28 Days Later Review

28 Days Later shocks you into a reality of zombie infestation, unlike any other zombie film before or after it’s presentation. We are treated right off the bat to a lonely world, one where a man is naked on an operation table, without knowledge of the world around him. I could have done without the complete nude scene in the onset, but that’s neither here nor there. The movie has a sense of loneliness in the beginning, and it progresses really slowly into a full blown zombie film.

The visuals are somewhat shaky and grainy, and the use of noise is well placed. We’re not treated to a full symphony to create mood, we get a lot of scarce sounds and quiet shots of real confusion. The main characters, as they are introduced by situations such as running from Zombies, really does make for an interesting first half. The film really is slow at first, and sometimes I wonder if this was just the director setting up something huge for the second half, and I most likely am right.



The movie starts with no one, and slowly fills the panorama with zombies, and they are all being infected through the blood somehow. The infestation seems somewhat controlled, but there is little hope for survival. Just when the people think they find safety, things get out of control as hope brings on desperation among the group and people start getting killed, gangland style and the blood starts to flow like a geyser.

Here’s the trailer for 28 Days Later:

The whole movie is hard to watch, just because it seems slowly paced. It doesn’t really knock you out of your seat like other zombie movies do at the start, and that’s why this film is great. It really sets up the story, and treats you like you’re ignorant to previous zombie movie scenarios. The desperation that is felt in this film is almost real, and it’s a credit to the actor’s and the director. Certain frames transform from grainy hand held footage to high resolution epic lighting sequences. I loved it.

I think this film is under rated in a lot of ways, and while I haven’t picked up the sequel just yet, I look forward to seeing how they treat the rest of the story. The movie does leave things open ended, and we can only assume that there are survivors, but not many!

For gore, story, and visual media, this movie is quite good. I’m not sure if I can say the same for repeated viewings, but it definitely is a strong contender in the zombie movie genre, and definitely one of my favorites in that sub-genre for sure.

The downside to this film is that it feels really long, even though it’s not extremely long like other epics out there. It seems to defy logic in a lot of places, but by the time you realize that, you probably have either given into the films nuances, or you have already passed on the films set up.

28 Days Later is not an epic, but it sure is a fun thrill ride filled with Zombies, emotion, and great character development, for a zombie flick.

28 Days Later is available on dvd and Blu-Ray Dvd via several locations.