Click to read the article
28 Days Later (2003)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:196
Fresh:173
Rotten:23
Average Rating:7.3/10
Consensus: 28 Days Later is both a terrifying zombie movie and a sharp political allegory.
Runtime: 1 hr 53 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
US Box Office: $44,900,469
Synopsis: After breaking into a primate research facility, a group of animal rights activists discover caged chimps chained up before banks of screens displaying horrifically violent images. Ignoring the... After breaking into a primate research facility, a group of animal rights activists discover caged chimps chained up before banks of screens displaying horrifically violent images. Ignoring the warnings of the terrified researcher who maintains the chimps are 'infected', they begin to free the animals and are immediately subjected to a bloody attack from the enraged creatures. 28 days later… Cycle courier Jim (Cillian Murphy) awakes from a coma in the deserted intensive care unit of a London hospital. Mystified, he wanders the wards and corridors in search of others and eventually heads into the city streets, calling out for help. As the shadows lengthen Jim seeks shelter in a church only to find dead bodies piled in heaps on the chapel floor. A sudden noise alerts him to the presence of a priest but his lightening speed, blood stained eyes and murderous screams send Jim reeling into the street. More "infected" are attracted by the noise and Jim runs in panic and confusion as a growing flock sprint after him through the dark streets. A sudden explosion from a makeshift bomb heralds the arrival of fellow "survivors" Selena (NAOMIE HARRIS) and Mark (NOAH HUNTLEY). Following a daring rescue they take Jim to safety and start to explain to him the nature of the infection, that it is transmitted in the blood, is overwhelming within seconds, that Britain has been overrun and that they have no way of knowing if it has spread worldwide. Selena and Mark reluctantly agree to help the shell-shocked Jim return home to Deptford to find his parents, with terrifying consequences. Later, as they sneak through the darkened streets, Selena and Jim spot a lone light in a tower block and investigate to see if there are other survivors. The unlikely pair they find are father and daughter Frank (BRENDAN GLEESON) and Hannah (MEGAN BURNS) whose water supplies are running dangerously low and are desperate to find alternative shelter. As the group takes shelter in the tower block, an automated radio broadcast is picked up. A Manchester-based group of soldiers, led by Major Henry West (CHRISTOPHER ECCLESTON), claim to have the 'answer' to infection and invite any survivors to join them at their blockade. Faced with no practical alternative, the group sets out northwards in Frank's black cab unaware that the worst is yet to come. Directed by Danny Boyle, 28 DAYS LATER is from an original screenplay by Alex Garland, the author of The Beach, and produced by Andrew Macdonald. The film stars Cillian Murphy (DISCO PIGS), Naomie Harris (WHITE TEETH), Christopher Eccleston (24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE, THE OTHERS, SHALLOW GRAVE), Megan Burns (LIAM) and Brendan Gleeson (THE GANGS OF NEW YORK, THE GENERAL, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: A.I). [More]
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, Brendan Gleeson, Luke Mably
Director: Danny Boyle
Director: Danny Boyle
Screenwriter: Alex Garland
Producer: Andrew MacDonald
Composer: John Murphy
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Reviews for 28 Days Later
Like an independent B-movie horror flick, but with more polish and less edge
In the old days, a feverish programmer like 28 Days Later would end up on the bottom half of a double bill.
While the virus metaphor is obviously timely, the characters' seeming capacity to forget these nasty changes in themselves by film's end may be the film's most unsettling point.
The premise has been done a billion times, but cinematographer Anthony Dodd Mantle lights director Danny Boyle's macabre little yarn (written by Alex Garland) in the most ominous way that you're sucked in from the very first frame.
In its blessed stretches of quietude, 28 Days Later offers a heartfelt rumination on humans’ ability to build new families when old ones are lost.
I've never seen a vampire... but a gang of swarming, bloodthirsty people... now that's scary. And so is this movie.
I applaud the film's acting, impulse and construction, but there's a third act narrative choice that badly miscalculates the realistic interplay of its subjects and timeline, effectively sabotaging the momentum and integrity of the film.
Forget viruses and bioterror; the modern world, Boyle suggests, is enough to turn us into 'the Infected'...
In Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, a gypsy tells Jonathan Harker that "the dead travel fast." When you see HOW fast the zombies are in this film, you'll believe it.
...Grippingly grotesque...Boyle’s surly and hellish sideshow is profoundly intoxicating in its tangy ugly creepiness. 28 Days Later is ruefully soulful in its scruffy flamboyance
I enjoyed watching this film, mostly because Murphy and Harris make such an appealing central couple to build a new world around. But nobody should mistake this for a killer-zombie movie with real soul.
Latest News for 28 Days Later
October 06, 2008:
A Director for 28 Months Later? ![]()
Who is Paul Andrew Williams, and why is his name being bandied about in connection with "28 Months Later"? Follow the link to find out! More...
September 12, 2008:
Another 28 for Danny Boyle? ![]()
Could there possibly be a second sequel to "28 Days Later"? Danny Boyle thinks so, although he seems worried that his idea might be silly. More...
May 06, 2008:
Neil Marshall's 10 Post-Apocalyptic Picks
The Doomsday director runs RT through the movies that inspired his cyber-punk vision of a dodgy future. More...
October 10, 2007:
RT's Top 50 Horror Movie List Unmasked
Halloween is a great time for three of life's essential pleasures -- pigging out on candy, dressing up in a fun costume, and watching an obscene amount of horror movies.... More...
More Movies
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 70% 70% | Where the Wild Things Are | 03/12 |
| 83% 83% | Paranormal Activity | 03/12 |
| 89% 89% | Zombieland | 03/12 |
| 76% 76% | The Informant! | 03/12 |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- 28 Days Later at Rotten Tomatoes
- 28 Days Later at IGN
- 28 Days Later at AskMen
Fresh Links
Featured

The New Matilda's Lynden Barber looks at the recent success of low-budget sci-fi -- and asks the question.

TIME offers us a closer look at the characters from the latest Twilight film.

Get all the latest movie updates, reviews, interviews and features here.
Competitions

Enough Prequel, Original Trilogy and Family Guy DVDs to fill a space cruiser

Everything from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace could be yours.

We're giving away the 10th Anniversary Blu-ray, plus Braveheart and the Rocky collection



Top Critic

