Page 1 of 28 Days Later *SPOILERS*

I have literally just seen it, and I can confirm that it is probably the best British horror film since, well, who can remember that far back, probably that one with Susan George as the babysitter. Anyhow, it`s not perfect by any means, I would of prefered 35mm film to DV (I know the budget couldn`t allow for that) and the use of a desolated London aren`t quite as imaginative as I would of liked, but when it hits the mark it really f##kin` hits the mark. This film is LOUD when it wants to be and the sudden attacks by The Infected are jarringly intrusive, especially the death of poor old ex-Emmerdale hunk Noah Huntley. I`m an ardent horror fan of more than twenty years and even I was squirming at one of the later eye gouging scenes.
The end is also a little bit sudden but it does compliment the film as a whole.
Not everyone will like this movie, by any stretch of the imagination, but I thought it was a real accomplishment by director Danny Boyle to bring some originality and style to the genre, and hopefully this will open the doors to more apocalypse horror.

Just seen it myself and I have just said virtually the same thing to my girlfriend in the car on the way home. I didn`t feel the supposed desolation that it was attempting to portray. I`m not too sure about the film in general...haven`t quite made up my mind yet. It`s certainly better than Trainspotting or The Beach but that`s hardly an accomplishment in my book. I thought it was a decent effort and it does have some good moments (a few more wouldn`t have gone amiss)...I think I would probably watch it again and maybe enjoy it more with time.

Like you say...it`s not perfect but I`ve seen a lot worse. Also, there were a couple of moments in the film that more than pay homage to Romero, whether intended or not...I don`t know.

Overall...not too bad.

it would have been nice to actually see what happened in those 28 days leading up to the bloke waking up in the hospital but i suppose that would be a totally different film all together.
i felt it didnt go far enough in some aspecs and it only touched on the actions of the rest of the world regards to the uk being cut off from the rest of the world and not being a world wide epidemic as you are first led to believe.some nice ideas and the infected were at times very unnerving but i left feeling confused,the same as everyone else,as to whether i actually enjoyed it.

I have to agree with you on most points. The desolate London was effectively done, although there was potential for a lot more to be shown. The post-production added silence was brilliant, and when it was broken it was done so to great effect!
The only real criticism I can aim at 28 Days is that the horror is often very contrived (such as the tunnel bit... why not just take the bridge? They`ve got eternity to do it!), but the result in each case is another genuine scare.
The infected cerainly looked the part (especialy the tied-up soldier), and I for one thought the ending was good.
And, Lee, you`re right. That eye gouging scene...

Question...

Will the desolated scenes of London, the motorway etc have been created with the use of CGI?

Just a discussion we have been having.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 5th November 2002, 17:42

Read somewhere that Garland and Boyle did a Q+A after the premier of the film. They said that for the derelict London streets they had a sh*t load of film students begging drivers not to go into the streets they were filming in. But he people must have been CG`d out coz every no and again you can see a shadow on the wall or the pavement and there aint no-one there.

Enemy

im glad to see that there are people enjoying this modern classic. i personally felt that this was a well concieved and executed homage to the genre.

it worked well for me on 2 levels, the first that it was set/shot in a britain (i could relate to it visually, also very triffid like), and the second was in the way it was written. we`ve all seen what happens when zombies go made (as seen in any of romeros living dead classics), but what i felt this film portrayed brilliantly was what happens on the emotional level.

there is such a thing as emotional horror and this too can be effective (the omega man, for example). in fact, 28 is at its weakest when it starts to wonder into the standard horror scenarios.

mr garland and mr boyle have delivered a classic, well for me they have. and classics are a hard thing to come by these days. i fancy a laugh, anyone for red dragon!