28 Days Later

Quite a bore and needless gore, was initially my impression of 28 DaysLater, but less than 28 minutes later, Director Danny Boyle's intenselyintellectual and creepy apocalyptic film had my full attention until itsvery ambiguous end.

It begins when animal rights activists in Britain release some cagedprimates in a laboratory, ignoring the warning that they are infected witha contagious disease referred to as "rage." Following a very violent scenein which the activists are attacked and killed, it fast-forwards 28 days toa hospital in London. Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up to find the hospitaland the city deserted as he wanders the halls and streets alone, picking upPepsi cans and trying to figure out what exactly has happened. He gets apretty good idea when he enters a church and zombie-like beings attack himvomiting blood, but he manages to escape and meets a few other survivorswho fill him in on the situation -- it's not just London that is infected,but the entire planet.

The survivors tell Jim the painful and gruesome stories of how theirfamilies were infected and also let him know that if he happens to come incontact with the blood -- they will not hesitate to kill him. There are 20seconds between contact with an open wound and the transformation fromhuman to zombie, so it is a "kill or be killed" situation. Jim and Selena(Naomie Harris), a no-nonsense young woman, hear a radio transmission froma military base that gives them and other survivors the hope of a safehaven. While attempting to reach the have, they meet a father and his youngdaughter (Brendan Gleeson and Megan Burns) who give them shelter for a fewnights as well accompany them on their journey via an old taxi.

When they finally do arrive, they discover that the soldiers are biggermonsters than the infected humans. It's an interesting concept and point,though it takes its time getting there. The ending, a bit toohappy-go-lucky for my liking, left me wanting more from a film thatdefinitely had something to offer. Though our heroes seem to make itthrough, I really needed more from the story, as it left me with too manyunanswered questions.

28 Days Later succeeds in presenting likable characters, placing them indangerous situations, and developing the relationships between them. I wasamazed to find myself caring so much and thinking about them weeks afterviewing the film. Even the "villain," Major Henry West (ChristopherEccleston), full of his own brand of "rage," is convincingly the creepiestand scariest thing about this movie.

A solid cast of virtually unknown actors, coupled with a decent script andmessage, make 28 Days Later worthy of the accolades that have come its way.Despite being a bit turned off and tuned out at first, I found myselfultimately moved and intrigued. Rumors of an alternate ending, followingthe credits beginning July 25, have circulated, giving me reason to view itagain before a third ending makes the special features section of the DVDrelease. Perhaps it will produce the more dark, bitter and sarcastic endingthat I had hoped would come from a movie filled with so much darkness andrage.