Enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing i am legend near you. The omega man ends openended with the idea that maybe the survivors have a chance. From classics to contemporary masterpieces, explore and watch a library full of extraordinary, stirring, and provocative entertainment that goes beyond the big screen. I did like the story, but one of the biggest bothers for me here was not fully understanding. Richard mathesons i am legend is a masterpiece of horror that has.
Film column i did on the source material and the four films loosely inspired by it. It was influential in the development of th e zombievampi re genre and in popularizing the concept of a worldwide apocalypse due to disease. I am legends alternate ending explained in the theatrical cut of i am legend, nevilles house is stormed by the vampires, right as he finally discovers a cure for their condition. I though the book was effectively i am legend and other short stories by. Another big part of the i am legend book thats never been adapted faithfully is its ending, which sees neville commit suicide rather than be. I am legend is a 2007 american postapocalyptic action thriller film based on the 1954 novel of the same name by richard matheson. Differences between i am legend book vs movie page 1. At one time, the vampires were normal people who were infected by a bacteria later dubbed vampiris, by matheson. Unlike neville, they had no immunity to the virus and subsequently became creatures previously known only in. Instead of blowing himself and the hemocytes up with a grenade, neville discovers that the hemocytes actually came for the female he captured earlier in the movie.
At eightynine miles an hour, he shot down the lifeless, empty boulevard, one roaring sound in the great stillness. Will smiths 2007 box office hit i am legend had an ending that divided audiences, but an alternate ending exists that does more justice to the book. They can stay out in the sun for short periods of time, and they take special pills that help them tolerate the germ. Changing i am legend s creatures which were created by the virus outbreak in the movie made adapting the books ending impossible, as the darkseekers showed almost no signs of heightened intelligence earlier in the movie. I am legend alternate ending behind the scenes warner. If he had been more analytical, he might have calculated the approximate time of their arrival. Vampires have inherited the earth in richard mathesons i am legend. I am legend changed the vampires of the novel to the mindless darkseekers. In fact, without the original ending, the movies title of i am legend doesnt actually make much sense.
Theres lessons to be learned about mob behavior and respect for minorities. Robert neville finds himself alone after a hideous mutation turns humans into vampires. Ruth explains that she doesnt blame neville for killing some of her friends with wooden stakes, as she knows that he was just trying to survive. Spoilers as he swallows the pill, all of these monsters staring and he laughs to himself saying i am legend. Last december when i am legend hit theaters, one of the biggest complains i heard was that the ending was completely changed from the book.
As the final lethargy engulfs him, he thinks, i am legend. Putting all of that in a movie might not be possible or might not make a good movie, but the alternate ending for this one goes just about as far as it could in one scene. Then it goes into a story about a man winning a carnival game, then a women getting attacked by haunted doll etc. Complete with garlic aversioni guess vinegar was the substitute, eh. Years after a plague kills most of humanity and transforms the rest into monsters, the sole survivor in new york city struggles valiantly to find a cure in this postapocalyptic action thriller. I am legend alternate ending behind the scenes warner bros.
I am legend is brilliant commentary and society and human relationships and, really, the very definition of humanity. The car leaped forward under his foot and he kept the accelerator on the floor, forced down by a rigid leg. With that in mind, what some feel is a confusing ending becomes far more. But time is running out for neville as the legions of infected watch his. He was named a grand master of horror by the world horror convention, and received the bram stoker award for lifetime achievement. Okay, i think to myself, this will be a decent read. Film is a column comparing books to the film adaptations they.
Years after a plague kills most of humanity and transforms the rest into monsters, the sole survivor in new york city struggles valiantly to find a cure. Every night, he barricades himself inside his house and keeps the vampire horde at bay. Adapted from acclaimed author richard mathesons influential novelette of the same. In the book, i am legend are the final words that robert thinks on his deathbed, as he realizes that in death he will become a terrifying legend just like vampires once were. The alternate ending to i am legend where they respect him and growl at him in an acknowledging way is odd and feels out of place. The will smith i am legend once again fails to replicate this ending, but its alternate conclusion is much closer to the books message. This aside, it is a fairly good movie with post apocalyptic themes and a storyline that will keep you interested for the 96 minutes duration. Its a full, polished ending, with complete special effects intact, so im assuming it was ripped from the special features on the imminent dvd.
To ask other readers questions about i am legend, please sign up. Also sign me up for fanmail to get updates on all things movies. Yesterday, some intrepid soul posted an alternate i am legend ending to youtube. How i am legends ending is different in the book screen. I am legend originally had an ending closer to the books, but that was changed after negative reactions from test. Blogger adam katz sent me the link because of the book vs. Rather then giving it the intelligence of the book, they ended it with some dumbed down ending for the masses, and no one who sees it could be satisfied by such a. Just as smiths robert neville does in the films original ending, the book version of the character realizes that he. I am legend spoilers so i recently bought richard mathesons, i am legend.
I am legend is about a zombielike horde wiping out much of humanity, but its confusing ending becomes clear if you understand the personal journey of its hero. Neville continues to feel guilty for killing vampireseven though he knows its the best way to ensure his own survival, hes not comfortable ending the lives of others. He clutches the pills in his hand and thinks, so long as the end did not come with violence, so long as it did not have to be a butchery. The story is set in new york city after a virus, which was originally created to cure cancer, has wiped out most of. Her brief outro completely ruins the darkly clever play of the books original plot that neville is a legend, hated. This film is i am legend in name only, it bears very little relation to the book of the same name. His hands were like carved ice on the wheel and his face was the face of a statue. Also, as in 2007s i am legend, the end of the novel is changed drastically. As he does so, something darkly amusing occurs to him.
This is starkly different to the i am legend movie ending, in which neville. Neville sacrificed himself for humanity and that because of his cure humanity was able to rebuild, establishing his legend. Ending spoiler for i am legend 2007, plus mistakes, quotes, trivia and more. I am legend is about a zombielike horde wiping out much of humanity, but its confusing ending and butterfly symbolism become a lot more clear if you understand the personal journey of its hero. This video looks at the long and strange history of the richard matheson novel i am legend and the three film adaptations it spawned. Hes a legend, but for the wrong reasonsin line with richard mathesons book, he is an. Instead of blowing himself and the hemocytes up with a grenade, neville. Whats the difference between i am legend the book and i am legend the movie. I thumb through the book before i read it and notice there are 312 pages. She tells him that he cant fight them, there are too many of them, and gives him a packet of pills to make the end easier. I am legend and the omega man end with a survivor, or survivors, wanting to be fully human again. Directed by francis lawrence, the film stars will smith as us army virologist robert neville. I did like the story, but one of the biggest bothers for me here was not fully. I am legend read online free from your pc or mobile.
Ruth s note goes on to explain that she and her friends are infected with the germ, but have learned how to survive with it. I am legend is about a zombielike horde wiping out much of humanity. I am lege nd is a 1954 postapocalyptic horror novel by american writer richard matheson. I am legend, however, falls in the trap of leaving the ending open for a sequel. The ending of the film was also altered to portray neville as sacrificing his life to save humanity, rather than being. Bram stoker was a major influence on matheson, and not just in i am legend. Years ago, you see, my husband had wanted to talk about the book, probably when the most recent adaptation to movie form had come out, and i am well known for not reading horror, so.
The movie took all the intelligence out and just made it about the action. Richard matheson 192620 was the new york times bestselling author of i am legend, hell house, somewhere in time, the incredible shrinking man, now you see it, and what dreams may come, among others. With will smith, alice braga, charlie tahan, salli richardsonwhitfield. But i went into reading i am legend knowing the ending, knowing the twist. The ending to the alternate theatrical version varies from the original ending. With that in mind, what some feel is a confusing ending becomes far more clear when you understand nevilles personal journey. Richard mathesons i am legend is a masterpiece of horror that has spawned three film adaptations, none of which have quite captured the essence of what makes this book.
I am legends biggest change from the book broke the movie. Nevilles blood is the key to bring back the human race. I am legend 1010 movie clip alternate ending 2007 hd. The book is full of good ideas, every other one of which is immediately dropped and kicked out of sight. He spends a full 18 pages of the 159page novella trying to lure the dog in. The books characters realization of their perspective is the whole point of the book. For those who have read the book they know why it is called i am legend. I am legend is the 2007 film adaptation of richard mathesons 1954 novel of the same name, starring will smith and a bunch of cg zombie things called dark seekers. The infected people attack nevilles lab and he hands over the infected female hes been working on to the leader a.
Thus it stands to reason that i never would have read richard mathesons i am legend had not the wildcard of my book club. The successes and failures in adapting i am legend film. Ive been caught out by the first chapter of another of the authors book being included at the end in a similar way. From classics to contemporary masterpieces, explore and watch a library. January 1976 chapter one on those cloudy days, robert neville was never sure when sunset came, and sometimes they were in the streets before he could get back. Through his perspective, i am legend is a story of hope wrapped in a layer of postapocalyptic turmoil with religious overtones. But time is running out for neville as the legions of infected watch his every. I am legend is a 1954 postapocalyptic horror novel by american writer richard matheson that. Legend study guide contains a biography of marie lu, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. So i just finished i am legend by richard matheson.
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