3/20/2005: Views: 28 Days Later
28 Days Later 2002, dir. Danny Boyle
Wow, this one's a rollercoaster ride that will keep you on high alert til the credits run. Netflix's blurb makes it sound stupid and predictable - "A killer virus (it turns those it infects into homicidal maniacs) is accidentally released from a British research facility" - but it's better than it sounds.
The movie is set mostly in & around London and the Lake District, but this is no Shaun of the Dead zombie romp, nor is it just another global catastrophe flick. Director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) is relentless with his in-your-face style on this one, with a subtle thread about violence in our times running throughout.
The "rage virus" is released in the opening minutes when a group of animal rights activists break into a lab and release some (unknown to them) infected apes.
Cut to our hero (Cillian Murphy) who wakes up from a coma "28 days later" and can't figure out why the hospital's deserted. His initial explorations through a silent and deserted London are fascinating and chilling. These sequences have some visually stunning shots - if a bit "film schooly" - of well-known and typically crowded London locations, now without anyone in sight.
Soon enough he runs into some of "the infected" - nasty creatures that move fast and thus pose a much stronger threat than the usual Night of the Living Dead-type zombie, and of course, he also finds a few other survivors.
A few of them head north when they discover the possibility of a safe harbor for survivors at a military post, and again we're treated to an eerie futuristic apocalypse with deserted motorways and a major city (Manchester) aflame, and we find out that seeking out other survivors isn't always the best plan in a situation like this..
Murphy does a fine job as do Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, and Megan Burns. The photography is part beautiful artsy visuals, part MTV-style rapidfire quick edits & video effects (the movie was filmed digitally) (is that an oxymoron?), and part all-out action/horror flick. Product placement is a bit heavy - to the point of distraction early on - and the movie has a few mistakes, but the (mostly) careful editing will keep your adrenalin pumping for the duration. It's definitely grisly and not for the squeamish, and will likely stay with you for awhile after seeing it.
DVD extras include deleted scenes, audio commentary track, alternate endings, photo galleries, and a "making of".
