28 Weeks Later (2007)

Director:

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

Writers:

Rowan Joffe (screenplay) &
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

11 May 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

It All Begins Again

Plot:

Six months after the rage virus was inflicted on the population of Great Britain, the US Army helps to secure a small area of London for the survivors to repopulate and start again. But not everything goes to plan.

Plot Keywords:

Rage | Infection | U.S. Army | Blood | Shot In The Leg

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Robert Carlyle	...	Don
Catherine McCormack	...	Alice
Rose Byrne	...	Scarlet
Jeremy Renner	...	Doyle
Harold Perrineau	...	Flynn
Idris Elba	...	Stone
Imogen Poots	...	Tammy
Mackintosh Muggleton	...	Andy
Amanda Walker	...	Sally
Shahid Ahmed	...	Jacob
Garfield Morgan	...	Geoff
Emily Beecham	...	Karen
Beans El-Balawi	...	Boy in Cottage (as Beans Balawi)
Meghan Popiel	...	DLR Soldier
Stewart Alexander	...	Military Officer

Also Known As:

28 semanas después (Spain)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and gore, language and some sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

UK | Spain

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Ireland:16 (theatrical rating) | UK:18 | Singapore:R21 | Hong Kong:IIB | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Australia:MA | Singapore:M18 (edited version) | Malaysia:18SG | USA:R (certificate #43475) | New Zealand:R18 | Germany:18 | Argentina:16 | Ireland:18 (DVD rating) | Mexico:C | Norway:18 | Brazil:18 | France:-12 (with warning) | South Africa:18 | Finland:K-18 | Chile:14 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Taiwan:R-12 (original rating) | Sweden:15 | South Korea:18 | Philippines:R-13 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | Iceland:16 | Italy:VM14 | India:A (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Aldwych Underground Station, Aldwych, Holborn, London, England, UK

Company:

Fox Atomic

Trivia:

All of the night scenes involving Andy, Tammy, Scarlet, Doyle and Sam's journey across London to escape the bombs were shot day-for-night using a new technique created specifically for the film by director of photography Enrique Chediak. The scenes were shot day-for-night for three reasons. Firstly, because the filmmakers weren't allowed to use Mackintosh Muggleton (Andy) at night time. Secondly, because there is supposed to be a total shut down of all power in London, hence every building must appear light-less. However, if one were to actually shoot at night time in London, this would be impossible to capture photo-realistically and would hence involve complex post-production work removing all of the lights. By shooting during the day time however, there are few lights on in most buildings anyway, and as such, when the day-for-night treatment is applied to the film stock, everything in the image darkens equally, thus giving the impression that all of the buildings are in total darkness. Thirdly, director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo has always been a big fan of the 'ghostly' quality day-for-night shooting has, and he felt it would create the perfect sense of unease for the film.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: The route the survivors took around London, and the distances involved, would not be possible in the time frame as shown in the film.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Donald Harris: What are you going to cook?
Alice: Your favorite.
Donald Harris: What, again?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "To kokkino domatio: Prasini karta: Part 4 (#3.17)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

In The House - In A Heartbeat

a good sequel of a decent horror movie

European horror movies used to be theatrical, low-budget and suffering from it, and badly edited. Like its predecessor, 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later is nothing like that. I must say this is one of the best horror movies I have seen (and I have seen hundreds), for a number of reasons. Although the movie does juggle many clichés, it does so kind of skillfully, so that you can really expect to be surprised. Most importantly, however, the sequel is as good as the original, which is the greatest surprise of all in the horror genre.

The main gimmick here, like in the original, is a mix of the zombie theme and the killer virus theme. The zombies here are extremely hyped-up, not doped, and instead of being bent on eating the flesh of the living, they behave like rage-driven human beings stripped completely of their superego and ego, and left with the instinct to fight (and yes, as it's the result of a scientific experiment gone bad, the movie can be considered sci-fi). Perhaps due to the fact that this is an European movie, we get something markedly different from the Resident Evil franchise - here, in placed of Resident Evil's focus on showcasing pretty actresses and made-up high-tech, we are treated to a foreboding feeling of isolation and powerlessness in face of helplessness and doom. We get to see normal, everyday people and faces struggling to survive, when practically everyone around them can quickly become the embodiment of evil and destruction. 28 Weeks Later focuses a little more on some action elements than, say, on the question of how long people can uphold their morality and respect for their fellow woman in such peril, but still, this movie stands proudly as a horror flick. And, like I said, it is different - with its crisp visuals (unlike the music-video lushness of a lot of Hollywood film scare), haunting and memorable music and unaffected performances. There are some loopholes in the plot, of course (e.g. really not enough few safety precautions on the part of the military for such a dangerous epidemic potential), but the movie runs smoothly throughout, and even the child actors deliver.

There are better movies with a similar feel (such as Children of Men), but as a sequel to a decent horror movie, 28 Weeks Later certainly stands out. By the way, I think that watching 28 Weeks Later will be an especially scary experience for Londoners, as most of it is set in London. Londoners, beware.