

In fact, I found the finalized image incredibly similar to the upscaled DVD presentation. This Blu-ray edition of '28 Days Later' arrives with a hazy 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 transfer that's only a meager step up from the already-problematic DVD. "Utterly disappointing" is the only phrase that comes to mind at the moment. Some zombie fans may take issue with the film’s sharp division from genre conventions, but '28 Days Later' is a smart film with a great script, and it deserves all of the kudos that it has received. The performances are strong, the tone is refreshingly realistic, and the director brings a unique touch to the horror genre that sets the film apart from the crowd. Overall, '28 Days Later' is an exceptional film that takes only a few missteps during its last breaths. Finally, the film’s ultimate resolution in the last five minutes feels tacked on and neutered. I can see the parallels Boyle is establishing between isolation and insanity, but I think the last act could've been more focused and unique. While the military subplot is well crafted, it feels as if it exists in an entirely different film (one more akin to 'Dog Soldiers'). The one thing that does come close to deflating the experience for me is the relatively conventional third act.

I challenge anyone to find a single actor in this film who doesn't bring their A-Game. Each member of the cast seems to understand their role in Jim's tale, while still infusing a level of complexity into their own character. The supporting actors are excellent, as well (particularly Brendan Gleeson, who many will recognize as Hamish from 'Braveheart'). His character is quiet and confused, resorting to violence as a means of survival rather than for our entertainment. In the capable hands of Cillian Murphy, Jim doesn't miraculously transform into Joe Hero. The performances are grounded in reality as well. As Murphy's character strolls around the eerily empty London streets, there's a palpable sense of dread that easily matches the overt intensity of the film’s higher-adrenaline attack scenes. Instead, he sets a morbid tone of loneliness and abandonment that makes it feel as if the movie truly resides in the real world rather than a fantasy-horror realm. In fact, the action beats are so explosive and surprising that I find myself gripping my seat each time I watch the film.ĭirector Danny Boyle ('Trainspotting,' 'Sunshine') doesn't coat the streets in blood or awaken our hero in the midst of anarchy.
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Eventually joining forces with a chemist named Selena (Naomie Harris), a cabbie named Frank (Brendan Gleeson), and the driver's teenage daughter (Megan Burns), Jim and his newfound friends will attempt to reach a military outpost that's their only hope of survival.Īs a long-time zombie flick aficionado, I really enjoy '28 Days Later.' Even though it breaks every rule in the undead handbook, it manages to mix up the conventional formula and establish a new code of tension and terror. As he wanders through the abandoned streets of London, he's attacked by a group of infected locals and nearly killed. The pseudo-zombies are violent and cannibalistic, but they're not undead, and they don't even require a bullet to the brain to put them down.Ģ8 days after the initial outbreak, a man named Jim (Cillian Murphy) awakens from a coma in an empty hospital, oblivious to the outbreak that has consumed his homeland. Instead, according to the mythology of the film, the creatures are humans, infected with a "rage virus" that has swept across London in record time. In fact, the speedy ghouls in the film aren't zombies at all.

Luckily for me, '28 Days Later' doesn't feature fast zombies. Slow zombies not only ratchet up the tension, but they allow for more carefully plotted character development. The undead should be lumbering creatures of instinct that overwhelm their victims, instead of running them down. Let me get this out of the way right up front - zombies shouldn't run.
