I Am Legend is actually the third telling of Richard Matheson's famed novel. First came The Last Man on Earth starring Vincent Price, then Charlton Heston took a shot at the source material in Omega Man.

In this adaptation, Will Smith plays Robert Neville, the only human survivor in New York City after an apparent cure for cancer goes horribly awry. By day, Neville blazes through the eerily desolate streets of the Big Apple foraging for supplies. Robert's only companion? His pet dog. By night, Neville barricades himself within the confines of an upscale home praying that the ominous creatures that stalk the night, won't find a way inside his house. It seems that the plague didn't wipe out everything. Those infected have turned into rabid, vampire like monsters, and a frantic Neville can only hope that he will eventually find the cure.

The first half of I Am Legend is incredibly powerful, and from the get go, the movie basically rests on Smith's capable shoulders. Like Tom Hanks in Cast Away, Smith has the daunting challenge of going the proceedings alone. Sure, he has a dog by his side and the movie cleverly gives us flashbacks in which we see he and his family preparing for a New York evacuation, but for much of the film's running time, Smith has no other actors to bounce off of. This one-time Fresh Prince of Bel Air, digs deep to create a most memorable character - a sad and lonely, but extremely driven individual who must find a cure for a seemingly incurable disease all while trying to outwit his foe and maintain his sanity.

Director Francis Lawrence (Constantine) does a great job creating a chilling sense of isolation. The film is pretty darn massive in terms of scope, but at it's core, this is a surprisingly intimate story. As previously stated, the first half of this picture is very strong. There's a sort of quiet, slow build at work here, but during a pivotal moment about midway through the story, the film abruptly switches gears.

Without giving too much away, there is a definitive turning point in the film, and what started as an interesting character study about Neville and his dealing with the possibility of being the last man on Earth, degenerates into a typical action piece. Thankfully, Smith remains grounded. He stays true to the inner workings of Neville, and that keeps the proceedings from turning into a Will Smith vehicle like I, Robot.

Perhaps the most disheartening aspect of I Am Legend is the effects work. I'm not referring to the sets and such. The deserted New York landscape sent a chill up my spine. Unfortunately, the film is less successful in the creature department. When we first get a look at these "night stalkers" Lawrence is wise to only give us mere glimpses. There's a chilling scene in which Neville witnesses the creatures huddling in a circle feeding on...something. It is a creepy, effective moment because Lawrence keeps the beasties hidden in the shadows. A technique Neil Marshall used to startling effect in the exceptional The Descent. Sadly though, the rest of the film gives us shots of the night stalkers head on and they are less than impressive. Rather than going the effects make-up route (like Danny Boyle wisely did in the similar 28 Days Later), the film makers have opted for CGI. Really crappy CGI. I've seen better graphics in a video game. Most of the effects shots were incredibly distracting. They took me out of the experience completely.

The final act of the film has none of the gradual build-up that makes the first half of the movie so darned effective. Lawrence and screenwriters Mark Protosevich and Akiva Goldsman simply cut to the chase and the end result is a rushed climax punctuated by a silly act of so called heroism that, despite the film makers' best intentions, didn't move me the way it was supposed to.

In the end though, there is the incomparable Will Smith. This is simply a great performance. Between a soulful Smith, the compelling first hour of this end of the world epic, and the kick ass Dark Knight trailer that preceded the film, I was won over by the experience as a whole. On a final note, I Am Legend is also playing on Imax screens. That's the way to see it if you get the opportunity.