I AM LEGEND -what did you think of alternate movie version? - SPOILER ALERT -

[DTS]

Can't believe there is no discussion of the alternate version of this movie, different ending for sure. Not sure if it was better or just different, but good either way.

The Blu ray was nice! Watched it on the PS3 in 7.1 [no high def audio, yet :)], some very good moments of surrounds reaching out to you.

And the Mustang was everything I expected it to be on my system, [you know, while watching in theater your mostly thinking how cool this is going to be at home] was everything I expected it to be on my system.

Well tonight, Master & Commander. One of my favorites, especially with friends who haven't heard it yet, I mean, seen it. I believe the Blu version is due out in May, will be double dippin' for that.

[Jack Hammer]

I really liked the movie overall, neither ending was very good, IMO. I especially didn't like the overuse of cgi. Both endings looked like they were from a video game. Either ending really made little difference to me in the overall feel of the movie.

The alternate ending left a lot of holes, really they both did. But they made a point earlier about how the dark seekers were running out of food and hungry. So even if the the main seeker got his woman back, why wouldn't he let the rest of the pack feed? What, now they're all going to live together in harmony??

I guess the director must have run out of time or money, or maybe good ideas on how to end it. Really, I think that the endings probably looked much better on paper before they filmed them and added the cgi. Then the director was stuck with picking which turd was less smelly to use for the ending.

Jack

[stratman]

Hey Jack I've been meaning to ask, but I end up forgetting everytime.....your avatar, is that some kind of crack-head lemur?:eek:

[Jack Hammer]

Hey Jack I've been meaning to ask, but I end up forgetting everytime.....your avatar, is that some kind of crack-head lemur?:eek:

Actually, the name "Jack Hammer" has been a nickname for many years. So One day I do a google picture search for "Jack Hammer" thinking I'll get some cool avatar of a guy going to town digging up a street or something, and I see that ugly thing. I have absolutely no idea what it is, but all I can say is It was luv at first sight...


Jack

[mike c]

finding a lack of spoiler in this thread: :)

http://www.firstshowing.net/2008/03/05/must-watch-i-am-legends-original-ending-this-is-amazing/

[j_garcia]

I liked the alternate ending a lot, but I didn't really have a problem with the theatrical one either. It is far from a perfect story, but I still found it very entertaining; both versions.

M&C was pushed out until June, but looks like was pushed up to May 13.

[Tomorrow]

finding a lack of spoiler in this thread: :)

http://www.firstshowing.net/2008/03/05/must-watch-i-am-legends-original-ending-this-is-amazing/

We just saw the Netflix DVD version...one ending only. None of us liked it much. Thanks for the alternate link, Mike! This one (the original) not only makes more sense, it is cinematically more appealing.

We followed up I Am Legend with another virus movie, The Invasion, which we liked better. Now we may have to rethink our favorite selection.

[Seth=L]

The Alternate ending seems better to me, I can't figure out why they chose the other one.:confused:

[Buckeye_Nut]

I thought the alternative ending was incredibly bad.

HATED IT...........

The theatrical ending was 100x better for many reasons.

[cbraver]

I thought the alternative ending was incredibly bad.

HATED IT...........

The theatrical ending was 100x better for many reasons.

I agree. Haha, I'm glad they changed it from the books ending in that case.

Honestly, I thought the movie was pretty bad overall though. I'd rather watch 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later. I can't tell if I just don't like Will Smith as an actor, or if it was the movie itself. I wonder what my opinion of the movie would have been if Denzel Washington had been in it instead. Or anyone else, or that matter.

[Seth=L]

Actually, the name "Jack Hammer" has been a nickname for many years. So One day I do a google picture search for "Jack Hammer" thinking I'll get some cool avatar of a guy going to town digging up a street or something, and I see that ugly thing. I have absolutely no idea what it is, but all I can say is It was luv at first sight...


Jack

This was the first thing that came up in the search for Jack Hammer, it's more appropriate for this site I think.:D

[Jack Hammer]

This was the first thing that came up in the search for Jack Hammer, it's more appropriate for this site I think.:D

Yes it is, thank you. The one I'm using now could actually pass for a picture of me when I get out of bed in the morning...

Jack:eek:

[j_garcia]

It is definitely a flawed story, the one presented in the theater anyway, but I still enjoyed it. It had enough of that "castaway" feel to it and the overall empty city environments looked fairly well done in terms of CG - the mobile characters - animals, creatures, etc... did not.

[darien87]

I thought the alternate ending was MUCH better than the original one. I remember being in the theater and expecting something to happen with the Dark Seeker leader and the female, because it seemed pretty obvious that they were a couple, but then they just sort of dropped it.

I'm not really sure why they changed the ending, other than maybe they didn't want to end it all happy and Hollywood.

[mike c]

I'm not really sure why they changed the ending, other than maybe they didn't want to end it all happy and Hollywood.

agreed!

imagine Gladiator and Braveheart if both had the main actors survive and have a happy ending :)

[j_garcia]

Both versions were about him redeeming himself a bit, in different ways. I agree that they mainly changed it because the alternate ending was a bit too simple and obvious, while the other was unexpected, even if not as "Hollywood".

[captiankirk28]

Hi I liked the alternate ending the best, but i would have liked it better if he would have killed the darkseekers in the lab at the end and than got away.

[gus6464]

You guys are missing the whole point of the alternate ending. Throughout the book the whole point of him killing the dark seekers was because he thought they no longer had the aspects that make us human. He even made a point of this in the movie when they tricked him. In the end Neville realizes that they are not animals and that they still emit a form of humanity. He realizes that they do not want to be "saved" and just want to live their lives. This is why when the girls asks Neville what he is doing he says "I am listening". If you read the book and understand the point of the story it makes the ending 1000x better than the theatrical version. Not all endings have to be dramatic to be good no matter what hollywood tells us. The book is all about what is "human".

[j_garcia]

They are definitely not "human" though... I believe it was you that mentioned some of that in the original thread about the movie when it was in the theater, so I did get what they were getting at with the alternate ending. Given a choice, I would pick the alternate over the theatrical one.

[Jack Hammer]

...He realizes that they do not want to be "saved" and just want to live their lives. This is why when the girls asks Neville what he is doing he says "I am listening". If you read the book and understand the point of the story it makes the ending 1000x better than the theatrical version...

Part of living their lives consists of eating the non-dark seeker humans. I haven't read the book, but I have seen the movie. Resolved in the book is irrelevant when watching a movie. The movie needs to resolve itself in order for the movie to work.

In the alternate ending I am to believe that after they have been trying to kill him (likely for food and spite) that all they want is the girl and now it's forgive and forget (about dinner) time? I don't think so.

Jack

[gus6464]

Part of living their lives consists of eating the non-dark seeker humans. I haven't read the book, but I have seen the movie. Resolved in the book is irrelevant when watching a movie. The movie needs to resolve itself in order for the movie to work.

In the alternate ending I am to believe that after they have been trying to kill him (likely for food and spite) that all they want is the girl and now it's forgive and forget (about dinner) time? I don't think so.

Jack

In no time in the movie did they try to kill him for no reason. The trap with the taxi was laid after he took the girl with butterfly tattoo. It just shows that everyone will do what it takes to survive no matter the means. It's human nature to try and survive no matter what. And like in the other thread in the book Neville was actually the bad guy because he would hunt them down for no reason.

[Jack Hammer]

I think the Vincent Price movie, Last Man on Earth, did a much better job of making the points you reference from the book. In that he ended up being the bad guy, unintentionally and unknowingly, and dying. It was a much better ending there.

In this version, AFAICT, only the alpha male is shown to have much intelligence. The rest are just shown as violent, hungry, dangerous animals. (alpha female doesn't count, she's basically out cold the whole movie). There doesn't seem to be a highly developed language they speak, just grunts and yells.

I'm not knocking your opinion or the book. I just think the movie doesn't resolve issues it creates with viewers who have no prior knowlege of the book or original story line.

Jack:)

[j_garcia]

The concepts are there, but they just aren't that well explained in this movie. I agree Last Man on Earth was more clear.

They don't need a highly developed language to communicate, though having been of "higher" intelligence previously, one would think they could muster more than "Uggh", regardless of what the "disease" did to them.

[Buckeye_Nut]

I'm waiting for a "Dawn of the Dead" remake of the remake so the studio can get the ending right.

It should have ended with a male & female zombie embracing and rubbing noses....then riding off into the sunset on the dead guys sailboat.

....that outta' do it.;):rolleyes:

[Erin Hardison]

Can I just say that this movie scares the crap out of me? I'm watching it now and am to the scene where the 'monsters' set the trap for him and the dog gets infected. I'm about to have to fast forward...

[allargon]

Can I just say that this movie scares the crap out of me? I'm watching it now and am to the scene where the 'monsters' set the trap for him and the dog gets infected. I'm about to have to fast forward...

Whaaa? This wasn't a scary movie. Check out El Orfanato in 7.1 surround for scary. I didn't like the alternate ending. I already knew based on what was told in the movie why the alpha dark seeker was trying so hard. I preferred the theatrical ending.

[Clint DeBoer]

They did a poor job of conveying some of the ideas presented in this thread. The story of the movie wasn't very impressive. It had a ton of potential that was apparently "left on the table."