
Yes, its good
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
Zombie movies, more so than, say, slasher or possessed-ventriloquist-dummy films, seem to carry the burden of conscience on their lumbering, decaying shoulders. George Romero, often credited with creating the zombie genre, threw a hodge-podge of social relevance into 1968's Night of the Living Dead, ranging from the Cold War to racism in the '60s. That movie's sequel, Dawn of the Dead, took on consumerism, and the recent Land of the Dead tackled class differences (rather shakily) and the Iraq war. 2002's terrific 28 Days Later not only created a new zombie archetype, it also had something to say about AIDS and an overzealous military.
So it's not really surprising that the sequel, 28 Weeks Later, takes on the current war in Iraq; the original was pretty much heading that way. What is surprising, though, is the sheer vitriol coursing through its veins. This is a much darker, much bleaker film than its predecessor, lacking even that movie's very occasional sliver of mood-lightening. 28 Weeks Later isn't very interested in letting you have a good time. Rather, it wants to wring you out, and you're either the type who will enjoy this or not.
Me? Totally enjoyed it. After a fantastic beginning, soaked with shaky-cam violence, 28 Weeks Later settles down for a bit to introduce its plot. After the outbreak chronicled in the first film, the rage-infected "zombies" have starved to death, and London has been quarantined off to protect its citizens from any more attacks from the outside. There's a great scene where the people being admitted back into the city are told of how life is getting back to normal in the destroyed city. "There's even running water," they are informed. Their faces light up, and it's a grim reminder of just how quickly the things we take for granted can vanish.
We are introduced to two children, who will become the primary focus of this film. Tammy, the older sister, and Andy, the youngest person in London at 12-years-old, are the children of Doyle (Robert Carlyle), a maintenance worker who survived that bloody opening scene. Their mother was apparently not so lucky, and the kids escape from the quarantined area to their old house, so Andy can have a picture to remember her by. They find more than a picture, though, and this is where the film takes off.
One of the pleasures of 28 Days Later was the convincingly deserted streets of London. Cillian Murphy wandered around the city in a daze, and it felt like he was the only one there. This film even exceeds that. The filmmakers have done an amazing job at making London look and feel like an abandoned theme park. After a while, you stop even thinking about how they managed to pull the effect off. These kids are the only ones there. When a military helicopter breaks this dream-like state, it's truly startling, because we've bought this illusion so fully.
Review ID: 10000000009420017

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