28 Weeks Later (Widescreen Edition)

Why did this movie get rave reviews? It was too long, too boring, and DID NOT rewrite the "zombie genre" which so many people claimed it did. I found the the plot jumpy and inconsistent. There was no real "feel" of terror. All that being said, I think the main thing that failed this movie was the outside over-hype. It was nothing that I expected, because if it had been, then it would have been good. Sorry, can't recommend this one. However, it is better than the first.

28 Days Later is my favorite horror movie of all time, so when I first heard that a sequel was shooting, I was ecstatic. Then, as news trickled in, I became more and more wary of the project. None of the original actors were on board, nor was Danny Boyle slated to be the director. I learned that the storyline focused on a boy, and being the mother of a young boy, this movie became something I thought that would definitely not want to see. But, then, the movie was released. My friends and trusted horror-advisors at horror-movies.ca began raving about the greatest movie of the year. Even months later, board members were still proclaiming this their favorite film of 2007. So, once it came to DVD, I decided to break down and watch it. After all, could I call myself a fan of the first and refuse to see the sequel, 28 Weeks Later? I thought not.

I would like to say that I loved the movie, but I can't. I liked it. I'll watch it again. But did I enjoy it more than other 2007 releases? No. I even had a better ride on The Transformers. And I hardly ever enjoy action-adventure flicks. My best guess is that I came into 28 Weeks Later expecting to be thrilled and disappointed. In equal parts. This impossible equation almost always leads to disappointment. This is an esoteric criticism, but I also have details to support my displeasure.

The biggest problem with 28 Weeks Later was the flow of the story. Being a sequel of a hugely successful movie buys the right to jump right into the action, however, viewers were thrust into a house full of strangers. The only familiarity was what was going on outside, with the Rage Infected crazies creating havoc. I tried to get to know these people, I wanted to find a compassionate character in the mother, but it was difficult to care with so little background. When the next phase of the film begins, 28 weeks later, we meet the children of the fated couple, and are more smoothly drawn into their situation. They are, after all, kids, the youngest in new Britain, so you want them to survive and anxiously await the resurfacing of the infection that will endanger them.

The action was awesome, as were the effects. I absolutely adore the savages, their eyes filled with blood and fury. They are so scary and so dangerous, and the scene where the infection spreads through a confined group like wildfire heightens the excitement and urgency in a way that wasn't exposed in 28 Days Later. The music also recalled the original movie in a positive way, showing the isolation of the characters who were trying so hard to cleave together and to survive.

The plot seemed to jump along. The military doctor and the sniper were meant to be sympathetic saviors, but their motives didn't move me (even though they might have had they been better defined), and then there was the huge problem of the father's constant return. The little group of survivors was moving around by foot and car, through all kinds of destruction, and that darned Dad just kept showing up. It was too unbelievable, as was the plot culmination. The movie came to an abrupt end, and left me quite unsatisfied.

28 Weeks Later is an example of one of those movies whose separate parts (cinematography, effects, soundtrack, etc.) are exhilarating, but without that strength of plot, falls short.

I am sometimes a little iffy when it comes to naughty movies. My Christian friends, the most devout among them, are always cautioning me against indulging in what they call the "devil's work". A gory scarefest like "28 Weeks Later" qualifies, at least in their eyes.

But as you regular readers know, I have a checkered past and have run with some pretty hedonistic crowds in my day. I had to keep it a secret from my church group that I watched "28 Days Later" - which wasn't hard because as a rather blatant amalgam of many superior movies, I was underwhelmed. Though at least we got a brief glimpse of Cillian Murphy's pee pee. No such luck with Robert Carlyle in the sequel. But in every other department this sequel outdoes the original.

This was definitely a slow-builder but once it got going, it didn't let up until the end. It's only 90 minutes long, but feels more like 50 minutes given that the chills and thrills come fast and steady. Not for the very squeamish.

Having panned the unhorrific 28 DAYS LATER, I don't know what possessed me to record this sequel on my DVR and watch it. But, I'm glad that I did. I thought the original was a dull character driven rip-off of George Romero's Horror Classic DAY OF THE DEAD with almost NO horror to be seen anywhere up on the screen.

I'm thrilled to say that this Post Apocalyptic Spin-off literally trounces 28 DAYS LATER in terms of doomsday atmosphere, suspense, frights, and gory thrills. There are moments in this film that had me jumping off my couch. Not an easy task to accomplish. Excellent job.

MINOR SPOILER: Suffice it to say, there are minor quibbles with the plot. These kind of films are never perfect in suspending disbelief. I won't go into the plot of this "stand alone" story. (Read other reviews for that, this is for those that saw the film.) But, I was eagerly anticipating a bloody ignominious end to some of the protagonists in this film. Usually, any character that causes untold pain and suffering upon the rest of the cast is dispatched in due course in a horror film. I don't know if the filmmakers purposely had me wishing for their demise or it was entirely a "happy accident" (an unintended accident that helps a film). It certainly made sympathy for the protagonists more precarious.

Even though the ending didn't hand me the desired result, any horror film that frightens me, and gets me THAT worked up over the circumstances of its lead characters gets my FIVE STAR rating every time.

Some of the images of horror, desolation, and devastation are some of the best I've ever seen in this genre and stayed with me long after my initial viewing. TERRIFIC! Kudos to the Special Effects team and the director, Fresnadillo. Along with Rodriguez' superbly comic PLANET TERROR, Latino directors seem to be making the best films in this genre at the moment. I hope that they become a serious voice in Horror like their Italian cousins. Here's to more great Horror films, guys. I'm impressed.

I may have loathed the first film, but I'm a serious FAN of this sequel. The blurb on the box is absolutely wrong. It's MUCH MUCH "better than the original." By a bloody mile!

This is a FUN, FRIGHTENING, and SUSPENSEFUL HORROR CLASSIC! And a much better addition to the genre than its lackluster mother. I hope this series takes us further to the VERY EDGE of Survival Horror, much like The RESIDENT EVIL series is doing. Mon Dieu, I can't wait for the sequel!

ENJOY.

this movie was great alot more intertaining than the first more killing more fun watching it. I did'nt bother buying it i just saw it on HBO great movie the first was okay it was'nt really a zombie movie it was more like a military with some zombie stuff in it but this was better, not only this was good but more smarter than any other zombie movie you no how zombies just stand their in front of you and wait until you move then they chase you but this the zombies just attack you head on no matter what you do they did'nt just stand their and look at you they just ate them up like it was a buffet, but great movie and it had better acting then the first.