I saw 28 Years Later last Friday and was going to come home and write my thoughts the next morning. But I've sat on them, and I'm glad I did (maybe I'll have something by end of this week). Had I written it right after, I'd be talking about how weird it is, how it isn't what I expected after a recent viewing of 28 Days Later.
But it refuses to leave me. It's so much more compassionate and thought-provoking than I expected. So much to say about how hoping for "back to normal" can rob us of the compassion we need to move on, and how small-scale death can be more painful than large-scale disaster. There's also so much subtext about British history and pop culture that I'm sure went right over my head. It's a very impressive movie.
Thanks for articulating the undercurrents of this film, because I saw it on my birthday and was disappointed. I simply didn’t understand what the movie was trying to communicate, especially with the “Alpha” infected. During the film I remember thinking, “this doesn’t make sense, there are “smart” infected now?” I thought it was contrived to be honest, because it felt like they were trying to make the infected “new and more badass.” I’m disappointed because I really wanted to like it -especially after all of the praise from critics and folks like you whom I admire. I had the same reaction to Friendship, where I was pumped going in but disappointed going out. Perhaps expectations can be a bad thing for a film like this because I saw the first two in the theaters and was blown away by how terrifying and unnerving they were. When I saw the Alpha with that thing swinging between his legs I was just like, “is this really what I think it is?” Oh well. I’m a huge fan and don’t really go on Instagram anymore so it’s great to see you on other platforms doing your thing and achieve the success you deserve.
Yes to this! I loved this film too, just as I love the original 28 Days Later, but for very different reasons. Garland and Boyle make such a great team. I felt whispers of some themes carried over here from Garland's unsung masterpiece of a film "Men." I loved how 28 Years flipped the male coming of age story on its head, making it about the mother/son relationship rather than father/son. Thank you for sharing. Glad to know there are others who appreciated the film as much as I did. :)
Great read! I've been thinking about this movie a lot since seeing it a few days ago, which isn't something I've experienced with many recent watches. You've articulated brilliantly much of what I've been trying to say to friends who ask me what I thought of it.
I'll be honest, I didn't like it at first. But I caught myself judging it before it even had time to breathe so I decided to put my verdict on hold until the end. Thank god I did, because that middle act kicked my arse. I'm sorry to hear about your mum, by the way.
I love what this film is saying about society as a whole, portraying "us" as the heartless monsters and "them" as the innocent animals. You summed it up pretty well with this: "The baby that’s born is not infected, because children are innocent of the sins of their parents!"
Small Comment: You misspelled the name "Jimmy Savile". You might want to correct it to help others who want to google the name to learn more about him. Keep up the great work. I love your content!
I loved it. It was emotionally resonant standalone movie but was also tonally and visually consistent with 28 Days later. I loved the yin and yang of “my two dads:” the stoic brawn of Jaime and the kindly and philosophical brains of Dr Kelcin. I loved the parallel that Jim in 28 Days was looking for community whereas Spike leaves his community to discover self sufficiency.
I saw 28 Years Later last Friday and was going to come home and write my thoughts the next morning. But I've sat on them, and I'm glad I did (maybe I'll have something by end of this week). Had I written it right after, I'd be talking about how weird it is, how it isn't what I expected after a recent viewing of 28 Days Later.
But it refuses to leave me. It's so much more compassionate and thought-provoking than I expected. So much to say about how hoping for "back to normal" can rob us of the compassion we need to move on, and how small-scale death can be more painful than large-scale disaster. There's also so much subtext about British history and pop culture that I'm sure went right over my head. It's a very impressive movie.
Thanks for articulating the undercurrents of this film, because I saw it on my birthday and was disappointed. I simply didn’t understand what the movie was trying to communicate, especially with the “Alpha” infected. During the film I remember thinking, “this doesn’t make sense, there are “smart” infected now?” I thought it was contrived to be honest, because it felt like they were trying to make the infected “new and more badass.” I’m disappointed because I really wanted to like it -especially after all of the praise from critics and folks like you whom I admire. I had the same reaction to Friendship, where I was pumped going in but disappointed going out. Perhaps expectations can be a bad thing for a film like this because I saw the first two in the theaters and was blown away by how terrifying and unnerving they were. When I saw the Alpha with that thing swinging between his legs I was just like, “is this really what I think it is?” Oh well. I’m a huge fan and don’t really go on Instagram anymore so it’s great to see you on other platforms doing your thing and achieve the success you deserve.
Yes to this! I loved this film too, just as I love the original 28 Days Later, but for very different reasons. Garland and Boyle make such a great team. I felt whispers of some themes carried over here from Garland's unsung masterpiece of a film "Men." I loved how 28 Years flipped the male coming of age story on its head, making it about the mother/son relationship rather than father/son. Thank you for sharing. Glad to know there are others who appreciated the film as much as I did. :)
Great read! I've been thinking about this movie a lot since seeing it a few days ago, which isn't something I've experienced with many recent watches. You've articulated brilliantly much of what I've been trying to say to friends who ask me what I thought of it.
I'll be honest, I didn't like it at first. But I caught myself judging it before it even had time to breathe so I decided to put my verdict on hold until the end. Thank god I did, because that middle act kicked my arse. I'm sorry to hear about your mum, by the way.
I love what this film is saying about society as a whole, portraying "us" as the heartless monsters and "them" as the innocent animals. You summed it up pretty well with this: "The baby that’s born is not infected, because children are innocent of the sins of their parents!"
Small Comment: You misspelled the name "Jimmy Savile". You might want to correct it to help others who want to google the name to learn more about him. Keep up the great work. I love your content!
I loved it. It was emotionally resonant standalone movie but was also tonally and visually consistent with 28 Days later. I loved the yin and yang of “my two dads:” the stoic brawn of Jaime and the kindly and philosophical brains of Dr Kelcin. I loved the parallel that Jim in 28 Days was looking for community whereas Spike leaves his community to discover self sufficiency.