Movie Scene: Blood, guts and heart

Picture the scene: St Columb’s Hall, Derry, 2013. A packed crowd had gathered for Danny Boyle and Frank Cottrell Boyce’s ‘in conversation’. As the floor opens to questions, yours truly pipes up: “So Danny, what’s the craic with ‘28 Months Later’?” Danny replies – and I’m paraphrasing here – “It’s not looking likely as we can’t crack a script.”

Well, since that briefest of interactions, both Boyle and Alex Garland managed to do just that, giving us ‘28 Years Later’.

The film opens at the height of the ‘infection’ with an anxiety-inducing raid on a packed house in the Scottish Highlands before jumping to the present day. Britain has become an enclosed ‘infected zone’, with outbreaks on mainland Europe having been eradicated. The only safe haven is Holy Island, where a small community of survivors live, able to head to the mainland when the tide is low. Among them are couple Jamie (Aaron Taylor Johnson), Isla (Jodie Comer) – suffering from an undisclosed illness – and their son Spike (Alfie Williams).

Jamie and Spike venture to the mainland so that Spike can have his “first kill”. On their return, events transpire that see Spike and Isla venture out alone in search of the mysterious Dr Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), who Spike hopes can cure his mother.

We’ve all seen the trailer with the running and the shouting and tons of blood. Word of advice: ‘28 Years Later’ is not that film. Yes, zombie carnage is peppered throughout, but not on the scale people will expect, with ‘28 Years Later’ also featuring elements of family drama, folk horror and a coming-of-age tale.

Given the tumult surrounding Brexit between films, it’s something Boyle and Garland use to their advantage; creating an island idyll that harkens back to simpler times in society where people lived off the land with a strong sense of Blitz-era British ‘keep calm and carry on stiff upper lip-ness’. Boyle reinforces the point in the opening act by interspersing various clips of Brits down through the ages fighting off marauders, with Rudyard Kipling’s poem ‘Boots’ as soundtrack. It should be no surprise that most of the film takes place in England’s green and pleasant lands rather than a cityscape.

A brilliant opening act has nerve-jangling fights, amazing scenery, and kinetic cinematography (provided by Anthony Dod Mantle) as father and son fight their way through the stark-raving – and stark naked –hordes. Only a scene involving an Uruk-Hai type ‘Alpha’ infected feels off.

Once Spike and Isla begin their adventure, the pace slows and more familial ideas take shape. Spike’s love for Isla and her own childhood reminisces form a large part of this section as they search for the Colonel Kurtz-like Dr Kelson.

The infected still get screen time – the tension of when they’ll strike is ever-present – and a childbirth scene involving them isn’t for the squeamish. It almost feels too light on thrills, and it’s fair to say action fans may feel short-changed with the introspective tone leading up to undoubtedly the most divisive ending in 2025 cinema.

In terms of performances, Comer and Williams are the standouts – both absolutely excellent. Taylor Johnson brings his paternal best to a small role, and Fiennes brings dignity to what is essentially a surrogate father role.

‘28 Years Later’ has got blood, but also guts, brains and much heart.