I also give it 4 stars due to the ending. The book is over 400 pages long, yet they made the whole movie in to only 1 hour 40 minutes, however it was very good. Considering there is only so much you can show on the screen regarding an empty city.
The whole premise is interesting and I believe something that is not too far fetched, with many governments working to find ways to better kill people, a super virus is not beyond the whelm of possibilities, which really adds to the whole mode of this film.
The ending works, I feel it could have been better, followed the book a bit more which would have dove in to Smith's character mindset.
Good write up J |
| jvon wrote on Dec 26, '07 Oh, in the book, do they explain who the head zombie was, and why he was so much smarter than the others? He was a pretty creepy character but they never really explained where he came from.
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 | The special effects certainly look intriguing, it's just have have little faith in Hollywood's ability to write an equally worthwhile script. I'll check it out on DVD though. |
| Well the script did have some issues, particularly towards the end, but it was still worth checking out. Will Smith did a really good job.
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| On my date this week, I have to decide between this movie or National Treasure. |
| I would definitely pick this one, but that's just me. :)
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| National Treasur is fun, this movie will move you close to your date...
Either way you will not go wrong |
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It's not so bad there now. You should go back and check it out. :)