In shades of gray, '28 Weeks Later' also shares another key trait with the best films in zombie genre in that its underlying tension is often derived from the question of who's the bigger monster - the zombies, or us? ' Land of the Dead.' Likewise, in painting its human heroes (and the military forces meant to protect them) George Romero has made a career out of it, and 'Weeks' certainly owes more than a passing nod to the city-under-siege scenario of Romero's recent Needless to say, this turf will not be unfamiliar to any zombie movie fan. But when the clan's presumably deceased mother returns, seemingly immune to the zombie virus, some unpleasant family dynamics erupt, and soon all hell will once again break loose. Surviving members of a local English family (including 'World is Not Enough' Bond villain Robert Carlyle), who have been relocated to London. Now 28 weeks beyond the events of 'Days,' and most of the major cities have been quarantined, turned into virtual walled fortresses meant to keep the uninfected people in, and the drooling zombies out. Simply put, 'Weeks' jettisons all of theĬharacters from 'Days,' and creates a plausible scenario for where the world might have gone following the events of the first film. It's a delicate tight-wire act for any sequel to attempt, and even if '28 Weeks Later' is not a superior film to '28 Days Later,' it's certainly one of the better follow-ups in recent memory.Īs the sequel's plot takes quite a few twists and turns, I won't spoil much of it with plot recap. But how do you continue a story that saw just about the entire world overrun by infected zombies? It says a great deal about '28 Weeks Later' that it manages to both extend the original's storyline in a fairly believable, coherent way, but also expand the depth and scope of its themes. Rare for a genre film, '28 Days Later' was also well-received both critically and commercially, and the film - shot for a paltry $8 million - went on to gross nearly $85 million worldwide.Īlthough '28 Days Later' worked just fine as a self-contained, one-shot deal, given its tidy gross, a sequel was probably inevitable. It was a bloody, violent, scary little sleeper, and finally zombie fans had reason to celebrate. Instead, the film re-imagined the concept for a post-9/11 world flush with fears of terrorism, military imperialism and medical technology run amok. Danny Boyle's tense and kinetic action-horror fest was one of the few post-George Romero zombie flicks to successfully jettison the long-stale formula of shuffling corpses attacking dumb suburbanites in farmhouses. During an interview with NME, they talked about the possibility of continuing the story, and Murphy confessed, “I think there’s a problem with that, in that I’m 20 years older…But every time I do bump into Danny or Alex I always mention it.” He then doubled down on the sentiment by expressing his love for the idea and how “it’s very appealing” to him.Released in 2003, ' 28 Days Later' was a breath of fresh air for the zombie genre. Recently, director Danny Boyle and the star of the first film, Cillian Murphy, have rekindled fans’ hopes for a third installment. Danny and Andrew and I have been having quite serious conversations about it so it is a possibility. “We’ve just started talking about it seriously. It wasn’t until 2015 that a more concrete plan started being formed, though, as the screenwriter of the first film, Alex Garland, expressed to IGN: Talks regarding another installment have been around for years, going as far back as 2007 when the idea for it was already being cooked. The post-apocalyptic zombie movie is highly praised by thriller fans, who just can’t get enough of the story, and frequently wonder about if and when they’ll get to see its continuation. Fifteen years after its release, 28 Weeks Later is still as relevant as ever to fans of the franchise.
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