The Omega Man (1971)

Director: Boris Sagal

To date, there have been three screen adaptations of Richard Matheson's I Am Legend, none of which have really managed to capture the novel's essence. The Omega Man is the least faithful effort - for some reason, the vampires have been reimagined as a bizarre, hooded cult of pale-skinned mutants - but it's the most entertaining of the bunch, perhaps due simply to its status as early '70s sci-fi.

This film's focus is less on eerie suspense than on badass action sequences, as Charlton Heston lets the mutants have it, usually accompanied by a driving funk soundtrack. Any psychological depth to the character of Robert Neville is completely eschewed, in favour of Heston's relentless quips and trademark blend of the manic and the macho (try counting the number of times he yells/mutters through gritted teeth "bastard", "damnit!", and so on). Though it pulls the film's tone even further from that of its source material, the jarring appearance of a fast-talking Rosalind Cash as a fellow survivor halfway through does inject things with a certain renewed energy, as she starts out by shooting hilarious lines like "if you just have to play James Bond, I'll bust yo' ass" at Heston for no apparent reason. This is before, of course, the two get it together, a process which unfolds in spectacularly corny fashion and carries zero emotional weight when their relationship is threatened later on. Ultimately, then, another missed opportunity, but it's possible to find a few things to enjoy.