I Am Legend should not be as entertaining as it is considering how massively flawed it is, and the flaws become even more evident as an alternate cut of the film is now available on the 2-Disc DVD and Blu-ray editions of the film. Considering it made $255 million at the box-office and is already going to make plenty more millions on home video it is probably a useless debate, but I am sure Warner Bros. is loving it as it just stokes the flames of cash being burned at the registers.

I Am Legend is based on the Richard Matheson book of the same name, and while it keeps the same name of the main character intact as he, Robert Neville, is the "last" man on Earth as the rest of society has become killer zombie/vampire-like creatures (Dark Seekers) it pretty much throws away the intentions of the story on which it is based. This is where the alternate cut comes into play and while a small piece of evidence of the alternate version is still in a pivotal moment of the film, it was all pretty much axed for the version you saw in theaters.

The alternate cut harkens back to Matheson's original intent with the infected Dark Seekers with a twist. Matheson's monsters never de-evolved into mindless creatures. Instead they kept some semblance of their original selves and were able to function as something of a society. This alternate version plays into a theory of evolution for the Dark Seekers. It's a theory many will be interested in watching and it is a theory that should have been explored even further than the alternate cut takes it, because it is a far better take on the story than what was originally presented, but there are other issues with the film that this detail can't outshine.

The largest problem with the film, and the biggest departure from Matheson's novel, is the introduction of Alice Braga's character Anna midway through the film. Her appearance is not only unnecessary, but it is also made possible via traditional movie cliché coincidence, which hurts it from the start. While the film remains watchable and ultimately entertaining no matter what, the fact that it is flawed is undeniable.

As far as this Blu-ray release goes there isn't a whole lot to say outside of the feature itself and its alternate version. I can attest to the fact that the video transfer is excellent and the accompanying Dolby TrueHD soundtrack sounds great, but as far as special features go I give this one a pass.

There is a 2o+ minute documentary on viruses and how much the cast and crew studied real viruses before getting to work, but it gets tedious after the first three minutes. Then there is the 50+ minute group of mini-behind-the-scenes featurettes, all of which are pretty much useless. I don't know, if you are anything like me your largest interest is seeing how they turned 5th Ave. in New York into a barren wasteland and beyond that you pretty much realize the rest is traditional movie magic and you don't need a 3-minute featurette to tell you what you already know.

I would like to say the four animated comics are interesting, but they aren't. After all, they are animated comics, not actual animation. Had they been presented in anime they may have been worth the time, but as is they are a waste.

My biggest beef is the lack of a commentary, especially on the alternate cut, which leads me to believe it wasn't the choice of any of the filmmakers to actually cut the ending the way it was shown in theaters, but more of a decision made by the suits in their plush, unimaginative offices. Therefore, how could director Francis Lawrence actually comment on the alternate cut without selling the suits up the river. Lord knows he wouldn't have been able to speak his mind.

It's unfortunate some substance couldn't have been added to the intrigue surrounding a vastly different theory on the "villain" in the film via a commentary, but at least we get the alternate version to wrap our heads around. If there is any one thing to be thankful for the surge in home entertainment, it is that audiences are finally getting to see how last minute decisions can affect the films they see. In the case of I Am Legend I don't think it really hurt or helped the film overall, but it definitely shows they were going for a far more thought provoking film from the outset, the script just didn't fully realize the idea and it ultimately had to be scrapped.