I am Legend

Released

I am Legend was released on the 14th of December 2007 and in the UK it was released on the 26th December 2007 and it was premiered on the 19th December 2007.

Themes

One of the main themes of I Am Legend is alienation, and it is hard to imagine someone who is more literally alienated than Robert Neville. He is a normal American man, or at least he was until the world changed around him. Simply by remaining who he is, he becomes first alone after his family dies

Locations & settings

I am legend was set in New York City, these are just some of the locations Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, East River, Grand Central Station and Washington Square Park. They started to film on the 23rd September and they did the final reshoots were conducted around November 2007.

Characters The main character is played by Will Smith as Dr. Robert Neville he is the last healthy and immune human in New York City after a virus was meant to cure cancer. Later in the film you see Anna with her son Ethan who heard Neville’s radio transmission and told him of the survivors' colony but Neville disagrees with Anna about the camp.

Camera Work

There is a lot of long shots to show the audience of the world that the world Robert Neville is living in. There is also a lot of high angles to show how isolated the setting is, in some shots the camera makes out to be that someone is watching Neville.

Editing Techniques

The editing techniques are that there is some eerie music being played in the background of some shots this is a non diegetic sound. The affect it has on the audience is to make them uncomfortable and suspicious of the surroundings. It also consists diegetic sound of birds in the city

28 Days Later

Released

28 Days Later was released on the 1st of November 2001 and in the US it was released on the 27th of June 2003.

Themes & Narrative

The theme for 28 Days Later is a zombie horror which was caused by a deadly “rage” virus which leaves just four survivors to cope with destruction of the life they once knew.

LocationThe location is set in London at Westminster Bridge, Piccadilly Circus, Horse Guards Parade, and Oxford Street. At the start of the film it is set in St Thomas’ hospital, then the other location in the film is the London underground which was Mark and Selena hideout. The other location was a mansion in Manchester where there was soldiers.

Characters Jim is the protagonist who wants to find his parents but when he gets back to the house he finds that they committed suicide, Selena is the alpha female, Frank is the alpha male because he is the one that decides for them to head out of London to go to Manchester to find out the answer of the infection.

Camera work

There is a lot of close up to see what the zombies look like, and when you see Jim leave the hospital there is a long shot of how abandoned London is. The camera work is not great as the camera is always shaky when you see the zombies face.

Editing techniques

28 days later relied on editing techniques instead of storytelling. There is a lot of cuts and match cuts that copy movement, such as Jim picking up papers on the stairs. There is also graphic matches in 28 days later.