Later this month, 28 Years Later will be released in theaters. The trailers to that movie look sensational so I decided to look back on the previous two films in the franchise both of which I have only seen once before. First up was 28 Days Later.

Directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland, 28 Days Later sets up the world as we see a group of animal right activists free a group of monkeys that, according to the scientists, had been infected with the “Rage” virus. The activists ignored the warnings and immediately discovered that they had made a serious error. The virus spread across Great Britain leading to the collapse of society.

Jim (Cillian Murphy), a bicycle courier who had been involved in an accident prior to the outbreak, awoke from a coma to find the world a much different and more violent place. London seemed deserted as Jim walks through the city in search of anyone.

This beginning reminded me of the beginning of the Walking Dead, with Rick awakening in a deserted hospital only to find the world had changed while he was unconscious. Obviously Robert Kirkman took inspiration from this movie for the idea for the comic book.

Cillian Murphy was excellent as the desperate Jim, struggling to survive in this savage world. Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Alex Palmer, Toby Sedgwick, Brendan Gleeson, Noah Huntley, Christopher Dunne, and Megan Burns filled out the cast of the film.

The tension built through the film and, as we see in many of these films, the theme of man being the real monster comes through strong in this. The second half of the movie was as nerve-wracking as you are going to find.

Despite the horrendous world around them, the film ends with a great message of hope.

Next up… 28 Weeks Later!