DVD Zone: April 2008
I Am Legend
Warner Home Video
What is it about the end of the world? The current trend is to speculate about what the planet would be like if humans weren’t around to tend to the old homestead. Both The History Channel and The National Geographic Channel have run specials about it, and there’s I Am Legend.
Legend, the tale of a scientist wandering the ruins while trying to find the cure for a population-destroying plague, is the third time the Richard Matheson book of the same name has hit the big screen. Vincent Price first tackled the role in one of his best films, The Last Man On Earth. Next up, Charlton Heston grumbled his way through The Omega Man. Now, Will Smith steps to the plate.
After a cure for cancer turns out to have the nasty side effect of killing 95 percent of the human population, Smith finds himself alone in the ruins of New York City. Well, not exactly alone. Seems that most of the remaining populace that wasn’t killed by the disease has turned into bloodthirsty, zombie-like creatures. Hey, we haven’t seen that before!
Despite giving us things we’ve seen time and again in the standard zombie flicks, Legend does contain a good portion of genuine scares. You know from the music cues that something is going to jump out of the shadows, yet you still jump when it happens.
The film looks great as well, for the most part. Director Francis Lawrence does a great job turning the Big Apple into an overgrown jungle, but the film stumbles when it comes to the zombies. Instead of actors in makeup, Legend relies completely on CGI effects to wake the dead. It’s understandable that they would want to avoid comparisons to films like 28 Days Later by doing this, but the results almost pull you out of the story completely.
The two-disc set contains two complete versions of the film, with the second version expanded by four minutes and giving you an alternate ending. There are also four animated shorts that deal with how the virus played out in different parts of the world. For more special features, you have to plunk the disc into your computer and access the rest via the Web. Frustrating, and completely unnecessary.
Of the three versions, I Am Legend looks the best, but I’ll still opt for Vincent Price. What can I say? I’m old school.
Film: *** Features: **1/2
Albert Collins:
Live At Montreux 1992
Eagle Eye Media
What would guitar month be without a shout to the master of the Telecaster, Albert Collins?
Live At Montreux 1992 is actually two Montreux performances by Collins — the ’92 show and four songs from his 1979 appearance in the special features section. Of the two, the ’92 set is preferable, not only because the sound quality is superior, but for being filmed just a year before Collins’ death in 1993.
Despite the relatively short set list of only seven songs, ’92 finds Collins in as good a form as he had ever been, firing off blistering leads and generally having a whale of a time. The ’79 set is worthwhile, but the sound quality drags it down.
Aside from the ’79 performance, there are no other special features
Performance: *** Features *
Also available . . . Fans of former Faith No More frontman Mike Patton will be interested in digging up A Perfect Place (Fantoma Films), the short feature by director Derrick Scocchera featuring Mark Boone Junior, whom you’ll recognize from Batman Begins, and Bill Moseley as two dimwitted criminals trying to find a place to dump a body. The film was scored by Patton, who gives it a nice, jazzy feel to go along the the noirish aspects. The short film itself is average, but Patton’s work makes it worth picking up. Both the film and the soundtrack come in the same package, and the soundtrack runs about twice as long as the film itself. Quick side note: Patton also provided the voice (or grunts) for the creature in I Am Legend. See how things come full circle?
— Timothy Hiatt
