CHUD has confirmed that Warner Bros had to do reshoots last week for the upcoming Will Smith sci-fi thriller I Am Legend. And rumor has it that the studio was unhappy with the film’s finale, which is said to be very faithful to Richard Matheson’s original story. So if true, expect something upbeat and more action packed.
I’m wondering if the ending tested poorly or if it was just an internal decision? Either way, reshoots are never a good sign for any film, especially this late in the game. I Am Legend is scheduled to hit theaters exactly one month from today. The press junket/screening for the movie takes place in two weeks. The guys at Warners better hurry. Am I now the only one still looking forward to this film?
November 15th, 2007 at 5:46 pm
I’m still looking forward to it, but reshoots of the finale doesn’t sound well. Who knows, it might make the film better, but I’d doubt it.
November 15th, 2007 at 6:11 pm
Did you like The Bourne Identity? Because that movie was reshot all to hell. Sometimes reshoots are for a good reason, and sometimes they’re worthwhile. Until a few years ago when all the movie websites began following every production and reporting the slightest detail, hundreds of movies had reshoots you probably never even knew about.
November 15th, 2007 at 6:56 pm
I think the “last man on earth” or “Omega Man” premise has become really dated and dull. I don’t think Will Smith alone can spice it up.
November 15th, 2007 at 7:21 pm
The ending was awesome! It might be despairing but that was the genius of Matheson’s story: that Neville was now the legendary horror to the new breed of vampire-humans, just like the vampire was our horror.
Maybe they’ll have Neville die in a blaze of glory or something rather than having him die in a cell. That won’t be too bad.
November 15th, 2007 at 8:03 pm
although the ending of the book was amazing…. i wouldnt mind seeing something different…. by the looks of the trailer it doesnt look like it’ll follow the book all that well anyways…(in my opinion) hopefully it’ll be worth it….. and maybe they’ll throw the original ending on the DVD when it’s released.
November 15th, 2007 at 8:19 pm
While re-shoots are never a good thing…come on it’s a Will Smith action movie…I know what I’m walking into. Why even re-shoot it…just give him some snappy one liners, some aliens to fight, and alot of big explosions, and everyone will walk out satisfied. And of course while describing what this movie needs…I meant that it needs to be the unofficial sequel to Independence Day…ID4: ID 4EVER. Don’t lie…you all thought it when you first saw the trailers for I Am Legend…..
November 16th, 2007 at 2:43 am
The ending in the book is the only way that is could be finished but if they are going to add some more action into it. The only way that they can do that is if they add more to the part where the vampires come for him but then it will be out source with the book and make it worse
November 16th, 2007 at 6:17 am
as long as they have the original cut on dvd, i’ll be happy and still looking forward to this
November 16th, 2007 at 6:50 am
whatever said and done this is will smith + action and that Im never ever gonna miss,I cant wait for I am Legend.
November 16th, 2007 at 7:20 am
The only disappointing thing is that the monsters look so much like the crawlers in The Descent. Other than that, the trailer looks great. Can’t wait!
November 16th, 2007 at 8:50 am
Okay so I am still very much so looking forward to this movie and I am all for a new ending because to me the ending of the book was completely off paced compared to the rest of it so hopefully they can spice it up a little
November 16th, 2007 at 10:32 am
on the one hand I have no trouble with the derivative, crappy ‘will smith action movie’…they serve a purpose in Hollywood and are easily ignored and forgotten (the discussion of the damage these films do to the film industry is another thing)…but this is an adaptation of a very influential book, an important book…and damn it, a great book. If you’re not going to do the book’s ending, that’s fine…but don’t call it I Am Legend. The ending of the book is the whole point…it gives meaning to the title, anything less is cowardice.
November 16th, 2007 at 12:24 pm
“…anything less is cowardice.”
They are champions of it in Hollywood.
November 16th, 2007 at 3:06 pm
“Am I now the only one still looking forward to this film?”
yep.
go rent ‘i robots’, and ‘men and black’ - watch them on a loop until the feeling goes away.
good luck.
December 10th, 2007 at 6:20 pm
this looks like a great movie I really wanna see it
December 14th, 2007 at 12:07 am
Well i think if he dies at the end it’ll be pretty pointless i mean come on the main guy is going through all this and that struggling with surviving and everything just to end up dead at the end? come on might as well just skip the details and kill him off early…don’t get me wrong i mean i realize how deep the story is and i understand how the ending affect the title but really when it’s all said and done it’s a big waste of time to see someone struggle so much just to end up dead anyway.I hope the ending is different from the book and with keeping that in mind i’m rushing off to see it…and by the way people i’m not a mindless action fan i actually love deep stories, and i hardly do anything that i can’t learn an immportant lesson from
December 14th, 2007 at 8:09 am
@ Rhan
the number of films/novels etc that do exactly that (guy dies at the end) proves you wrong…and it’s the reversal at the end of the book that is important, not the death.
December 15th, 2007 at 9:38 pm
I wish they would have kept the original ending. For Rhan, I dont think that a character’s death at the end is important. Whats important for movies and books is the path. All the meat in between, not how the book/movie is finished or started but the struggle the character had to go through.
January 6th, 2008 at 12:15 am
I loved the movie,,,,,and i did like the ending but i wudnt mind a diff ending
i hated the dog dying ,,,it was sad,, the new ending shud have the dog getting cured XD
January 24th, 2008 at 9:53 am
I thought the movie was great, but i thought the ending was a little too soon.
January 24th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Also how do u make a sequal to a movie where the main person dies from a granade?!?!?! There is no living through that!
March 9th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
I kind of like the middle ground argument but that is not to be on the fence i.e that the alternative (or original ending that was cut) is far better than the aired one, but it should have had Neville being taken away and tried then killed to become the Legend who had been killing them. They were sentient in the two other forms of this story, the original book and The Omega Man (many ways a better movie), though this was not developed much in this movie. It was very nearly a fantastic movie but for Anna’s appearance and the infected cgi disasters. There should have been more hints of their society rather than make them standard horror zombies. Fear can be about suspense and visuals. Yes they were horrible but the cgi still not believable as much as rubbery, Sigh once more
March 23rd, 2008 at 3:40 pm
I just watched this movie and almost cried. The worst part was when he had to kill Sam, his dog.