Examining Film Openings | I Am Legend (2007)

I Am Legend is a stark contrast to Mad Max in opening, execution and plot. The story is orientated around Will Smith - a lone survivor - of a mass contagion which has turned the remaining populace into zombie-like creatures that he must avoid and fight. The film explores the his life in a tense, psychological approach. Though there is action, the mentality of the protagonist and how he reacts to the barren world around him is the key focus of the film - and makes us more sympathetic to the last man standing.

 The initial sound used in the film opening is an extract from a news report, but the video has been taken away so all we see is a black screen. This is used to accentuate a feeling of isolation and intimately inform the viewer of the evens prior without spoonfeeding them with a direct story-telling method and giving them visual stimulus as seen in Mad Max 2.

This only lasts for as long as the interview is over before tense, incidental music and stings that draw you into the film and offer a quote as visual stimulus.

The fact that the quote is from "A Survivor", it sets the scene of the film and immediately allows the audience to fill in the gaps and assume that the cancer treatment was not successful, and that some dreadful has happened as a result.

A slow and sombre piano score is additionally used throughout the opening, overlapping the protagonist's inner monologue which emphasises tension and compliments the speaker's harsher voice.

As well as this, each screen shot of the abandoned city has the credits of the film which seamlessly combine with the buildings. The initial shots could be mistaken for a normal city, and there's even a figure heading into a record store.

You may think that the city may just be run-down or in a bad neighbourhood, until you see the shot of the submerged cars that are piled up against bockades and barriers. The sun is shining but the city's dead. These establishing shots are key in finally filling us in with the story so far without just explaining exerything in rolling credits like you might see in Star Wars.

Most of the shots will be explained in the film, but this opening is simply slimming down the things to come and give us some foreshadowing with what to expect. The close up shot of the Mannequin in the record store also makes the viewer curious and therefore draws them in. They want to know the story.

When the voice over cuts off, more stings are used for dramatic effect and incidentally help us transition from one scene to another. The fonts used throughout the film is in captial - this is a common trait in openings, AS CAPITAL LETTERS DRAWS YOU IN AND I ASSUME YOU'RE READING THIS IN A SHOUTY VOICE, YES?

The found is similar to Times New Roman, which gives a sense of traditionalism. Everything is also centred; the 'L' and the 'D' in Legend almost frame the title.

The diegetics in the opening of the car's engine are the only thing that can be heard now in the abandoned city, and the camera tracks the car's focus to the only working car, and in turn, setting us up for seeing the protagonist and following him on his 'journey'.

The shot of the protagonist's face gives something to match the voice to as well. His body language is closed and he looks pretty tired. If not for the dog by his side, we'd assume he's a war torn villain. Such is the case with Mad max and Dog, the dog.

The car is centred in the tracking shot of the car, and makes us feeling like we're the ones chasing the protagonist. This tells us that maybe he constantly feels like thing; sticking out like a sore thumb as the only life in the drab environmnet around him. The red of the car connotes, energy, passion and aggression, and also vividly contracts the mossy green roads.

COSTUMES/CHARACTERS

As we can see, there are clear parallels with mad max and Iam Legend. We see a lone warrior who's scruffy and battle torn, always on edge and always reaching for his gun, but he's alongside a dog which makes us sympathise with him and indicates that they are indeed nice people but they've been flung into an ugly situation.

In contract to our Protagonist, the antagonists (Zombies./Vampires/Victims) are less restricted or protected. They wear little clothing and are constantly exposed like a nerve; feral and terrifying, because these creatures used to be human. And nothing's more terrifying for people than recognizing a monster who is identifiably humanoid.

The lesser of these two evils, these two characters have a very strong bond and are less detached from the world they once knew than the hero and the villains. This can be seen in their clothes that could pass off as normal in this era. They are also rugged and worn like Will Smith's character, as well as uninfected, which connects the trio together.