28 Years Later: The Bone Temple review
Nia DaCosta’s direct sequel takes some notable steps forward.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
Directed by Nia DaCosta
Written by Alex Garland
Starring Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, Alfie Williams, Erin Kellyman, Chi Lewis-Parry, Emma Laird and Cillian Murphy
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple Review
Danny Boyle’s 28 Years Later was a great movie with one strange caveat. Boyle’s frantic direction didn’t always feel like a fit for writer Alex Garland’s surprisingly subdued and meditative screenplay. At least, that was my opinion. An opinion that feels somewhat validated by the release of 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. Nia DaCosta’s direct and immediate sequel has the visual patience to match its thoughtful script. The result is a film that improves on its already great predecessor in nearly every way.
The Bone Temple picks up right where we left the world of 28 Years Later. Spike (Alfie Williams) has fallen in with the not-so-righteous Jimmy (Jack O’Connell) and his crew of blonde wigged hooligans. Becoming part of the gang isn’t as simple as agreeing to follow…there’s a bloody (and deadly) initiation process. It doesn’t take long to learn that Jimmy isn’t doing the Lord’s work in The Bone Temple. In fact, he openly celebrates doing the exact opposite.
Meanwhile, Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) continues his work at The Bone Temple. Fiennes was fantastic as the man with a deep respect for death in the land of the dead. He’s even better here. For as much as Jimmy and his wild actions dictate the direction of 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, Kelson’s work with Samson (the Alpha from 28 Years Later) provides its beating heart. Put plainly, The Bone Temple’s examination of the infected is one of the most interesting and satisfying zombie story elements in years. Maybe longer.
There’s a beauty to The Bone Temple that carries over from Boyle’s film last year. It’s more beautiful given Fiennes’ work as Kelson and DaCosta’s direction. Garland’s screenplay may be the MVP of the piece, however. He’s 2/3rds of the way through writing one of the most interesting and moving trilogies ever committed to film. A third film has already been greenlit…with reports that 28 Days Later star Cillian Murphy is in negotiations to star. The series hasn’t kept his role in The Bone Temple a secret either. Hell, it appears as a trivia question before the movie in at least some theater chains. You’ll get a glimpse of Murphy’s Jim in the final scene of The Bone Temple. Like 28 Years Later before it…the final scene sets up the direction of its upcoming sequel.
Perhaps the biggest surprise in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is how important a role Samson plays in it. Chi Lewis-Parry spends much of the film zoned out on a morphine cocktail provided by Dr. Kelson. Kelson, it seems, isn’t just committed to respecting the dead…he may be the only one who hasn’t given up on the world. His relationship with the deadly spine ripping Alpha is fascinating. Kelson is convinced that he can cure his infection. Every attempt to study the subject comes at the risk of his own head removal. When I say that this part of the story provides the movie with its beating heart…I mean it. This is some of the best post-apocalyptic zombie/infected material you’ll find. Without heading into spoiler territory…let’s just say Samson’s role evolves throughout the story. It progresses in interesting and surprisingly moving ways.
Fiennes is there to guide Samson on his journey with one of his finest performances. Eventually, the two story drivers of The Bone Temple will cross paths. Jimmy comes to The Bone Temple believing that Kelson is something other than we know him to be. The result of their interaction is sure to be one of the most bonkers scenes of the year. I’m not going to spoil anything about it…but it isn’t violence or gore that makes it a sure to be classic. I think you’re going to enjoy 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’s craziest impulse.
Actually, I think you’re going to enjoy 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. Nia DaCosta is a perfect fit for Alex Garland’s screenplay. Fiennes gives one of the best performances of his impressive career. The whole cast is strong, in fact. Jimmy and his gang provide a suitable amount of gore and violence…proving, once again, that humans are the most dangerous part of a zombie apocalypse. Spike is stuck in a bad spot…with only one person who seems sympathetic to his plight. Though he fades to the background at times given Jimmy’s charismatic Satan worshiper and Kelson’s story with Samson…this is still a continuation of Spike’s journey. A journey that inevitably leads the trilogy, and the series, back to where it all began. Or, at least, who it all began with.
Scare Value
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is a great and thoughtful zombie movie. While Jimmy and his crew provide the violence and dangers to the world…it’s the story’s examination of the infected that elevates The Bone Temple above its predecessor. Ralph Fiennes is terrific as the only man in the quarantine zone who hasn’t yet given up on this world. There are wild moments and beautiful ones. And, of course, a final scene that hints the way forward is back where this all started.
4.5/5
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I thought Bone Temple was very good. I liked Days, loved Weeks, and really disliked Years. I thought Boyle was being a petulant child trying to forcibly erase Weeks’ story using the Years setup and storyline and the movie suffered greatly because of it. Mainly, it was boring but with interesting new characters and infected details. With Years’ retconning where the story was out now of the way, Bone Temple could now expand and explore the new story without all of the childish baggage out of the way. While the infected have now become a footnote in a franchise about the infected, the new characters and story are interesting enough to propel the story further in a fun and exciting way. My main complaint is with where we end up with Samson’s story. With Dr. Kelson’s outcome, it feels like that major story advancement will just end up being a footnote when it could have been a game changer in the “zombie” lore canon. Where we do end the film though does hold promise for an interesting third entry.