A One Mann’s Movies review of “28 Days Later” (2002).
On our “Flickering Dreams” podcast we do a regular feature where myself and my fellow reviewers pick our favourite films from a particular director’s back catalogue (if you want to check out the past editions, eight so far, they are in a Youtube playlist here). It’s a great way to remind yourself of some of the great work (and in some cases, not so great work) that these creatives have produced over the year. Next week, in the next edition, we are looking at the work of the great Danny Boyle. My pick of his films is “28 Days Later” and, boy, what a great film it was to revisit!
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Plot Summary:
Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes from a coma in a locked hospital room in London. The world has changed and London seems deserted. What on earth has happened? What follows is an apocalyptic road movie where Jim finds and loses allies, each intent on their own strategies for surviving in the new world order.
Certification:
UK: 18; US: R. (From the BBFC web site: “Very strong language, strong violence and horror”.)
Talent:
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Ecclestone, Noah Huntley, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns.
Directed by: Danny Boyle.
Written by: Alex Garland.
Twitter Handle: #28dayslater.
Post-apocalyptic life if no picnic… until it is. From L, Naomie Harris, Cillian Murphy, Megan Burns and Brendon Gleeson. (Source: 20th Century Fox).
“28 Days Later” Review:
Positives:
- The directorial flair on show here is tremendous. Scenes with Jim wandering around a completely deserted London are inspired. You can only assume they were filmed at the crack of dawn around midsummer morning to get the quality of desolation required. They are tremendously evocative. And Boyle implements some wonderful choices of camera angles – a pan up from the ‘blockade’ over the M62 motorway sign is superb. And there are some clever touches of detail that are wonderful: Jim’s crusted-up eyelids, for example, on waking up.
- This was the breakout movie for ‘man of the moment’ Cillian Murphy. He makes a strong initial impression, stark naked on a hospital bed (no “Oppenheimer” crossed legs here!). Murphy has a mesmeric look that is used to great effect here.
- The supporting cast is great: Naomie Harris (no-nonsense and never sexier) in her breakout role; Brendan Gleeson (unusually sporting an English accent); and the ever-reliable Christopher Ecclestone (3 years before returning Dr Who to the TV screen).
- The editing (by Chris Gill) makes the attacks of the ‘infected’ mobs genuinely exciting.
- The Alex Garland script, particularly in the first half of the film, never fails to disappoint. There are some memorable lines in the film:
“Great, Valium. Not only will we be able to get to sleep, but if we’re attacked in the middle of the night, we won’t even care.”
Jim (Cillian Murphy) to Selena (Naomie Harris) and Hannah (Megan Burns)
Negatives:
- I’m not 100% onboard with the last reel of the film: the point after the group arrive at the soldier’s mansion. One element that rather soured my palette was the (potential) rape aspect of the story, particularly as there is the young girl involved. Also, would Jim have stooped to such violence against ‘uninfected’ humans, regardless of the situation he found himself in?
Summary Thoughts on ”28 Days Later”
This kind of well-constructed ‘zombie-type’ film is hard to beat (‘zombie’ is in quote marks here, since the ‘infected’ are not ‘dead’ per se). I was a big fan of the, somewhat similar, “The Girl with all the Gifts” from 2016, which made my ‘Films of the Year’ list. Here, Danny Boyle take the genre and elevates it to new heights. In the huge pantheon of ‘zombie’ films it’s difficult to create a film that genuinely stands out, but Boyle manages to do it with “28 Days Later”. It was really GREAT to revisit it again.
“28 Weeks Later” followed, but with a different team and less well-made. (This came in the double DVD set I ordered… I couldn’t find it anywhere on streaming at the moment!. I’ll watch that in due course.) Of more interest is that Danny Boyle / Alex Garland and Cillian Murphy are mooted to reunite in the production of “28 Months Later”. Anticipation, if that movie happens, will be high.
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Trailer for “28 Days Later”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7suz9ndPBHg .
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This is one I really want to watch, but it’s impossible to find available on any streaming service.
Yep… I found a 2nd hand DVD on Music Magpie (double feature with 28 weeks later) for just a couple of quid.