starring: alfie williams, aaron taylor-johnson, jodie comer, and ralph fiennes

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REVIEWER: Lyall carter

A group of survivors of the rage virus live on a small island. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors.

28 Days Later is a part of my wheelhouse of movie memories. I can clearly remember heading to my local Video Ezy, picking it up with a bunch of other titles and heading home to watch it over the school holidays. And here I am, over twenty years later, catching its three-quel again during the school holidays. More than just a simple zombie flick, 28 Years Later blends art house sensibility with elements of a Hollywood blockbuster to make one of the most thrilling and immersive cinematic experiences of the year. 

It’s been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, and now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.

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I can’t quite remember the minute details of 28 Days Later, as it was a couple of decades ago that I saw it, but 28 Years Later does a masterful job in bringing the forgetful and those new to the franchise back up to speed with the world of 28 Years. Narratively, they craft a story that is both independent of the past but one which builds on the legacy and the world which was created. 

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The story is contained to telling the tale of Spike, his father Jamie and mother Isla, survivors on a remote island and their tradition of heading to the mainland as a rite of passage for youngsters to become 'men.' This is where and through whom we experience this savage new world, filled with medieval weaponry and blunted hope. And it's these characters, especially Spike, wide-eyed and brilliantly portrayed by newcomer Alfie Williams, that hold our heart so much so that it adds to the terror when they’re being pursued by the infected. Ralph Fiennes gives a terrific turn as the slightly bonkers Dr. Kelson and Jodie Comer is transcendent as Isla, as her mind and memories slip further from her grasp.

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Director Danny Boyle infuses this sweeping, Hollywood-esque blockbuster scale with an art house vibe, infusing old film clips and voice overs to give a psychedelic tone to proceedings, giving it a mythic like quality. Also, one day soon, we’ve got to talk about that ending…

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More than just a simple zombie flick, 28 Years Later blends art house sensibility with elements of a Hollywood blockbuster to make one of the most thrilling and immersive cinematic experiences of the year. 

★★★★.5