This Is Not Your Parents Zombie Movie - By Megan Dawn
Let’s start with a bit of background on this franchise you may never have heard of. And
yes, it is a franchise.
In 2002, 28 Days Later brought us animal rights activists – in their desire to save
animals from a top-secret facility – releasing chimpanzees infected with the very
destructive Rage Virus. In just 28 Days, Great Britain is a wasteland of zombie-like
Ragers tormenting and running down the non-infected. After another 28 days of fighting
for their lives, 3 people manage to survive the first wave of attacks and try to wave down
a plane for rescue.
In 2007, 28 Weeks Later takes us back to Great Britain where NATO, led by the USA,
has been trying to set up a safe zone in London. This fails, as we all expected it to, and
the Rage Virus is on the loose, again. After 28 Days of battle, almost everyone
succumbs to the virus, and it makes it way out into the rest of Europe.
Which brings us to 2025 and 28 Years Later. This movie picks up 28 years after the
Rage Virus was accidentally released. Hence the name… But this is not your typical
apocalyptic world. It is not desolate and run down. Nope, this world is lush and green
and gorgeous. Flowers, plants, and trees are thriving as we have never seen. It’s
amazing what nature can do when it’s left untouched by humans for 28 years.
But before we get there, we have to recap how we got where we are. And this movie
wastes no time diving into the horror of this world. The first thing we see is an entire
home of people get slaughtered. Including a room full of young ones watching
Teletubbies. Could you imagine Tinky-Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa, and Po being the last
thing you ever saw? As if that’s not horrifying enough. We don’t actually see the ending
of these Littles, but the screams and the blood flying leaves little to the imagination.
One brave Little manages to escape the house. Young Jimmy (Rocco Haynes) heads
for the church and what he thought would be safety. Not in this world, kid. Because this
evil can enter the church. Not only that, but the preacher inside seems very eager to
welcome them and join them. That’s right, this movie is slaying every horror movie
trope. Jimmy hides under the floor which means he’ll survive. But if he makes it out with
all his mental faculties intact, I’ll be shocked.
’28 Years Later’ flashes in white against a black screen and we know we are off and
running.
We are introduced to a different kid named Spike (Alfie Williams). A great name that
makes me wonder if someone was a Buffy fan. Woven in with scenes of Spike getting
up and preparing for a day of something that is clearly NOT school, we see men in the
village making bows and arrows. And now I am really intrigued. I love a good archer
story. They do make the best vigilantes. Turns out the bow and arrows are for Spike and
his dad, Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson).
Jamie is taking Spike to the mainland for a hunting trip. But not a hunting trip like you
and I know. Nope, these apocalypse survivors are hunting Ragers on the mainland.
Apparently, this is some sort of rite of passage for the young men of this village on an
island just off the infected mainland.
Before they head out, we do get a moment of Spike with his mom, Isla (Jodie Comer).
Clearly this poor woman is suffering. Whether it’s from mental illness or some other kind
of illness is unclear. Whatever it is, it has definitely messed with her brain.
We watch Spike and Jamie head to the mainland where Spike gets his first kill right
away. A chubby little Rager that likes to crawl and eat worms. The father and son team
are having a good time and Spike is learning a lot. Until the Alpha and his pack show
up.
There’s always an Alpha amongst the evil. And Alpha Ragers are a whole new breed.
Jamie tells Spike ‘He’s got no mind, he’s got no soul.’ And those words are the perfect
description of these things! It was pretty cool watching Jamie and Spike shoot at the
pack, though. The editors really knew what they were doing with the pause as the arrow
flies and then slow motion when it hits and the Rager falls. Pretty intense imagery. And
the movie does not let me down on the reputation of archers!
After spending a night hiding from the Pack in the attic of an abandoned home, Spike
and Jamie are forced out by a weak foundation. They make their way back to the
causeway to their island and believe they are home free – so to speak. We are treated
with the most gorgeous scenery of a water covered causeway and a black sky swirling
with stars. As well as purples, pinks, and greens. It is truly breathtaking.
Until the birds swarm overhead, warning the two that the Alpha is closing in. Seriously,
this Alpha had to be a witch in his human life. Or a track star. Or both. Thankfully, Jamie
and Spike get close enough to the gated entrance of the island for their whistle to wake
up the sleeping guards. Yep, every last guard was sleeping on their watch. But they
manage to take down the Alpha right as Spike and Jamie reach the gate. It wouldn’t be
a horror movie without a close call or two.
After a celebration, where Spike discovers that his father has a tendency to oversell his
experiences and has a liking for a woman who is not Spikes mother, Spike makes the
decision to take his sick mom to the mainland. He is in search of the former doctor that
is rumored to still be there and hoping he can help Spike’s mom.
So off we go back to the Rager-filled mainland. Naturally, our young would-be hero and
his sick mother run into another pack of Ragers with an Alpha (Chi-Lewis Parry) who
had to be related to Jason Mamoa in his human life. The pack traps them in an
abandoned Shell gas station – that is missing its letter ‘S’ - and is filled with glowy blue
gas. It’s dark so Spike cannot see to aim his bow, and even if he could, there are too
many for our 12-year-old hero to handle alone. Not to mention the gas that is
threatening to take them out before the Pack can.
Enter Erik (Edvin Ryding), a Swedish Soldier and the only survivor of his crew after they
were forced onto the mainland when their ship sunk. Hearing the screams, Erik rescues
Spike and Isla in a most epic manner. He follows this with a very angry rant at Spike –
no doubt needing to burn off some adrenaline after everything he’s just been through.
After that moment of anger, Erik proves to be a much-needed break from the horror and
carnage and sadness that we have been overwhelmed with from the first minute. Erik
has that dry, sarcastic wit that only someone else possessing it can appreciate. So I am
definitely a fan. No surprise there, as Edvin was the main reason I was so keen to watch
this movie. The kid was so impressive as Prince Wilhelm in Young Royals. And he did
not disappoint in this movie.
Unfortunately, Erik is not with us long before the Alpha catches up with the threesome
and takes him out. Nice knowing you Erik.
And where did the Alpha catch up with them? On a deserted train where they find a
female Rager GIVING BIRTH!! In all of my years of watching horror and thriller movies, I
never expected to see that! A very interesting turn, indeed.
And Spike doesn’t have to worry about looking for the doctor. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes)
finds them, rescues them from the Alpha, and takes him to his monument of bones and
skulls. Which is actually very cool looking – in a morbid way, of course. Kelson does an
examination of Isla and determines that she most likely has cancer that has spread
throughout her body, leaving her with very little time left.
Channeling Doctor Kevorkian, Kelson helps Isla end her suffering. He lets Spike add
her skull, and Erik’s, to his tower, then sends Spike and the baby back to Spike’s island
village.
But Spike has come a long way since the beginning of the movie. He’s no longer the
scared kid that can barely aim his bow. And he has no desire to bury his head back in
the sand of the gated island village. He leaves the baby outside the gates with a note
and then heads back to the mainland to ‘keep walking.’
Naturally, Ragers find him. He manages to take out a couple of them before the ‘track
suit gang’ comes to offer their help. With moves that would make Jackie Chan look
twice, the gang takes out the remaining Ragers. The leader – wearing an upside-down
gold cross – approaches Spike, compliments his technique, and introduces himself as
Jimmy. And we have now come full circle. Also, I was so right about that kid not getting
out with his mental health intact.
The franchise is due for another movie release in 2026, and I am curious to see what
becomes of young Spike and Crazy Jimmy. If the upcoming movie doesn’t touch on
that, I will be very disappointed.
I really enjoyed this latest installment, though. I’m not sure I would consider this movie a
horror film so much as a thriller/drama. But whatever you want to call it, it is very well
done. Everything from production and editing to casting is excellent. And I was highly
impressed with young Alfie. This kid has talent, and I expect to see many more good
things from him.
The movie is a standalone, so you don’t have to watch the 2002 and 2007 movies to
follow this one. Turns out that’s a good thing as I have not seen either since 2007. Erik
does give Spike a very succinct summary of the past, why the mainland is the way it is,
and how the outside world looks at it. A great little summary wrapped in excellent
sarcasm.
And if you’re thinking you’ve seen it all from The Walking Dead or The Maze Runner
(two franchises I adore, by the way), you’re wrong. This movie is not like the others and
is definitely worth checking out.