In need of a refresher?  28 Days Later, released in Australia in 2003, was a brilliant, lowish-budget horror film about a zombie-inducing virus inflicted on the people of the England after a medical lab ape goes feral.  It provided a compelling survival tale, centred a courier played by Cillian Murphy, but also asked meaningful questions about how technology could work against humanity and leave society on the verge of annihilation.  It turned a tidy profit at the box-office and a less successful follow-up, 28 Weeks Later, debuted in 2007.

For the two individuals responsible for the original, director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) and writer Alex Garland, it’s been a busy two decades.  Boyle won an Academy Award for the popular Slumdog Millionaire and oversaw the well-received opening ceremony for London’s 2012 Summer Olympic Games (loved Queen Elizabeth II’s cameo).  Garland transitioned into direction and made a string of discussion-generating films including Ex Machina, Civil War, and Warfare.  Both have returned for this new instalment, aptly titled 28 Years Later.

I respect artists who take risks and Boyle, working closely with cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle (Slumdog Millionaire), have done that by shooting the bulk of the footage using off-the-shelf iPhones.  It’s head-shaking stuff.  The small device currently resting in my pocket has the power to conjure imagery for a $60 million studio film shown on giant cinema screens across the globe.  As you’ll see for yourself, it allows for distinctive camera angles – from a tight facial close-up of an emotive person through to a multitude of perspectives as a zombie is split open by a piercing arrow.

The narrative (obviously) takes place 28 years after the “Rage Virus” was first released and focuses on a small group of Brits who have found refuge on a zombie-free island close to the coastline.  They’re still alive… but it’s a very different lifestyle to the one they left behind.  I liked the film’s many small details.  Bacon is a luxury good, residents must recycle, and job options are narrow.

The zombies are freaky, and the deaths are gory but the strongest attribute of 28 Years Later is the robust family tale at its core.  Young English actor Alfie Williams is a revelation as the 12-year-old Spike.  He’s a big-hearted kid who wants to help his ailing mother (Comer), but he lacks the nous and emotional maturity to fully grasp the risks he is taking.  Spike treads the fine line between bravery and stupidity.  The dynamic he shares with his “macho” father (Taylor-Johnson) is also an interesting subplot.

If curious about the unresolved loose ends when the credits start rolling, you’ll be happy to know the next chapter, entitled 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, is slated for release in early 2026.  Hopefully it’s great too!