Directed by: Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
Written by: Rowan Joffé, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, E.L. Lavigne, Jesus Olmo
Starring: Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, Harold Perrineau, Catherine McCormack
Rating: [3/5]
Mitigating the spread of a civilization-threatening virus requires difficult decisions to be made for the good of everyone. A complex position those in power must navigate in normal circumstances, but when it involves the rage virus, like in 28 Weeks Later, it amplifies the danger and horror involved. While not matching the filmmaking of its predecessor, this sequel stands on its own in delivering the entertainment one can expect from a zombie movie.
After a period of time where those infected by the rage virus have been quarantined and killed off in a protected zone in London, this has allowed relatively normal life to resume. However, after a breach of an asymptomatic carrier of the virus spreads it from within the protected zone, the NATO forces try their best to contain this spread before it expands beyond the UK borders.
With 28 Days Later having a more grounded and personal view on the impact of the rage virus amongst a small group of characters, this sequel decides to up the ante. Instead of solely focusing on a select group of survivors, we see the decisions made by individuals trying to control this situation in efforts to quarantine and stop the spread of this to the rest of the world. This involves governmental task forces and highly trained doctors who have developed a decent system to the point where they have built a protected zone where individuals can live their lives to a relatively normal degree. This peace and sanity can only go for so long, which allows the plot to really kick off.
While showing the impact of the rage virus on a larger scale, we still have the opportunity of focusing on a small family unit, which mostly includes Tammy (Imogen Poots) and Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton), as their discovery of their mother essentially lights up the whole situation. Their involvement demonstrates the hope of potentially finding a cure for this virus, and therefore it becomes critical to keep them alive as mayhem spreads.
One of the more effective elements of this film is displaying just how quickly this virus can spread amongst a population. As seen in the previous film, it does not even take a bite from someone with the rage virus to turn another person, where even having a drop of their blood get through your pores will get the job done. Couple that with the quickness in which the turn occurs, and we get the spread as seen in this film. It provides a different perspective, as the previous film famously shows us a country already ravaged by the virus. It picks up 28 days after all mayhem has transpired. Through this film we get to see likely a repeat of what happened and how even the best-laid plans to combat it will unfortunately fail. It only further proves that the initial outbreak must have been so much worse and heartbreaking, with the understandable lack of preparation for something like this completely enrapturing a country.
With that said, much of what propels the plot are characters making the most infuriatingly dumb decisions that lead to much of what transpires in the film. This mostly unfolds through Tammy and Andy, and I suppose they can be somewhat excused, as they are children, but many of the characters in this film did not have their thinking caps on. On one hand, it can be annoying, but on the other, it allows for this film to bring forth its entertainment value so one cannot be too mad at it.
If 28 Weeks Later accomplishes one thing, it’s to make me imagine what a situation like this would look like in our polarized society. Given how we reacted to the COVID-19 pandemic, it makes me shudder at the horrific way this would all play out and the immediate division. The narrative itself seeks to expand the world created by Alex Garland and Danny Boyle and does a fairly decent job at that. It provides all of the zombie thrills one could possibly want as those infected with the rage virus break through and ruin the best-laid plans, even if it stems from the principal characters making a continuous series of terrible decisions.
