Overview
Some say that zombie themed movies are as stale as the corpses in the film, but 28 Days Later is a fresh take on an old theme. Imported from Europe, this new soon to be cult classic is already in the black with almost 2 million dollars its first weekend. I say 28.D.L, even though it didn’t make nearly as much money as The Hulk, and Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, it sat upon a much more solid plot despite its humble creation (a scant $8 million to film). Films that spend more time on raw plot end up much better off than movies that stall in the editing room.

Review
When I first saw the previews for 28 Days Later in the movie theatre I was quite interested. Being a fan of the Resident Evil games and the survival horror genre, I couldn’t wait to learn more about it. “Reinvented Zombie Horror?” Sign me up! Another bonus for me was that it uses the post apocalyptic sub-genre, a rarely used but lush setting for growing a plot. After the trailer I was leery that it could turn into another Resident Evil movie. Boy was I further from the truth. Let this be a fore-warning to ticket holders, this movie is DEFINITELY not for everyone, probably not even for most. It’s a graphic movie about zombies so take that into consideration.

A lethal and high-speed virus devastates the population of England leaving only a few remaining humans, while the cities crawl with the living dead! Just the premise of this film gets me excited. Bicycle courier Jim wakes up in a hospital wired up to all kinds of machines but all alone. We learn that he has been in a coma for almost a month (hence the title) and has no clue as to what happened. But, what really did happen? The virus was released from a lab when animal activists attempted unsuccessfully to free some lab animals. Other than that explanation you’ll have to see the movie. If you’re someone who likes to know what they are seeing before they see it, go read another review. I didn’t know anything besides the basic plot when I saw it and I unquestionably agree that seeing a movie with as little prior knowledge as possible, the better (save for previews).

What I will tell you is that unlike other horror movies, 28 Days Later doesn’t rely entirely on making the audience jump. It is loaded with sequences that will make you sweat from anxiety and chew your finger nails. One of the best aspects of the film that I enjoyed was that the movie set the tone, and the audiences mind did the rest. Throughout the entire film I was thinking to myself, what’s going to happen next? Where are the zombies? Who’s infected? To me this is a brilliant stroke of genius on behalf of the director. The movie didn’t need to push itself on the audience; they were drawn to the movie. However I can’t say that everyone enjoyed it. I heard people complaining that Fox Searchlight produced it and if the movie bombed Fox wouldn’t claim responsibility for it.

Yes Fox Searchlight produced this movie. Why you ask? Because it’s an English film. It swept the box offices in the UK so Searchlight ported it over to the U.S. Being a foreign film I think, made the movie better. It showed what people from other countries like to see in their movies. 28 Days Later was filmed completely in digital and gave the editors much more leeway with what they could do in post production. A movie filmed in digital also makes for a clearer picture with enhanced cinematics. If anyone is familiar with the mini-series Band of Brothers the backgrounds have been enhanced to create more eye appealing shots. Some images appeared gritty or fuzzy, but added to the over theme at the time. The same goes for the camera angles of the empty streets of London. The last climatic scene in the movie I found to be quite disturbing but hindsight proves to be the best lens, and now I think that even though it was bizarre I’m glad it was left in the film. If you are looking to be freaked out, 28 Days Later is the movie for you.


Acting:
Small budget, foreign films do not bring big name actors to the set. As is the case in 28 Days Later. There are no major actors in this movie, which is completely fine, seeing as that the main characters did perfectly fine. The pace of the film does not allow much character development so we end up with slightly one dimensional leaders. Alas Cillian Murphy who plays Jim has a strange air about him, not just his character. Yet his female counterpart Naomie Harris (Selena; my favorite character) has a slightly more developed character. Usually static characters are hard to watch but these actors managed better than I thought. For those who were zombies, they did well for all the screaming and convulsing that they had to do.

Directing
Director Danny Doyle (director of Trainspotting) and screenwriter Alex Garland came up with this fresh new spin on an older genre to make a clean hip movie. Keeping this film on a relatively low budget and using underground actors and film tactics gave 28 Days Later an edge unlike other films this year. At one point in the film the main characters are traveling in a British Taxi through a painting gave it an independent feel that was befitting to such a film. I congratulate Mr. Doyle on a job well done, and after you see it, you should too.

Final Thoughts:
28 Days Later is surely near the top of my list for favorite movies this year. Combined with the cinematography, concept, and intensity of many scenes (Like the one in Jim’s parents house; you’ll know what I’m talking about) made this film quite enjoyable. To put the icing on the cake, the soundtrack was as equally haunting as the scene in the church. UK composer John Murphy uses contemporary styling and instruments to cap off a creepy 108 minute film. I give this piece 4 Planets. It was exciting, it was scary, and it was captivating. I offer a warning to those who are squeamish or those who aren’t fans of this genre. Look elsewhere for a place to spend your money. So set your Scare Meter to high and go check out 28 Days later!

Jameson Rating: 4 out of 5 Planets


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