The Best Actor in the Vase of Meiyu

Chapter 2116 Sweet Words
In its previous life, "I Am Legend" ultimately failed to become "Forrest Gump" or "Cast Away" for many reasons, one of which was the ending of the film.

In terms of the story, in 2012, the apocalypse arrived, and New York became a ghost town. Robert Neville was the only survivor. Those who were infected with the virus but did not die evolved into Night Demons, only coming out to hunt for food after nightfall.

Vampire, Night Demon, Zombie—it's all just a name.

Robert had been researching ways to cure the virus, with only his dog for company. Then one day, his only companion died, plunging him into despair. He prepared to die with the Night Demon, but at that moment he met another woman, Anna.

Anna not only saved him, but also believed that there were survivors in the mountain quarantine zone.

However, Robert wanted to stay in New York to research a cure. Just as he succeeded in his research, the Night Demon attacked his residence. Only by holding out until dawn could humanity continue.

In the movie, Robert extracts serum from the recovering Night Demons and gives it to Anna and her son, allowing them to escape. To protect them, Robert detonates a grenade, sacrificing himself to take the Night Demons with him.

Undoubtedly, this is the typical Hollywood ending favored by individualistic heroism, and it also serves to elevate the film's title in this way—

legend.

However, this also means that the film loses its reflection on loneliness and life. The Night Demons become just another kind of monster for the hero to fight, pulling the film back to reality and turning it into a standard Hollywood three-act film, with all the novelty of the beginning vanishing.

After the film's release, the third act became the target of everyone's criticism. Not only professional media, but also the general public were very dissatisfied with the direction of the third act.

This resulted in mediocre reviews for the film, with a Metacritic score of 65, a Rotten Tomatoes score of 68%, and even a low audience score of 6.3, as well as a B+ rating from theaters.

From every angle, it's clear that the movie is just passable popcorn entertainment.

Later, when the film was released on DVD, the ending was changed, and people learned that Warner Bros. and the film's director, Francis Lawrence, had a conflict of opinion.

Clearly, Warner Bros. still wanted to create a popcorn movie and had the support of Will Smith, so they insisted on the ending of the theatrical version. As a result, they suffered a strong backlash from critics, and the carefully planned project was ruined by their habitual thinking. So they included Francis's director's cut ending on the DVD to see how the market would react.

In the director's cut ending, Robert pushes the gradually recovering Night Demon back and injects it to transform it into a zombie Night Demon, handing it back to the Night Demon leader. The Night Demons do not kill him but choose to leave.

The next day, Robert left with Anna and her son to search for other survivors. The movie ends.

The director's cut ending still drew a lot of criticism, mainly because Robert's image as a lone hero was shattered. The previous setup of him desperately holding on to New York to research a cure was overturned in the ending. He not only left New York, but he was also no longer desperate, so the so-called "legend" was nowhere to be found.

To some extent, this is the situation that Warner Bros. and Will Smith were worried about.

But in fact, this outcome received more positive feedback and was met with widespread praise.

The fundamental reason is that it suggests the Night Demons are capable of thought and possess intelligence, making coexistence between humans and Night Demons possible. Therefore, Robert no longer despairs and embarks on a journey to find other possibilities. The so-called legend is not merely about finding a cure, but also about finding a way to adapt to a completely new world.

It is not only rich and complex, but also continues the film's reflection on the value of life.

This version of the ending wasn't as popcorn-worthy, but it was far superior to the movie version. After the DVD release, the film experienced a turnaround in reputation, and its popularity spread even further.

Because people realized that commercial genre films were becoming increasingly formulaic and homogenous, it was almost impossible to find a commercial film with a unique style that was also entertaining, like "I Am Legend." So much so that fifteen years later, people began to call for a sequel, and Warner Bros. actually approached Will Smith to discuss the matter.

Actually, besides the movie ending and the director's cut ending, there's also the original novel's ending—

The film is adapted from the 1954 novel, which had been adapted for the big screen twice before the Will Smith version.

In the original story, there is no Anna and her son, but only a female Night Demon. She disguises herself as a normal human to approach Robert and successfully lures him into a trap, where he is captured alive by the Night Demon. They take Robert into the underground world, where they realize that the Night Demons are intelligent and have feelings, and that they have formed a completely new society.

It turns out that the so-called "I am a legend" is not about Robert saving humanity, but because Robert is a legend in the mouths of the Night Demons. He is a terrifying being who tries to exterminate the Night Demons. He is not a hero, but a demon. The surviving humans are polluting the earth and disrupting its order. The Night Demons must kill Robert in order to survive.

Then, Robert died.

It's no exaggeration to say that this is a story that is dark from beginning to end. The tone of the entire story has been completely subverted. It is not only thrilling but also brings a strong reversal. The person who thought he was a hero is actually a devil. The change in the narrative theme has completely changed the story's structure, which is a shock to everyone.

At this point, the work completely breaks away from the scope of Hollywood genre film narratives and evolves into a masterpiece like "2001: A Space Odyssey".

But does Warner Bros. have that kind of courage and determination?
No.

Therefore, Michael's flowery words just now probably only amounted to a third of what they expected. Their true aim is still to make a popcorn blockbuster, with box office revenue being their sole objective. It's no wonder that the film received lukewarm reviews after its release.

After all, the spirit of the original work has been completely lost.

However, despite this, "I Am Legend" still achieved remarkable success in its previous life.

It grossed $250 million in North America and $585 million worldwide.

At least, based on the data, it's worth mentioning.

The overwhelming publicity surrounding the film's box office success rekindled Will Smith's image as a box office superstar, deeply embedding it in people's minds.

After all, the key to the film's success lies with Will.

In this leading role, Will Smith demonstrates his versatility, proving he can do more than just comedy. He can also captivate audiences in melancholic and sorrowful films, drawing them to theaters and earning a voice for the next decade amidst career setbacks and crises.

Fifteen or twenty years later, mentioning "I Am Legend" will still easily evoke memories, and there are still quite a few viewers who remember this movie.

But...is that really the case? Was the box office success of "I Am Legend" truly something to celebrate? Did Will Smith really further prove his box office appeal? Was Warner Bros.' strategy of creating popcorn movies truly successful? And were the subsequent widespread positive reviews definitely not due to the DVD release?
After all, a global box office figure of $585 million is really nothing to brag about.

(End of this chapter)