28 Weeks Later
Review by Peter Syslo

When it comes to sequels, there is that delicate balance that most filmmakers strive to achieve. It seems like a daunting task; there is that pressure to live up to the original, to re-capture the feeling of the original, and to elaborate upon the story of the original. Of course, all of this has to be done in an entertaining/interesting way because the ultimate pressure comes from the monetary investment of the studio – “the original was successful, now let’s make a successful sequel”. However, there are times when a sequel seems to accomplish all of this, with some grace and dignity; 28 WEEKS LATER (2007) is a perfect example.

28 WEEKS LATER is directed and co-written by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo; also co-written by Enrique Lopez Levigne. The film stars Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, Harold Perrineau, Catherine McCormack, Macintosh Muggleton, Imogen Poots, and Idris Elba.

The film basically picks up where the original left off, although with a different cast of characters. There is a kick-ass opening scene, where the infected fall upon a rural cottage of survivors and one man escapes and makes it to safety. Time fast-forwards 28 weeks later and the U.S. army has secured metropolitan areas of Britain , including London . They have exterminated all of the infected and the city is now declared a safe zone – infection free. Now, people who were evacuated are being brought back to repopulate the city, namely, a boy and girl who are reunited with their father (I won ’t spoil what the father did to their mother, as it plays an important role in the plot). Well, as anticipated, the rage virus breaks out again and the city turns into turmoil. The military loses control of things and they have to “wipe the slate clean” to regain order and sterility. The movie culminates with the two children, assisted by army personnel, trying to escape annihilation and it turns out that the children may hold a key to stopping the virus.

Yes, I liked the movie and I thought that it was a very good sequel but, I thought that it was kind of cut short – I actually wanted more out of the ending. The action sequences were great, from the kick-ass opening, to the air force firebombing London – it was very satisfying. It had that “grand scale” feeling of a Toby Emmerich movie, like INDEPENDENCE DAY or THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW. The zombie action and effects were all great, as well – one of the best scenes being where a helicopter pilot flies into a crowd of zombies with the blade of the helicopter angled down. They truly captured the feeling of the original, with the grand-scale action and zombie essence taken to new levels. My only drawback was that the ending seemed rushed and seemed to stop short. Also, the film really didn’t have that emotional impact of the original – there are some tough scenes of personal loss and always that horror of things like, your zombie parents trying to kill you. But, I just feel that I didn’t get as emotionally invested in this one; for example, in the original, when the blood fell into the father’s eye and turned him, it was truly heartbreaking – you spent 45 minutes of the movie getting to know this likeable guy and his demise is just tragic.

Everything else, though, was in place; the story/plot was rock solid (even though it unraveled a little towards the end), the visuals were just beautiful (except for the 1 or 2 “darkness” scenes where action was ambiguous), the acting was great – especially the young girl, and some of the haunting original score was included. I forgot about the original movie when I was talking about music last week – 28 DAYS LATER has an awesome soundtrack/score and is one of those perfect examples of the chemistry of music and film.

Cutting to the chase: 28 WEEKS LATER is a very good sequel, it doesn’t quite hit you in the heart like the original did, but it does give you a sense of awe from the grand scale of it. Again, I felt that the ending lacked a little and actually, the movie could’ve been longer (I guess that’s a true compliment to the filmmakers). I wanted to see more of what happened to those two children – you spend half of the movie riding along with them and all of a sudden – that’s it, the show is over. But, the movie very effectively captured that feeling of complete dread, like the original and it made you put yourself in some of those survival situations. The film definitely is a good watch and will provide some satisfaction to fans of the original and to fans of zombie/medical horror, in general. Actually, it is one of the better horror films to come out this year