28 Weeks Later / 28 Days Later - Double Pack

Now before all you film fanatics write this review off as "Unhelpful" simply because I've given it 3 stars, (which is only because 28 Days Later is such an amazing film) hear me out.

28 Days Later is one of my favourite movies of all time, simply because the story is gripping, the characters are realistic and in a strange, inexplicable way, it's down to earth and I felt as though that could be me and that I could relate in some way to all the characters.

The trailer for 28 Weeks Later is very deceptive. It made me jump at the chance to go see the sequel at the cinema the day it was out, and it reaffirmed with me why I dislike sequels which purpose only serves as to make more money. It was a huge disappointment, and here's why...

28 Weeks Later is almost an entirely different film to the 28 Days Later. The first film, 28DL was scary because it was as close to realistic you could get if that actually happened. It didn't have any stereotypical characters in it, it had down to earth, real people, like me and you.

However, in 28 Weeks Later, it's full of predictable, textbook characters. For example, you have the token scared guy, who does something extremely stupid in a vulnerable situation which not only gets him killed, but jeopardises the entire group. It made me aware I was watching a film, and not a story.

The director, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, put way to much emphasis on making it a jumpy film, as opposed to the first one, which was scary because it was completely accurate as to what levels people go to, to survive.

Watching 28 Weeks Later, is like watching Scream. It features the same stereotypical characters, stupid decisions no one in there right mind would make and whole lot of disappearing acts from the infected, who now seem to prefer running away and hiding more than they do killing. If you've seen the film, you'll understand.

This film is was to Americanised. It's a classic Hollywood film which you watch once, and forget about instantly as it collects dust on your shelf.

Believe me, if you love the first one, it's not worth even watching this as it will make you throughly disappointed.

Prepare for two of the best British horror films in the past 20 years. After the Rage virus Decimates England, turning people into zombie like canibals that are in constant state of Rage. The survivors do anything they can to survive.
28 DAYS LATER is the best of the two movies, as nothing can compare to the scenes of a empty London, and the first shocks of the Rage filled victims. This is Director Danny Boils best film todate.
*****
28 WEEKS LATER is also excellent, but lacks the power of the first movie. But also adds with some brilliant action scenes, as in the fire bombing of London.
****
Both films are very intelligent, and leave you wanting the third chapter.
A brilliant Box-set that goes straight for your jugular with a blast of neve shredding adrenaline.
Any Horror fan must buy these classic movies Now !

Prepare for two of the best British horror films in the past 20 years. After the Rage virus Decimates England, turning people into zombie like canibals that are in constant state of Rage. The survivors do anything they can to survive.
28 DAYS LATER is the best of the two movies, as nothing can compare to the scenes of a empty London, and the first shocks of the Rage filled victims. This is Director Danny Boils best film todate.
*****
28 WEEKS LATER is also excellent, but lacks the power of the first movie. But also adds with some brilliant action scenes, as in the fire bombing of London.
****
Both films are very intelligent, and leave you wanting the third chapter.
A brilliant Box-set that goes straight for your jugular with a blast of neve shredding adrenaline.
Any Horror fan must buy these classic movies Now !

28 days later So it's a zombie film?
Not Quite
I cannot do justice to this film with words alone, so I will tell you instead of what I did when I watched this film.
I didn't move.
Neither did the people who watch it with me.
When I walked home, I did so in the middle of the road, just to be sure that nothing could dive out of the shadows at me.
This film is masterful, there is no other way of putting it, I lived in london at the time of seeing it, and the opening scenes of the film are amongst the most powerful ever seen of a british film, the desolation, isolation, and pure mental trauma of a world gone wrong are all there to be seen. I note that some of the other reviewers note that it's a little gory, and yes, in some places, it is, but it's all necessary, some of the set pieces were a little overdone, but this does not detract from the enjoyment of the film in general.

Simply put, 28 days later is what Resident Evil _should_ have been, it's slick, sharp, and so involving that the people in the cinema I saw it at were screaming at the screen, a phenomenon I've not experienced since the Alien Films.

Get it, watch it at a friends house with the lights turned off, then _try_ to walk home by yourself.........28 Weeks Later is a sequel to Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later, which was a refreshing zombie film that took itself very seriously and arguably reinvigorated the sub-genre for bloodthirsty audiences around the world...I consider myself among them. Danny Boyle steps back as director but his influence is intact as he produces this film. Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, a Spanish filmmaker directs this sequel but maintains many of the stylistic standards of the first film. Like 28 Days Later the cinematography is digital, and it is in 35mm format with some shaky camera work and some very quick edits. I have to admit that at times the attack scenes seemed a little over-stylized and one scene was derivative enough from the Blair Witch Project that it came off as an intentional tribute. Not to say that bothers me much, I'm just pointing it out.

The first film was about a virus called "Rage" that quickly turns it's victims into fast-moving cannibals that are a bit more real and scary than the mindless traditional zombies of George Romero's films. After a while the first film ended with all the infected people starving to death. The second film starts off with a thorough American occupation of London that works to contain and prevent another outbreak while at the same time re-introducing British civilians. We are then introduced to a family of characters, some of which have a genetic abnormality that allows them to remain healthy with the virus. They are un-effected carriers of "Rage". This of course leads to another outbreak in the setting of a military occupied London. And so we sit back and watch as the zombified shenanigans ensue.

28 Weeks Later is extremely violent but it's even more brutal than many films of this sub-genre because it takes itself so seriously and it actually works effectively for that. We are introduced to several would-be protagonists, two of which are deeply riddled with guilt and that makes the characters three-dimensional which allows us to actually care about them. But by the same token, the movie doesn't pull punches and the zombies get their way more often than not. That means the violent tone in general was a bit more real for me. There is also an incredibly gory sequence that is identical to a scene in Planet Terror, the first feature in the recent collaboration Grindhouse. It's interesting to compare the two scenes, because in Planet Terror the scene is so amusing and slapsticky while essentially the same scene here in 28 Weeks

- 28 Days Later:
This is one of my favorite horror films of all time, and is, without a doubt, a classic in my eyes.
It contains genuine scares, not jumps (unlike the majority of new-wave horror that relies on having something jump at the screen to scare the audience) and at times the tension is raised to almost unbareable levels that leaves the veiwer terrified.
It also contains some of the most relate-able characters i have ever seen in a horror picture. They are not a rag-tag group of stereotypes...they are a rag-tag group of real people, the kind of people who could be your next door neighbour or work colleagues.
The realism of this film is sometimes shocking, as at times it feels like these are real people who's journey is simply being documented.
The story completely immerses you and leaves you wondering "What if this was happening for real? Happening to me?"
The direction from Danny Boyle is, as always, phenomenal and the decision to shoot the film almost entirely on handheld digital cameras really adds to the gritty, uncomfortabley realistic tone of the film.
Brilliant performances from all of the cast and everything down to the soundtrack is perfect
i have watched this film countless times, yet it still encapsulates and scares me

Genuinely Frightening,
You will NOT be dissapointed
5 stars!

- 28 Weeks Later:
i don't have quite as much to say about this film.
Unlike the first, the characters are mostly stereotypes that we are used to seeing in movies of this genre - The Hero, The Side-Kick, The Scared Guy, The One's Who Make Ridiculously Stupid Decisions...they are all there.
The storyline is decent, but completely lacks the believability factor displayed by the first.
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo tries to emulate Danny Boyle's direction and attempts to keep the feel of the first film, with some shaky hand-held work and effective use of lighting so i must show some respect for his attempts to make the best film he can with the material
The most noteable difference is, you can tell this is a basic hollywood production to cash in on a successful predecessor which is possibly this films biggest problem

With a promising opening sequence the film ultimately fails to deliver on the same level as the first...but in all fairness, that is a very hard thing to do

However, all that being said this film is still an enjoyable watch
3 stars!

For the low price this is great value horror and definately worth it for the 2 films!

(i apologise for the long review)