I Am Legend, Round 2

After my second viewing of I Am Legend, three things are certain to me:

1. I Am Legend is a legitimately terrifying movie. I was scared the first time I saw it, but chalked it up to the fact that I avoid creepy movies because I scare easily and feel like an idiot when I look over my shoulder in the dark later at night. But after watching it with my sister (a scary movie connoisseur of sorts) and seeing her reaction, I am convinced.

2. Will Smith rules. I knew this before seeing Legend again, but a victory lap is always nice.

3. I Am Legend is much better the second time around. I went into the theatre knowing I'd probably like it better since the edge would be taken off of the scare factor. This was true, although I still found myself wanting to look away from the screen at certain scenes. Having that first viewing under my belt made the second go considerably less stressful, and that alone would have made it a more enjoyable watch for me. But I also had the pleasant experience of noticing little nuggets in the film that had escaped me.

• Fred the Mannequin - When I first saw Fred, coupled with the look on Will Smith's face, I though that the "Darkseekers" had ventured outside during the day by donning clothing. I was prepared to be furious at such a cheeseball bit of writing that allowed the infected to become more dangerous to Smith, but fortunately that wasn't the case. The second time I saw this scene I caught what had given me my initial impression. Fred's head moves to look in Smith's direction when he stops the car. And after that, every time the camera cuts away and returns to Fred, he's in a slightly different position.

• Smith's "love interest" in the video store is in the porno section. And he put her there.

• Most folks probably caught this the first time around, but I didn't; when Smith wakes up from his suicidal night on the town and walks into his kitchen, Ana and Isaac(?) appear as his wife and daughter.

Also, wasn't it amazing to see Smith frantically trying to convince the infected of their illness and his ability to fix them while they screamed and flung themselves against the glass to tear him apart?