28 weeks after the rage virus had decimated mainland Britain, a NATO task force, led by US troops, occupy London. The US forces create a secure zone for refugees--mainly the British who have been out of the country when the plague hit--on the Isle Of Dogs. The recently arrived refugees, including teenage Tammy and her twelve year old brother Andy, are reunited with their father, Don. After spending time doing without the barest of essentials in a dire refugee camp, Tammy and Andy are looking forward to the promising new life that’s been created for them in their homeland--with hot and cold running water; 24/7 electricity; a supermarket and even a pub. No expense was spared in recreating an England that’s just waiting to be repopulated.
Robert Carlyle is superb as Don, a family man who survived the initial outbreak
by making a very hard choice. When he’s reunited with his kids, he’s eager to
start life anew--yet Tammy and Andy aren’t ready to give up their old life just
yet. Looking for their belongings, they violate security protocol by sneaking
back into their pre-virus house, which is located in a still-restricted area of
London that hasn’t been properly cleaned up yet. But along with finding some of
their stuff, the kids also encounter their mother, who’s still alive, and is a
carrier of the rage virus. 28 Weeks Later is a real twisty, curvy horror
thriller that’s a real nail-biter, thanks to the fact that it wisely dodges the
standard horror movie clichés. Like it’s predecessor, 28 Days Later--which reinvigorated the zombie movie--28
Weeks Later also offers another fresh look at a story which deals with a world
struggling to keep an apocalyptic end at bay, while a small band of survivors
desperately try to make it to safety against increasingly impossible odds.
The
cast, led by Carlyle, is marvelous. Catherine McCormick is very good as Alice,
Don’s wife, and Imogen Poots and Mackintosh Muggleton are vastly sympathetic as
Tammy and Andy. Rose Byrne and Jeremy Renner are excellent as a pair of US Army
soldiers who struggle to get the kids to safety.
Directed and co-written by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, 28 Weeks Later is
unrelenting in its suspense, as well as the gore. The DVD is equipped with
a commentary by the director and director of photography. It also includes
deleted scenes (with optional commentary), and several very well made short
"making of" documentaries (there's a funny bit in one when the lead actors
each impersonate an infected during their interviews). 28 Weeks Later is the
perfect companion to 28 Days Later for the perfect zombie double feature. Just
don't watch them alone.
--SF
