28 Years Later

Danny Boyle’s dynamic 28 Years Later delivers the long-awaited follow-up to his 2002 horror film 28 Days Later. Twenty-eight years ago, a laboratory-made virus called “Rage” caused a pandemic after well-meaning Eco-terrorists freed an infected chimpanzee. The animal attacks and infects them, and they, in turn, attack others. Rage infection takes over a human in just a few seconds, marked by severe hemorrhaging of infectious blood. As little as one drop of blood can transmit the virus. The outbreak was subsequently contained to the UK, which is now in perpetual quarantine. Some non-infected groups of people still live there now, cut off with no possibility of rescue. A teen named Spike (Alfie Williams) lives with his father Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and mother Isla (Jodie Comer) in a community on a small, inaccessible island. Isla is unwell, suffering bouts of confusion and mysterious physical symptoms.

At the outset, Jamie takes Spike across the causeway for his first hunt on the mainland. This is training for Spike, as well as a rite of passage. Once he’s learned to survive the threats there, he’ll be another provider and protector for the community. The islanders prepare for a celebration of the boy when he returns. Out on the mainland, Spike’s curiosity is sparked by what he sees there, in particular a distant fire his father says is made by a lunatic, and to be avoided. Spike is told later that the lunatic is a doctor named Kelson (Ralph Fiennes). He decides to run away, taking Isla with him to the doctor. The islanders have a strict “no rescue” policy, so once Spike and Isla cross the causeway, they are on their own.

Spike (Alfie Williams), Isla (Jodie Comer) and Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) in Columbia Pictures’ 28 YEARS LATER.

“…the long awaited follow-up to 2002 horror film 28 Days Later…”

Boyle and Garland turned the Zombie genre on its head in 2002 with a frightening idea: fast zombies. Rage-infected individuals aren’t undead. Their normal brain functions are suppressed in favor of homicidal aggression and hunger. They have no self-preservation instincts, running full-on toward a target, which gives them the illusion of preternatural speed and strength.

It is worth noting that there was a 2nd film: 28 Weeks Later, directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, which teased the Rage virus going global. While nothing in 28 Years Later retcons the events of that film, there’s little reference to it. The current film is a direct sequel to the first, both directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland. 28 Weeks Later is not a bad film as a standard horror/action movie, but lacks Boyle’s unique vision and artistry. Jeremy Renner and Robert Carlyle both give strong performances, but the film adds nothing to world-building.