I have been a fan of movie, I Am Legend since it came out in 2007. Partially because I love Will Smith’s acting and also due to the fact that I have always liked zombie genre.
However today it gained a new place in my heart, as I watched for the first time, the alternative ending to the movie. Where instead of blowing everyone up, Will Smith in the climax of the movie, actually walks out with the female dark seeker and revives her, before giving her off to leader of dark seekers, who appears to be her mate or romantic interest. And he in turn carries her off and leaves Will Smith and the lady and boy alone!
It is a fairly touching ending, and lends a new perspective to traditional zombie genre, where they are portrayed as blood thirsty, mindless monsters.
Even though we humans as a species, have been crueler than any beast to have ever walked the face of this earth.
We kill, meme, injure and torture others for enjoyment, and seek to justify our acts by terming others as inferior or fair game in case of revenge.
Come to think of it, no other species has so systematically killed and tortured as we have, and yet, we term others as beast and ourselves civilized.
Maybe this is why we let our imagination run wild and imagine a day when even more blood thirsty and mindless creature will appear (from among us) and make us feel the anguish, we have made others feel over the centuries.
What we fear is not some hidden enemy, rather ourselves, who no longer feel the need to justify our actions to our conscious. And can instead go on doing the same, without any remorse or masks.
Maybe all we fear is the beast within, unleashed in an unabashed manner for all to see….
3 Comments
The novel is totally different from the film. I suggest you read it.
Thanks Abhishek, thinking of doing that. But already have quite a large reading list.
I was writing my own retrospective piece on, “I Am Legend,” I just posted today and found your own article thinking-back over the flick. I am happy to find someone else who enjoyed the alternate/original ending as much as myself and agree with your observations that Dr. Neville is a bit of a monster himself. I’ve linked to your article in my own piece and wanted to give you a heads-up about that and thank you!
The post:
http://www.thenewestrant.com/2016/10/flashback-fridayfilm-friday-i-am-legend.html