It’s been twenty years since the last film, and 28 Years Later kicks off a new trilogy. As I said in my out-of-theater reaction video, it looks and sounds great with top-notch cinematography, solid acting, and impressive effects. But the story? That’s where it falls apart.
Update: Due to reactions, I wrote a follow-up article answering if 28 Years later is woke.
The Good First Hour
The first hour is excellent, a solid 10/10. It’s a strong father-son survival story set in the Scottish Highlands. The island community is smartly isolated from the infected. Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), his sick wife Isla (Jodie Comer), and their son Spike (Alfie Williams) are compelling. The kid goes through a rite of passage — killing his first infected — and it’s well done.
Then It Goes Off the Rails
After a strong start, things spiral. Jamie cheats on his sick wife the same night they celebrate their son’s milestone. Spike catches him in the act, gets drunk, and everything starts unraveling.
He confronts his dad, pulls a knife on him, and then decides to take his dying mom — who can barely move — to a madman doctor (Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson) across zombie-infested territory. His “brilliant” plan involves distracting guards with a fire and walking his feverish mom across the mainland. She ends up delivering a zombie baby, helped by a Swedish navy guy who is the last survivor of a crash. It gets weird.
Dr. Kelson’s House of Skulls
Kelson lives in a place filled with bone columns and skull pyramids. He diagnoses Isla with cancer by examining her armpits and chest, and she admits she already knew. Kelson then tranquilizes Alfie just enough to keep him holding the baby. Later, he gives the kid his mother’s skull to place on top of a bone mountain. Yeah, it’s that kind of movie.
The Ending Is a Joke
Back on the island, Jamie — now useless — finally decides to go after his son but the tide cuts off the path. Alfie leaves the baby at the gate with a note and heads back to the mainland. Then, out of nowhere, a gang of hip-hop survivors shows up like it’s Shaun of the Dead, mowing down infected and recruiting Alfie. The tone is completely broken.
The Verdict
The first hour is really good. But then the movie flips: the dad turns into a loser (Alpha male’s are bad), the kid becomes a clueless momma’s boy, there’s a forced assisted suicide angle, and everything gets dumber by the minute. The film’s polish might fool you, but there’s way more going on beneath the surface than just a zombie thriller and most of it’s bad (how’s that saying go about a gold covered ….?). 28 Years Later comes off really disappointing.
28 Years Later gets a 4/10.
