28 Days Later (2002)

by Rizzy

28 Days Later is probably one of my favorite Zombiesque films that's come out recently.  Though I know it's technically not a zombie film, but an infected film, I'm going to compare it to zombie films, since I think it's really the zombie genre that it's working with more than any other.  Really though, this film will forever be the first film that I saw Cillian Murphy in.. he's such an amazing actor.

The start of this film is done very differently from most Zombie films in that it starts out a full month after the attack. We start the film through the eyes of Cillian Murphy's character who's been in a coma for the last 28 days and wakes up to find that all of London seems to be completely vacant. It's so interesting to see an infestation this way... not in the chaos of having all the fresh meat for things to spread so quickly, but for things to have already spread and passed in ways. It's really a refreshing to see this different view on zombie/infected films.

The thing I love most about this film is how well developed the characters are. The characters pretty much make or break any movie and this one ha really well defined characters. The bad ones you hate and the good ones, well, you really love them.  Above is Frank and Hannah, a father and daughter who bring heart and soul to the film. Up until this part of the film, everything has been really dark and hopeless.  You just have this feeling that maybe there is a way to have a life with some amount of joy in a society like this.

The pacing of highs and lows in this movie is what really makes it for me. That capture both moods so well and the lightness of the happy moments makes the darker moments more dark (and vice versa). The cinematography of this film is also amazing, they capture the landscapes and feelings so well working closely with the lighting and colors to really focus on not just creating a scene, but creating a mood within a scene. The actors are all top notch, too.  Making so much of this movie feel just casual, which was really what it needed often, a break from the intensity. It's nice to see a film with such a strong sense of balance.

So, I showed you an example of the lighter film to this movie and here's a great shot of the darker side of the film.  Another great thing that the 28 later films does is really give you a feel for multiple enemies. In so many zombie films you have the humans as good guys and the zombies as bad guys, but in this film this film you have the infected as a mindless evil and then humans as a conscious evil. It's nice to see a film that recognizes the fact that there are humans that would use this situation to do darker deeds they might not have done in a more civil time.

I really like how this film becomes more about the struggle of human nature and finding a way to cope in an extreme situations than it does become a survival film or a zombie film. It's really about being put in a crappy situation and watching how different people become different things in it. I wish more films really looked at this side of life, it fascinates me.

Honestly, I really recommend this film, especially if you're someone who appreciates a film that's trying to do something different. Great acting, great script, beautiful sets! Make sure when you do though, that you're really ready to go along for the ride.  Cause it does have it's slow moments.