- Directed by: Danny Boyle
- Written by: Alex Garland
- Stars: Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes
- Run Time: 1 Hour, 55 Minutes
- Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcvLKldPM08
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
This has quite a different tone than the first two movies, and neither of us thought it was improved for the better. After 28 years, assuming the rest of the world is just fine, it seems like they would be handling things differently by this point. Brian thought it was on the dull side. Kevin wasn’t bored, but neither of us liked it that much.
Spoilery Synopsis
A group of children watch the Teletubbies as the air raid sirens go off and the parents all get really upset. As Jimmy and the others continue to watch, we hear the adults in the next room being eaten. The rage zombies soon get everyone in the house other than Jimmy. We’re told that the rage virus was beaten back from Europe, but it destroyed the entire UK, which was left as a kind of quarantine zone. That was 28 years ago… Credits roll.
We open on young Spike and the other villagers getting ready for work on their farms and such on the island. His father is Jamie, who makes an amazing-looking breakfast. His mother, Isla, is sick, and she didn’t realize they were leaving the island this morning for Spike’s first time. She doesn’t want Spike to go, as he’s way too young. She’s confused or delirious, but she calms down easily.
Spike and Jamie are going for Spike’s first hunt, and everyone in town cheers them on; it’s a big event. Spike’s only 12, and kids usually don’t go until 14, so he’s an exception. Jenny, the village leader, explains that if anything goes wrong, they’re on their own. They leave the island over the causeway that can only be used during low tide.
The two hunters soon see a rotten-looking man crawling on all fours and eating worms. Spike makes his shot and kills the infected man; Jamie kills two more that sneak up on them. They find a house, and inside is a man tied up and hanging by his feet. Someone tied him up and left him for the infected. The man’s got “Jimmy” carved on his chest. Spike kills it.
The two find a stag’s head stuck way up on a tree, and Jamie gets spooked. It’s time to go back home. Too late, they run into a whole horde of crazies– the fast variety. The chase is on! They soon run out of arrows and hide in the attic of an old house.
We cut back to the village, where people hang up “Welcome home Spike” banners. We hear from Jamie about “Alphas” which are bigger, stronger, and smarter than the usual zombies. Night falls, and they can’t go home. They make a run for it and make it to the causeway, which is just slightly underwater. The Alpha chases them across the water, but the sentries at the village shoot it. They go inside to the celebrations where Jamie’s got a girlfriend on the side, Rosie.
Spike talks to an old man, Sam, about the fire they saw in the woods; he says it’s Dr. Kelson, who’s been living out there for years. He’s… odd, but Sam doesn’t want to talk about him. Spike wants to get the doctor to help his mother. Spike eventually gets Jamie to tell the story about Dr. Kelson burning the bodies of the infected.
Spike and his mentally-ill mother sneak out of the village; he wants to take her to the doctor– across the wilderness of the mainland. They spend the night in an old church. Someone prevents a zombie from killing them during the night– could it have been Isla, Spike’s mother?
We cut to a group of Swedish soldiers who are being chased by a pack of infected. They run into an Alpha, who rips one soldier’s head clean off.
Spike and Isla get chased by zombies, and they hide in an old gas station. They’re rescued by the sole surviving soldier, Erik. He’s stuck here now; once anyone sets foot on the mainland, they are quarantined– permanently.
Isla comes upon an infected woman who is pregnant, and it looks very painful. The baby seems normal enough, and Isla wants to take it. Meanwhile, an Alpha tears Erik’s head off. The Alpha chases Spike and Isla right into the hands of Dr. Kelson. Kelson sedates the big Alpha, whom he’s named Samson. Spike explains why they’ve come, and Kelson invites them to his compound.
Kelson has made a whole forest out of human bones, including a skull tower, as a memorial and tribute to the dead. Kelson shows Spike how to make a clean skull out of Erik. Kelson examines Isla and diagnoses that she has brain and breast cancer that has spread. There’s nothing he can do to help. The doctor drugs up Spike and then mercy-kills Isla. One more skull for the pile!
In the morning, Samson attacks, but Kelson and Spike hide in safety. Kelson wants Spike and the baby to go home before something bad happens.
28 Days later, the villagers on the island find the baby, left there by Spike, who continues on in his exploration of the mainland. They also find a note from Spike saying he’ll be away for a while.
On the road, Spike runs into a gang of men all dressed alike who take care of a bunch of fast zombies. They’re the Jimmy gang, and they’re all named Jimmy. “Let’s be pals,” he says.
Brian’s Commentary
Why, if the rage virus is so insanely deadly, is it allowed to continue in the UK? Why wouldn’t NATO or the US simply nuke it flat? There’s just too much risk of it getting out.
Well, you might say it’s because of the survivors, like on the island. If that were the case, why would the authorities airdrop food, medicine, or at least radio to them?
Where did the doctor get all that iodine, and why didn’t he kill Samson long ago if he sedated him regularly? He clearly had no problem with mercy killings.
The acting is fine, and the sets are cool. Other than random shots of dirty naked people running around, there really wasn’t much zombie action in this. The Jimmies at the end made no sense and wasn’t much of a payoff after seeing “Jimmy” carved into everything along the way.
I thought it was really… dull.
Kevin’s Commentary
I didn’t think this was dull, but there were too many elements that didn’t make sense – which Brian already went over in his commentary. I thought the Jimmy gang at the end was pretty funny actually. I guess if it’s an apocalypse, one should embrace the crazy.
I did appreciate that they were realistic about the arrow use. They were used up accurately and the quivers didn’t magically refill.
I didn’t think this was nearly as good or entertaining as the first two movies. This was too different.