I Am Legend (the book)

[MikePizzoff]

Does anybody else's copy of I Am Legend contain a TON of short stories written by Richard Matheson after I Am Legend is done?

I didn't realize they had included these in the book, as it's not advertised anywhere on the cover or back, so as I kept reading after I Am Legend I got completely confused for the first two short stories wondering "WTF? Who are these people? How is the world back to normal?" then I started to think perhaps Neville was having hallucinations or something... until dumbass me realized they were completely separate short stories.

All-in-all, though, the stories are great!

PS - I was slightly disappointed with the ending of I Am Legend.

[kortick]

yeah , Mike if you didnt know
that I am Legend is only a novella
then you would have been confused.

and actually when I first read it, i was a bit
lost at the ending. So i put it down and re read it
again and i was like "wow, he is absolute genius for
coming up with this ending"
the ending explains the meaning of the title.
easy to miss at first, then you get it.

[MikePizzoff]

I'm pretty sure I would have liked the ending much better if I didn't think that I still had like 150 pg's to go when I actually didn't. They should have put the short stories in the beginning and had I Am Legend the last thing, so you expect the ending to be coming at you due to the lack of pages left in the book.

[Anthony C]

According to Romero, "I am Legend" was influential in the creation of "Night..."

[Mike70]

yep mike i have that same copy (got it a couple of years ago when my first copy literally fell apart).

some of the stories in there are great, particularly "dance of the dead" (which was made into a masters of horror episode), "witch war", and "the funeral."

[MikePizzoff]

yep mike i have that same copy (got it a couple of years ago when my first copy literally fell apart).

some of the stories in there are great, particularly "dance of the dead" (which was made into a masters of horror episode), "witch war", and "the funeral."

I'm currently in the middle of "Dance Of The Dead" (I only read it on the toilet because I don't have time, otherwise) and haven't gotten to those other two yet. I really enjoyed the one story about the guy going to see the mortician about his "dead" wife.

Also, the story with the doll that tries to murder the women. I know I've seen that scenario over played... was he the first to write it?

[Khardis]

Yeah the novella was fantastic and the basis for my hatred of the film I think... I read the book long before I saw the film so I was really excited to see the film coming out. I saw the dog and I was like.. hmmm for the previews but figured they just had to jazz it up a little etc. Nope it wasn't even in the ballpark for the book. Just a completely different story. I wondered if there was another Robert Neville living in California at the time of Will SMiths version living the life from the book.

[ZombieGrrL]

I was half shocked when it ended because I was SO into the book and thought I had the luxury of many pages left.

I knew something was up though as I got an copy of the ebook & just out of curiosity looked at the last words on the ebook, & the last page of the paperback & they were different sentences.

An absolutely EXCELLENT hard-to-put-down book with a GREAT ending!

I'm reading the short stories, they aren't too bad.

PS: Now I have read the book I realise why Stephen King dedicated his novel Cell to Richard Matheson & George Romero - I got the Romero connection but now I get the Matheson connection too.

[Bruiser235]

Yeah, that happened to me. I started reading "Buried Talents" before I realized it was another story. "I Am Legend" is an excellent book, and I love the ironic, tragic ending. The Will Smith "movie" sucked donkey balls compared to this classic. :D

[MinionZombie]

SPOILERS ABOUT THE BOOK AND THE WILL SMITH MOVIE THROUGHOUT

I just finished reading the book, literally about 30 minutes ago.

GREAT F*CKING BOOK.

Why didn't they make THAT into a movie, it would have been awesome - and intelligent - and ultimately tragic and moving.

Plus, in the book, the eponymous phrase of note - "I Am Legend" - actually means something, in the Will Smith movie it means nothing because there's a bunch of other humans running around in a special colony of people.

The combined mix of irony, tragedy and sacrifice in the final chapters are really powerful and would have made an absolutely exceptional close to a film.

Really, when I think about it, the movie has barely anything in common with the book ... it's pretty much in "based on" territory rather than "adapted from" territory.

The whole dog angle is completely different in the book, as is the 'other survivor' bit ... it's just so different from the movie, and you really wonder what they were doing...

The movie plays more like a "based on the book" mixed with "remake of Omega Man" quite honestly. It's daft, because the book - as it is - would have made an excellent film. Just update it to the present day, have him learn about bacteria etc from a CD-ROM encyclopedia on his home PC before getting some books and a microscope out, have a better car and better weapons and there you go.

*sigh*

A damn shame, a real missed opportunity.

The Will Smith movie was good for the first half/two thirds, but after that point it all got proper arse ... in fact, it's pretty much just a remake of The Omega Man, but with I Am Legend as the title ... the title that doesn't make any sense. :rolleyes:

My reaction to the movie was ultimately tepid, nout more than that.

Once again, a real shame. An absolute missed golden opportunity.

[ZombieGrrL]

I haven't seen the movie, but I want to. I have read some reviews which are mostly like yours MinionZombie. I'm guessing that they put a "Hollywood" twist to the movie.

Hollywood thinks that the public just can't cope with a tragic ending, everything has to be "all wrapped up" as if we have no imagination.

.... but the book is fabulous. :)

[clanglee]

The Vincent Price version "Last Man on Earth" was quite close to the book. It's my favorite adaption so far.

[Choas]

Last man on earth was the best out of all of them.Vincent Price was great in that movie.

[MikePizzoff]

I own The Last Man On Earth (several copies on DVD, actually, due to boxsets) but I haven't watched it in ages. Pretty much entirely forget the whole thing. I should re-watch it sometime soon.

[SRP76]

I'm not a real big fan of either ending. I liked both the book and the movie, and the book ending "makes sense", but it isn't something I particularly get behind.

I don't like "everyone dies, it was all for nothing, we're doomed" endings. I like there to be some hope to a story. Otherwise, everything that happens is all for nothing, so why'd the hero/es bother?

[MinionZombie]

Some endings have to be tragic, life isn't always Hollywood endings ... plus it's variety. If everything ending happily it'd just be boring.

"Into the Wild" doesn't end happily, but it's a rather good movie. "Assassination of Jesse James" has a downbeat ending, but it's a bloody superb piece of filmmaking (yes hellsing, I'm flat out flaming for that film :p).

Anyway, I've got Last Man On Earth, will have to watch it sometime ... but there's so many things to watch lately! :)