28 Days Later review
In 2002, 28 Days Later helped resurrect a genre of film that continues to shamble along to this day.
Classic movie reviews will contain spoilers.
28 Days Later
Directed by Danny Boyle
Written by Alex Garland
Starring Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, Brendan Gleeson, Noah Huntley and Leo Bill
28 Days Later Review
It may be hard to imagine now…but there was a period of time when zombie movies weren’t everywhere. George A. Romero’s original Dead trilogy pushed the genre to creative heights. It popularized them and, arguably, perfected them at the same time. We were even blessed with a damn near perfect horror/comedy version of the story from Night of the Living Dead co-writer John Russo (1985’s The Return of the Living Dead). Then came the dark times. Zombie movies fell out of fashion. Enough so that the writer of this very review may have spent a summer in 1999 coming up with a story idea to bring them back. It’s crazy to think about now…but that’s how far removed zombie movies had become. That is…until 2002’s release of Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later.
The impact of 28 Days Later was immediate. Within a year major zombie stories were back in production. Dawn of the Dead got a high-profile remake in 2004. The same year…Edgar Wright brought another damn near perfect horror/comedy to the world (Shaun of the Dead). The Walking Dead hit AMC in 2010…and unleashed a new wave of zombie-mania. Robert Kirkman began his comic series the hit show is based on back in 2003. Although its main character introduction is (exactly) the same as we see in 28 Days Later…that part is a happy coincidence. 28 Days Later didn’t make its way to the US until after Kirkman had started writing. Either way, the early 00’s was a major turning point for the genre…and 28 Days Later gave it the biggest push.
It’s no surprise that so many involved in the production have gone onto critical and commercial success. Director Danny Boyle won an Oscar six years later for Slumdog Millionaire. Writer Alex Garland went on to huge success writing and directing…scoring an Oscar nomination for 2015’s Ex Machina. Actors Brendan Gleason and Naomie Harris have scored nominations of their own…for The Banshees of Inisherin and Moonlight, respectively. Christopher Eccleston became the face of Doctor Who’s 2005 relaunch and scored an International Emmy Award for his role in Accused. And then there is 28 Days Later star Cillian Murphy. Murphy’s star has risen from virtual unknown to in demand. He took home Best Actor for Oppenheimer…his latest turn for frequent collaborator Christopher Nolan. In 2002…he was cast because Boyle wanted a relatively unknown lead for his production.
Of course, there’s the argument that 28 Days Later isn’t even a zombie movie. It doesn’t really matter if you see it as a pure zombie movie or not. It influenced zombie stories so strongly that it’s never shaking the allegation. Garland’s story is, itself, influenced in part by Romero’s work…and the movie follows as many concepts of that master’s work as it passes down new ones. The rage virus in 28 Days Later doesn’t work exactly like a zombie outbreak…but the differences are only found in the details. For all intents and purposes…it’s a zombie movie. Even if you want to label it as something else.
And it’s a Hell of a zombie movie at that. Like Romero’s take…and all that followed…humans remain the most dangerous part of a post-apocalyptic existence. That’s what makes Murphy’s Jim such a compelling lead character. He wakes from a coma 28 days after an accident…and has found a world that is very changed. The shots of Jim walking through a desolate downtown London are as effective as any imagery in horror. He soon learns that no one has changed more than the people who survived the accidental infection spread.
Quickly falling in with Selena (Harris) and Mark (Noah Huntley) …Jim learns what has happened in those last 28 days. He views things from the perspective of someone who hasn’t experienced the end of the world. When Mark is infected…Selena violently dispatches her companion without a moment’s pause. She’s seen the rage virus…and she’s adapted to survive it. She knows the line of decency has been moved by the reality of survival. Death is treated as an inevitability in 28 Days Later. It’s around every corner, after all. Jim’s reaction to finding his parents’ corpses following their peaceful demise highlights the difference. Selena and Mark think he should be grateful for how they went. “I’m not”, Jim plainly replies.
But he will be. The Jim that manages to survive everything that’s to come in 28 Days Later has to adapt too. When he witnesses the depths of humanity in Major Henry West (Eccleston), Jim finds how far his own line has been moved. The wide-eyed optimist who awoke to find the world had ended wouldn’t survive what was left behind. In a matter of days…he becomes a man who can.
Boyle’s direction in 28 Days Later has all the hallmarks of his vibrant, exciting style. Garland’s script has been borrowed from as often as any work in the 21st century. Their zombies are fast…at least until they run into that pesky starvation problem. That’s the biggest break from Romero’s version you’re going to find…but Boyle makes it work as well as anyone has. Without this success we may not have seen something like Train to Busan over a decade later. Just another way in which discussing 28 Days Later inevitably leads to what came after. That’s the mark of a landmark film. One that defines what comes later so distinctly that it can’t be viewed without the lens of all that it influenced. 28 Days Later is a great movie regardless. That remains true 23 years later.
Scare Value
It can be easy to dismiss the greatness of 28 Days Later through modern eyes. It influenced so many future zombie stories that its once original work can feel like the same old same old. That’s an unfair way to view the material, of course. To knock a creative triumph because it succeeded so well that the zombie genre changed to meet its vision. It remains as vibrant and exciting as it was upon release. Even if you’ve seen too many productions deliver a watered down version.
4.5/5
28 Days Later Links
Rent/Buy on VOD from Fandango at Home and Amazon
