In 28 Years Later, Danny Boyle sets the stage for a new trilogy of zombie movies with an uneven kickoff that will leave you raging for something better.
In this sequel to Boyle’s 2002 film 28 Days Later (apparently it ignores 28 Weeks Later, though I’m not sure if it matters), a father and son from an isolated community on a Scottish island venture onto the mainland to do some zombie hunting, and you can imagine what happens from there.
Or can you?
28 Years Later starts off questionably with a lackluster opening attack scene that feels as though Boyle thinks he is still an indie director, with weird flashes to Nazi Germany (?) and odd musical overlays. From there it improves, introducing us to Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and his son Spike (Alfie Williams). Jodie Comer also stars as Spike’s mentally unstable mother Isla.
When Jamie and Spike hit the mainland, exciting things happen and Boyle shows flashes of his Oscar-winning talent. The action scenes are suspenseful, aided by the fact that you don’t know who is going to survive. Boyle’s gritty world of the infected is merciless and there is no guarantee that anyone on the movie poster is going to make it through to the end.
Unfortunately, the plot Boyle and co-writer Alex Garland put to paper is disappointing. Zombie movies don’t need sweeping stories, but 28 Years Later is surprisingly small, quaint, and, when you think about it, pretty stupid. I wish I could get into plot details to rant–a major decision by young Spike makes no sense whatsoever, and his stupidity is proven in the film’s shockingly bad third act.
The third act is dull and amazingly devoid of what works so well earlier on. The movie drops its most interesting character, introduces another who fails to live up to the hype portrayed in the [excellent] movie trailers, and largely serves as a “f**k you” to its audience. 28 Days Later wasn’t content being a basic zombie movie, but it at least replaced one type of villain for another; here, 28 Years Later simply forgets.
The ending is also dreadful. In fact, for a movie trying to set up two more entries, the ending almost feels like self-sabotage. I hated it.
Despite all its faults, there are some solid stretches to be found. Williams is a good find, and both Taylor-Johnson and Comer turn in strong performances. The zombie action is intense, and Boyle delivers some satisfying body horror, too. But we can get all of those elements in other, better zombie movies, and 28 Weeks Later proves that the wait wasn’t worth it.
Review by Erik Samdahl.