I Am Legend (2007)

I Am Legend (2007) is an American post-apocalyptic action thriller film directed by Francis Lawrence and written by Akiva Goldsman and Mark Protosevich. The film depicts a world in which a measles virus, intended to cure cancer, instead becomes lethal and spreads rapidly, infecting 99% of the population and turning them into vampiric, albino, cannibalistic mutants known as Darkseekers. These creatures are vulnerable to sunlight and prey on the small number of people who are naturally immune. Three years have passed since the outbreak, in 2012, and U.S. Army virologist LTC Robert Neville spends his days alone in an abandoned Manhattan, unsure if there are any other survivors. Neville’s daily routine consists of experimenting on infected rats in search of a cure, scrounging for resources, and broadcasting messages in the hope of finding others through his radio broadcasts at midday near the South Street Seaport.

During the chaotic evacuation of Manhattan, Neville’s flashbacks reveal the tragic fate of his wife, Zoe, and daughter, Marley. The military, enforcing a quarantine of the island, forced them to stay behind while they escaped. With only his loyal German Shepherd Sam as company, Neville copes with his solitude by conversing with mannequins and watching films from video stores. Each night, he takes shelter in his heavily fortified home in Washington Square Park to protect himself and Sam from the Darkseekers. While hunting one day, Sam chases a deer into a dark building and Neville cautiously follows. Inside, they find the dead deer and notice that the building is infested with Darkseekers. Fortunately, they escape unharmed while also eliminating their attackers due to their weakness to sunlight.