Reviewed by Stuart O'Connor
Stars Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner,
Harold Perrineau, Catherine McCormack,
Mackintosh Muggleton, Imogen Poots
Written by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo & E L Lavigne
UK certification 18 | UK RRP £19.99
DVD Region 2 | Runtime 99 minutes
Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
Every so often, a sequel comes along that is better than the original. Yes, I know, it's a rare event, but it does happen — just look at The Godfather Part II, The Empire Strikes Back and Terminator II: Judgment Day, to name but three. And now you can add to that list 28 Weeks Later, the ferociously brilliant follow-up to Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later.
Jump forward six months. The Rage virus has run its course and been erradicated. Mainland Britain is virtualy devoid of human life — there's a small colony, under the tight control of the US Army, at London's Canary Wharf, which has been sealed off as a safe zone. As the refugees are brought back to London, Don is reunited with his children — and, soon after, the wife he's left for dead. Of course, not everything is as rosy as it seems. Thanks to a genetic mutation, Alice is immune to the Rage virus. But she's a carrier, and as you'd expect (thanks partly to the typical incompetence of the US Army) there's a fresh outbreak that spreads at lightening speed. And that's pretty much the plot in a nutshell. Mum's dead, Dad's a homicidal zombie and Rage is quickly taking over the remaining survivors, so with the help of a couple of soldiers (Byrne and Renner), Tammy and Andy head into deserted London. The plan is to hook up with helicopter pilot Flynn (Perrineau) in Regents Park and fly to the continent. But first they have to survive.
28 Weeks Later is one of the best horror films to come along in years. It's beautifully shot and edited, fast paced, well acted and, best of all, genuinely scary — a rare feat these days. There are some wonderful set pieces — the firebombing of Canary wharf, and a lovely scene (reminiscent of George Romero's Dawn of the Dead) with chopper pilot Flynn mowing through a mob of infected at Regents Park — along with topical political allegory (the US in Iraq) and a surprisingly downbeat ending. I can't wait to see 28 Months Later.
EXTRAS **** An infestation (sorry): deleted scenes with optinal commentary; a commentary track with cowriter/director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and producer/cowriter Enrique López Lavigne; three 'making of' featurettes (Code Red, The Infected, Getting Into The Action); and the 28 Days Later: The Aftermath Flash-animated graphic novel. Oh, and the theatrical trailer, too. There must have been a little space left.