Taglines: The days are numbered.
Animal activists invade a laboratory with the intention of releasing chimpanzees that are undergoing experimentation, infected by a virus -a virus that causes rage. The naive activists ignore the pleas of a scientist to keep the cages locked, with disastrous results. Twenty-eight days later, our protagonist, Jim, wakes up from a coma, alone, in an abandoned hospital.
He begins to seek out anyone else to find London is deserted, apparently without a living soul. After finding a church, which had become inhabited by zombie like humans intent on his demise, he runs for his life. Selena and Mark rescue him from the horde and bring him up to date on the mass carnage and horror as all of London tore itself apart. This is a tale of survival and ultimately, heroics, with nice subtext about mankind’s savage nature.
28 Days Later is a British post-apocalyptic horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland. The film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston. The plot depicts the breakdown of society following the accidental release of a highly contagious virus and focuses upon the struggle of four survivors to cope with the destruction of the life they once knew.
The title is a reference to the official amount of time for a retail purchase to be delivered to the recipient in the U.K. (similar to the U.S. business phrase “Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery”), possibly suggesting that a civilization could fall in the time it takes to send a package.
Successful both commercially and critically, the film is credited with reinvigorating the zombie genre of horror fiction. The film spawned a 2007 sequel, 28 Weeks Later, a graphic novel titled 28 Days Later: The Aftermath, which expands on the timeline of the outbreak, and a 2009 comic book series entitled 28 Days Later.
Directed by: Danny Boyle
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, Brendan Gleeson, Bindu De Stoppani
Screenplay by: Alex Garland
Production Design by: Mark Tildesley
Cinematography by: Anthony Dod Mantle
Film Editing by: Chris Gill
Costume Design by: Rachael Fleming
Set Decoration by: Fanny Taylor
Music by: John Murphy
MPAA Rating: R for strong violence and gore, language and nudity.
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures
Release Date: June 27, 2003
