One Nation Under Quarantine: A Review of “28 Years Later”
Numerical rating appears at the end. SPOILERS INCLUDED.
28 years after the Rage viruss was first unleashed in Cambridge, the disease has been somehow pushed back to the British Isles, which is now under a permanent NATO naval blockade to prevent a second European pandemic.
A group of survivors have taken refuge on Lindisfame, an island off the northeast coast of England, where they fly the Flag of St. George, live in a largely pre-industrial society, and have a robust civil defense program where everyone is trained as an archer.
A long causeway connects Lindisfame to the mainland with the island end being heavily fortified. The causeway is only traversable during low tide, and strong rip currents make swimming from the coast to the island fatal especially for the infected.
This natural redoubt has allowed the Lindisfame inhabitants to survive for decades, although they are forced to make regular forays to the mainland for resources and supplies. In fact, a rite of passage has become part of their culture in which teenagers are taken on hunts to kill the infected.
After a short prologue, “28 Years Later” opens with Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) preparing to take his 12 year old son Spike (Alfie Williams) on his first hunt even though his ailing mother Isla (Jodie Comer) is opposed and the village leader Jenny (Stella Gonet) reminds them that Spike isn’t required to go until he’s 15. But Jamie insists his son is ready because he’s an exceptional child.
The first half of the film details this father-son excursion and shows us how the infected have evolved or devolved into three distinct types:
The Slow-Lows which are hairless, bloated, and eat mostly worms, insects, and presumably carrion, the first generation infected from the earlier films, and the Alphas, who large, muscular men with enormous genitals and the ability to think and reason at least at a rudimentary level. They are notoriously difficult to kill with Jamie saying he’s seen them still on their feet after being hit by a dozen arrows.
The second half of the film tells the story of Spike returning to the mainland with his mother in search of the eccentric Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), who he hopes can cure whatever chronic illness she has contracted, with the aid of a stranded and sometimes comical NATO soldier Erik (Edvin Ryding).
I should mention I’m not the biggest fan of the 28 Days franchise, but I was blown away by the gonzo trailer I saw earlier ithis year with its recitation of Rudyard Kipling’s poem “Boots” by Taylor Holmes, and I was looking forward to this release. Also, I heard rumors that parts of the movie were shot using an iPhone Pro Max and that it was intended to be the beginning of a new trilogy.
Apparently, multiple iPhone 15 Pro Max rigs were incorporated into the filming, and this installment is the first of a new trilogy with the next chapter (“28 Years Later: The Bone Temple”) in post and slated for a January 2026 release.
Did “28 Years Later” live up to its trailer? Sadly, it did not, but that trailer set a high bar and falling short of those lofty expectations does not mean the film is a failure.
Having said that, managing expectations is key to enjoying this movie. It is NOT a sequel to the previous features as the story told in “28 Weeks Later” is dismissed in the first reel with a title card.
It is NOT an all out action film that culminates in a 21st century Agincourt with charging waves of the infected being mowed down by showers of arrows shot from Lindisfame parapets. Jenny does not give a St. Crispin’s Day speech as the Alphas gather their forces in the distance.
What IS “28 Years Later” then? It’s a coming of age story and an exercise in world building set in a previously established universe, and it works well on those levels. Director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland succeeded in shooting the movie they wanted to make.
Alfie Williams gives a terrific performance as Spike and carries the film as its central character, which is not an easy feat for a child actor. He’s ably supported by the remaining cast especially Ralph Fiennes, Jodie Comer, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
I liked the cinematography. The English countryside looked verdant with suitably decaying structures, and the night vision shots showcasing the infected’s glowing red eyes as they hunted deer felt disturbing and creepy.
I wasn’t as keen on some of the editing choices such as the bullet time effect when arrows struck the infected or the splicing in of footage from Olivier’s “Henry V.” I got the Hundred Years War metaphor, but the execution called attention to itself and took me out of the film.
Many pundits have criticized Dr. Kelson’s decision for not killing an Alpha after rendering him unconscious with one of his tranquilizer darts. I was okay with that decision because of Kelson’s medical oath to which he seemed to continue to adhere and the fact that he said in an earlier scene he had been in proximity to this Alpha for the past three years (and somehow survived), which implied Kelson may have been studying him.
Finally, the surprise reappearance of Jimmy (Jack O’Connell) with his merry band of acrobatic, color coded, tracksuit wearing Power Rangers seems certain to spark controversy especially as Jimmy bears a striking resemblance to disgraced English media personality and DJ Jimmy Saville, who was declared posthumously to be a predatory sex offender by police.
Jimmy’s character is clearly meant to setup a plot element in the next film, and 12 year old Spike may find himself out of the infected’s frying pan and into Jimmy’s pedophile fire. But that’s getting ahead of the story. We won’t know until January.
3.5/5 stars for the movie Boyle and Garland wanted to make.