This review of the long-awaited 28 Years Later has taken me a while to write as I’ve been sitting on my thoughts of this movie since seeing it at Cineworld on the 19th of June!
Twenty-eight years have passed since the rage virus escaped from a biological weapons laboratory. The area remains under a strict quarantine, but some have managed to find ways to survive among the infected. One such group resides on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily defended causeway. When a member of this group embarks on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he uncovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have transformed not only the infected but also other survivors.
After a recent run of revisits to the first two films at the cinema, I was excited to see 28 Years Later, and after being teased with a scene from the new release before one of the cinema screenings, I was bursting to see it even more.
28 Years Later takes us back to the start, and then we jump 28 years to find that Britain is still under quarantine and the rest of the world is clear of the “rage” virus. We are introduced a the family that will be the key characters in the film as they are surviving in a community that is on an island that is only accessible when the tide is out.
Spike (Alfie Williams) and his father (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) head out from the island and start to bond after shooting the infected with arrows. This is nicely shot as we get a type of freeze frame shot with the kills that looks good. We are introduced to some new type of infected, huge ones that crawl along the floor and a new “Alpha” that is extremely tall and has his tackle hanging out (plenty of laughs in the cinema over that moment). The Alpha seems to be able to be a pack leader of the infected, and this is something that I would love to see more of, but sadly, not as we don’t get much infected and get more of the growth of the family and their journey.
Spike notices a fire in the distance, and his father brushes it off, but later we learn about Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), who could be able to cure Spike’s mother (Jodie Comer).
28 Years Later is a very different film from its predecessors; it’s slow, and it seems to drag along. Yes, there are some great moments, such as the scene in the cottage with an infected character that has a name carved on its chest and we also get a powerful moment with Spike (Williams), Isla (Comer) and Kelson (Fiennes) that had me welling up and almost bursting into tears.
The music by Young Fathers for the release is good and very atmospheric, but I missed the music of John Murphy. Cinematography looks great, and, amazingly, the film was shot with iPhone 15s, which blew my mind!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
Now on to my main issue with 28 Years Later, the ending is a WTF moment! At the start of the film, we are introduced to a young boy called Jimmy (Rocco Haynes), as this moment is 28 years before the current events of the film you brush it off as just something to show you “rage” taking hold, but when we have taken the emotional journey that Spike has taken we are re-introduced to an older Jimmy (Jack O’ Connell) and he has started a Cult of Saville, I kid you not! Young Jimmy is now Sir Jimmy Crystal, he’s dressed in the shell suit, adorned in gold chains & rings and is accompanied by some, what can only be described as, Jimmy Saville looking power rangers or Ninjas.
This moment completely killed 28 Years Later for me. Up to that point, I was looking forward to seeing where Nia DaCosta would be taking us with the upcoming 28 Years Later Part 2: The Bone Temple, which is due for release in January 2026, but after that ending, I lost interest. I just hope that we don’t get the Cult of Jimmy too much in the next release!
28 Years Later is a Marmite Movie!
Movie title: 28 Years later (2025)
Movie description: A group of survivors of the rage virus live on a small island. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors.
Date published: June 23, 2025
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 55m
Director(s): Danny Boyle
Actor(s): Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes
Genre: Zombie Horror, Horror, Thriller
Summary
28 Years Later takes a slight departure from the infected theme and focuses more on the characters’ journey as a rite of passage.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
