After nearly two decades away from the rage virus-ravaged Britain they created, director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland return with 28 Years Later, and they’ve brought something far stranger and more ambitious than anyone expected. This isn’t your typical legacy sequel trading on nostalgia—it’s a defiant, sometimes baffling, often brilliant reimagining of what a zombie film can be.
A World Still Burning
Set nearly three decades after the rage virus escaped from a biological weapons laboratory, the film follows survivors living in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine. A small community has managed to subsist on Lindisfarne, an island naturally defended from Great Britain by a causeway that floods with the tide. When young Spike (Alfie Williams) and Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) venture onto the mainland on a dangerous mission, they discover that both the infected and the survivors have mutated in unexpected ways.
The film opens with a haunting prologue featuring the Teletubbies and children in the Scottish Highlands during the initial outbreak—a surreal juxtaposition that sets the tone for what’s to come. It’s an early signal that Boyle and Garland aren’t interested in retreading familiar ground.
More Fairytale Than Horror Show
Here’s where 28 Years Later will divide audiences: this is less a pure horror film than a contemplative coming-of-age story that happens to feature zombies. The infected assume the back burner as Boyle opts for a Brothers Grimm vibe, with lush verdant fields and forest green trees taking on a fairytale sheen that differs dramatically from the grunge of 28 Days Later.
The rage virus has evolved in fascinating ways. The infected now come in multiple varieties: manic speedsters, grotesque floor dwellers who subsist on worms, and terrifying Alphas—super-strong, intelligent beings with a penchant for spine-ripping violence. It’s grotesque, inventive, and occasionally bewildering.
Shot primarily on iPhone 15 Pro Max cameras, harking back to the original film’s use of digital camcorders, the visuals maintain an immediacy and rawness that grounds even the most outlandish moments. Cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle’s work is stunning, capturing both the visceral horror and surprising beauty of this post-apocalyptic Britain.
The Performances Ground the Chaos
Young Alfie Williams steals the show, giving audiences a likable and nuanced character to root for. Jodie Comer delivers a performance of vulnerability and strength as Spike’s mother Isla, oscillating between lucidity and hallucination. Ralph Fiennes brings gravitas as the death-obsessed Doctor Kelson, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson provides steady emotional grounding as Jamie.
The ensemble commits fully to Boyle’s vision, even when the script asks them to navigate tonal shifts that shouldn’t work on paper. Their sincerity sells even the film’s most experimental choices.
A Film at War With Itself
28 Years Later is deliberately, almost aggressively unconventional. It’s a horror movie, a coming-of-age story, a mesmerizing philosophical tale about finding your way in a world that has never made sense. Boyle includes archival war footage, Rudyard Kipling poetry, and narrative detours that feel more like arthouse cinema than blockbuster horror.
The trailer, featuring a 1915 recording of Kipling’s “Boots,” became the #1 trending video on YouTube with over 10 million views in 48 hours—but the film it advertises is far stranger than that pulse-pounding preview suggested. Some will see this as bait-and-switch; others will appreciate the audacity.
The ending has proven particularly divisive, setting up the upcoming January 2026 sequel 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple directed by Nia DaCosta. It’s clear this is the opening chapter of a new trilogy rather than a standalone film, which may frustrate those hoping for complete closure.
The Verdict
28 Years Later earned an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 77, indicating generally favorable reviews, though audiences gave it a more modest “B” CinemaScore. It opened to $30 million domestically, marking the highest opening weekend in the franchise’s history.
This polarization makes sense. Boyle and Garland have created something that refuses to play by the rules. It’s less interested in delivering scares than in meditating on grief, loss, and what it means to find hope in a world long past saving. The zombies are almost incidental to a story fundamentally about a boy and his mother navigating an impossible situation.
If you’re expecting a straightforward horror sequel, you’ll likely walk out disappointed. But if you’re willing to embrace something messy, ambitious, and genuinely unpredictable, 28 Years Later offers rewards. It’s a film that prioritizes artistic vision over fan service, philosophical depth over crowd-pleasing thrills.
Not everyone will appreciate that trade-off. But in an era of safe, nostalgic reboots, there’s something refreshing about a film this willing to alienate half its audience in pursuit of something genuinely new. Boyle and Garland have made a zombie film for viewers who want to feel unsettled long after the credits roll—and not just because of the gore.
The Bottom Line: Bold, bizarre, and occasionally brilliant, 28 Years Later is a deeply flawed film with enormous ambition. It’s far more interested in asking difficult questions than providing easy answers, and in the current franchise landscape, that alone makes it worth seeing.
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)