28 Years Later  (15) |Close-Up Film Review

The word that came to mind after seeing 28 Years Later was “unexpected”.  It is not a horror film, though there are elements of horror;  it’s not an action film, though there are scenes of violent action and killing.  It is an  apocalyptic, disturbing and somewhat  philosophical vision of a not impossible future.

The story, which is set 28 years after humankind first became infected by the rage virus, presupposes it has been contained inside the British Isles, which is now a quarantined area policed by Euro cops making sure no-one gets out – no chance of membership of the EC here then.  Isolated groups of uninfected people survive, one such being on Holy Island  in Northumberland, accessible only by a causeway at low tide, where a small community lives a frugal, almost medieval life.

Among them are Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), who is old enough to remember the arrival of the virus when he was a child;  his wife Isla (Jodie Comer) who is semi bedridden by a debilitating undiagnosed disease and their 12 year old son Spike (Alfie Williams).   Armed with bows and arrows, the only weapon the community has, Jamie takes his son on a rite of passage trip to the mainland, to train him in defending himself against the infected, who have morphed into two distinct species –  fat, slug like creatures who crawl and the upright and strong Alphas.  They are all naked though very generously smeared with mud to spare our blushes.  The Northumberland shoot must have been a very chilly one for them though!  Ironically and impressively the first sight we get of them is on the horizon, appearing either side of the iconic Sycamore Gap tree – now destroyed by vandals but once more preserved on celluloid

While on the mainland Spike gets wind of the whereabouts of a legendary figure, Dr Kelson (Ralph Fiennes).  Hoping the doctor can cure his mother, he   leaves the island a second time with Isla in tow to find the doctor in the hope that he can cure her.   And that is when the film gets philosophical. 

Kelson is a bizarre, bald, near naked figure who smears himself with iodine which apparently, acting rather like an insect spray, keeps the infected at bay (after 28 years though how come the has not run out of it?)   He is now more philosopher than doctor.  He has built a monument of skulls in memory of the souls who once inhabited those heads and his credo for living is that of the Ancient Romans – Memento Mori – remember we will all die.   It is a remarkable and charismatic performance, which is in many ways the heart of the film 

Although the adults get a good run for their money, it’s down to 14 year old  Newcastle born Alfie Williams however to hold the story together – something he does with total assurance even though this is his first leading role in a major film.

I do though have just one gripe, in that there’s one element that doesn’t convince.  There’s a very gripping scene involving the birth of a baby to one of the infected, but as Kelson remarks, without milk she will die.   We never see the poor little thing being fed however – no sign of any milk – yet somehow she makes it through to the end of the film looking remarkably fit, healthy and happy.  Still there is a limit to what you can expect from an actress so young.