The scene of Selena choosing to give Hannah the Valium was a great subtle character arc coming to its conclusion. Selena has been a primarily self-serving person up until she meets Hannah and her dad. Then she grows to care for Hannah, and now as the primary protector of her, she chooses to give HER the Valium instead of just sneakily taking it for herself. They're about to be gang r*ped and Selena chooses to dope up Hannah so she won't care and feel pain, instead of choosing to protect herself, as she has up until that point. It's small and subtle, since Selena isn't the main character but I always appreciate that little moment.
Liked her character arc and how she became softer once she met Hannah and Frank and realised that “not everything is fucked”. This is seen at the end when she hesitated in killing Jim even though she thought he was infected.
According to the writers of the film, the infected are not considered to be "Zombies" in the traditional sense. They are not undead, moreso they are simply affected by a brain-type virus akin to rabies.
@XyZ313 I have been a fan of zombie movies for a long time. A personal favorite is watching Rifftraxx doing Night of the Living Dead, but the original Dawn of the Dead is probably my all-time favorite. A good zombie movie actually has very little to do with the zombies and more to do with the human element and how they adapt to the situation. Train to Busan is probably the best zombie movie to have come out in a long while, and I am so sad people feel it needs to be remade for a western audience. It's perfect as is. But given 28 Days deals with similar themes in terms of the human side of things yes it's very much still in line with being a zombie movie overall.
The 1st time I saw this movie, I thought the same thing. To me these things, at least when they are 1st infected or more like reavers from serenity. The virus 1st kills the humanity in a person, turns them into an insane, raging animal, then as time goes on, it kills then and makes them into zombies.
@@wolf9walker Well I mean zombie in a traditional sense is someone who is not exactly alive, Even in the voodoo origins of it a zombie is someone whose soul has been abducted by the voodoo caster leaving them a mindless slave. In cinema however zombies have unilaterally become something that was once dead, but is now alive again and often lacking its prior mental faculties to be driven soley on instinct. The creators of 28 Days have explicitly said that the infected in their film are in fact not zombies, though they do draw parallels. The original script actually had en entirely different third act wherein after Frank was infected at the blockade, Jim would have been able to knock him out and bind him. The group would then go on to find a medical facility under lockdown wherein a single scientist remained. He would tell them that he'd indeed found the cure for infection but, that it was pointless because the cost was too great. Several days would pass with Jim pleading to help them for the sake of Frank until the scientist finally relented and told them the cure. It would require a complete blood transfusion from a willing donor, who of course would wind up becoming infected themselves. With a bit of digging they'd find Jim to be a blood match for Frank, and Jim would volunteer for the procedure resulting in Frank being cured and Jim being left strapped to a table as an infected as the movie ended. In the end they decided that this all would not work out, as they'd established that the virus' infection rate had already been established as taking only seconds to fully infiltrate a host and take over, and so the idea of a lengthy blood transfusion working the way they'd wanted it to wouldn't make sense. And so the idea of the Soldiers and the cinema ending we got was made instead, which, ALSO had an alternative ending where Seleena fails to save Jim from his gunshot wound and ends with her and Hannah walking off together into the darkness armed with guns.
I honestly always thought it was english that was garbled by being a radio transmission that I couldn't quite hear clearly due to some hearing damage I have.
I was perplexed too. Jukka Hiltunen, actor who said the line in Finnish, was also playing one of the three activists at the start of the movie. What I heard he apparently is good friends with the director Danny Boyle, so Boyle choose him to play two roles in the movie.
Loved that they added that bit and made it Finnish, just makes it seem much more realistic. NATO quarantines Great Britain but other countries outside NATO like close partners like Finland would likely do some bit to help like they do here. If the guy sounded American I don't think it would give the same impact
Even in George Romero's original Night of the Living Dead it wasn't really about the "zombies." He more wanted to explore and display the evils of man in apocalyptic situations.
@@Skrubb_Lord good zombie movies tend to do that. They just use zombies as a resource to expose the true rot of men. The soldiers in this movie are a great example. The infected can't help it, they're sick, but those men have no excuse.
This is one of only two movies that have ever really, truly scared the ever-loving shit out of me. That scene in the church, where some of the infected sit up and just stare with those empty fish-eyes, is so much creepier than it should be. The atmosphere is just phenomenal.
I absolutely love this movie. The orchestral, choir-like music gives the whole film a dreamy quality. Also, the dad's death still crushes me even after all these years. I always want to jump into the movie and warn him. It's both haunting and interesting how as soon as the good father figure dies he is replaced by a malevolent father figure who gives the girls over to a group of rapists.
I remember the (writer? director?) talking about how they originally wanted to have a cure, which woked via a blood transfusion, but having established that even one drop of infected blood in your eye causes you to turn within seconds, how would it possibly be logical? You'd never be able to completely purge the infected blood.
I don't think Danny Boyle gets the credit he deserves for this movie. This was the movie that reinvented the zombie genre and gave rise to the epidemic of zombie games and movies that we enjoyed in the mid-to-late 2000s. All of that craziness started with this film and nobody ever really acknowledges how amazing of a feat that was, especially given the budget and indie techniques used to film it.
Such a good British movie, I really hope you two get round to watching Dog Soldiers some day. Its superb and deserves a review purely on the lengths the writers went too to get it made, let alone how good it is,
Try to watch 28 weeks later. Good sequel (not as good as the original, but pretty good) and one of the best and most remarkable opening scenes I’ve ever seen
@@YeeLeeHaw The Sequel is not that bad. But They should continue with the Planet of the Apes Trilogy, it's really worth it. Almost every reactor out there did all 3. But they don't even read the YT comments, so...
I forgot this was directed by Danny Boyle. Danny Boyle also directed Sunshine (2007). My favourite space film before Interstellar came along. You guys haven't watched it, have you?
The introduction to zombies that sprint at you like Usain Bolt. I think that with the rage on their faces put zombies on top of most horrifying monsters again.
The song playing while Jim explores the empty streets of London is “East Hastings” by Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Incredibly fitting and apocalyptic track that, despite being almost 20 minutes long, is well worth a listen.
@@pleviousryonrost this is accurate! It’s Hastings Street in Vancouver, BC. It’s essentially like a “skid row” type of deal. Many homeless tents, even some makeshift markets where they try and sell things. I got to visit Vancouver this year in July for the first time in 17 years, and Hastings has actually gotten worse than the first time I was there. My experiences with it have always been just driving through the area as Hastings is still a major street in the city, but let me tell you it really does look apocalyptic in certain areas more than others. During this last visit to Vancouver I was listening to this song while we were driving through the area as I’m a big fan of Godspeed and 28 Days Later. It’s kind of surreal putting the music and the place together.
There was a great scene filmed where they walked through an abandoned makeshift hospital on a train, but it was raining and would have caused a continuity blooper. George and Simone still need to watch Children of Men!
Love that no one notices that the lights are on in the grocery store. Boyle had the camera purposely show the ceiling...and there are *no* light fixtures, so you don't think about it. The scene just wouldn't be as fun and literally bright if they had to use flashlights. Boyle's a genius.
I was in high school when this came out, and I was hypnotized by this movie. The music when they're escaping the military encampment is one of my favorite tracks ever. Also, when the dad has just enough time to realize what's happening and to tell his daughter he loves her---ugghh, still rips my heart out
For anyone pointing out that the beginning of this is similar to TWD, with the main protagonist waking up in a hospital having missed the bulk of the apocalyptic fireworks, remember that 28 Days Later came out a year before even the Walking Dead comic debuted let alone the show.
Although "protagonist wakes up in a hospital having missed the apocalypse" isn't original to 28 Days Later. I'm pretty sure I've seen an interview with Danny Boyle where he acknowledges that the opening was a direct homage to John Wyndham's 'The Day of the Triffids' published in 1951. Whether 'The Walking Dead' was inspired by that or by '28 Days Later' (or the writers came up with it genuinely independently, believing it was their original idea) I can't say.
@@stevedowdy1 Never read the Walking Dead comic, does Rick wake up alone in the hospital after the chaos is over in it like he does in the show? If so, I'd have to say the timing of the comic coming out the year after 28 Days Later would make me think this was the influence.
@@jthomann71 No idea, I've never read the comic or watched the show, I've just seen several comments on reactions to 28 Days Later about the similarities between the two, and accusing one of copying the other. I don't disagree with you about the timing, I'm just a little wary about claiming that WriterA was inspired by WriterB, when WriterB was themselves inspired by WriterC, who could actually have been the source of WriterA's inspiration.
Waking up alone in hospital after an event to find the place deserted goes back to old The Day Of The Triffids film and later TV series, and was even used at in Anderson’s Resident Evil films - think at end of first/beginning of second
28 days later was responisible for the Zombie craze in the 2000s and early 2010s. A certain comic writer by the name Robert Kirkman was inspired to write his own zombie series we now know as "The Walking Dead". TWD even copies the idea of a comatose man waking up after the world is in shambles after the zombie infection.
The comatose man (or at least guy waking up in a hospital not knowing WTH has happened while he was out) was used in John Wyndham's 1951 novel "The Day of the Triffids" (filmed a few times with varying success). One of the best post-apocalyptic stories ever.
@@bjornh4664 Day of the triffids! Loved those wacky sci-fi films as a kid. Original War of the Worlds is miles ahead of the Tom Cruise version. My dad even has the records of the musical by Jeff Wayne. I would love a newer Day of the Triffids, but I doubt anyone would do it properly nowadays. All CGI and annoying human characters to fill quotas. Are those old films still around on the net anywhere?
I think you two hit the nail on the head about what makes this movie so special: it's a great story with great characters first and foremost, and an end-of-the-world "horror movie" second. And all those moments of heart and humor really help you connect with the characters and feel like you're on a wild road-trip with a gang of friends.
Yes they did clear Westminster Bridge for the shoot. I was working at St Thomas hospital at the time (agency staff)....I came out one sunday morning from a nightshift and saw them packing up. The bridge had just been reopened. They had it shut down for a short time so they could get the few shots needed. I knew it was a film production but thats all i knew. It wasnt until the film came out that I realised what was being filmed. This is one of my favorite zombie films. The way they *RUN* after you...and the way that they die off from starvation if they cant feed. Rob (London)
Fail to see how it can be one of your fav zombie movies when there's no zombie's in the movie. That's like me sayin 50 shades of gray is me fav alien movie 🤦♂️
This movie's budget was only 8 million dollars. Danny Boyle couldnt get permits to film in some places so they had to sneak in and get their shots at night. The whole movie is a testament to gritty, guerilla filmmaking. One of my fave movies of all time. The score was done by John Murphy and he worked on Sunshine with Danny Boyle too, another iconic movie.
Love this movie because it changed the "zombie" trope of them being slow moving and dead with them being fast moving and very much alive, just overwhelmed with unspeakable rage to the point where they can't even eat.
@@reptomicus They were definitely dead, reanimated, and they ate a LOT; it was their main goal in order to fight back the agonizing pain of being reanimated. It did, to my knowledge, introduce very smart zombies though. Day Of The Dead did have some zombies starting to come around but not full on speech and coordinated attacks like in RotLD.
George A. Romero's *Night of the Living Dead* popularized the zombie 1968, but - as far as I remember - even _that_ movie had the "people are still worse" element. 28 Day Later reinvigorated the zombie genre with those fast bastards and the instant effects of getting infected.
The scene with the buckets to collect water always stuck with me. I live in the south of the UK where August had a heatwave (35c/95f) most days in a country not built for it. At its height, my village lost its water supply for 5 days (we made national news). There was then a mad scramble for bottled water...amazing how quickly this survival basic staple just vanishes
Were people willing to share? I remember when people stocked up on toiletpaper during the pandemic. If people are already being so egotistical about cleaning their bum, I can only imagine what it must be like when it comes to something essential as water.
The thing about 28 Days Later is that other than George Romero still plugging away occasionally, the zombie genre was very much cult, direct-to-video fodder for the most part with shambling, largely unthreatening corpses. This came out of nowhere introducing the relentless infected hordes charging around full speed everywhere and a couple of years later the Dawn of the Dead remake comes out also with turbo charged attackers; The Walking Dead comic sticks with the traditional zombies but basically rips off 28 Days Later for its opening with the protagonist waking up to find empty streets and the world gone to hell...skip forward a decade and zombie stuff is everywhere, films, shows, books games. I truly believe it's one of the most influential films of the 21st century. It complete revitalised the genre despite, y'know, not actually being a zombie movie per se.
DEFINITELY check out the other Danny Boyle films, like the other people in the comments have recommended. He's one of the best directors out there. Top 10 easily.
@Lion Hunter I love that movie, the plot twist is just bad! I would have loved if they had a chain reaction of bad luck instead of a fool who thought it was his mission in life to end all life on earth!
I really liked the idea of "The Beach." I just wanted to get away without a plan or schedule, of course without the darkness that went with it. It was interesting and looked good. Twenty-two years later, it barely gets much attention. It also had the appeal of being Leonardo DiCaprio's first movie after "Titanic," letting the hype and his unfair reputation as just a pin-up teen idol die down for two years.
28 weeks later is a bit hit or miss i think. I did not like it very much, but I think giving it a try after the first is okay. Maybe you guys will like it. And the sandra bullock one is very good, too. I support this suggestion B-)
When I first saw 28 weeks it scared me more than the original. Going back to it I found it a more uneven film, but it has some really amazing set pieces and I’ll never forget that opening.
28 Weeks later is one of those rare examples of a sequel living up to the original, by being similar, but different. I actually prefer Weeks to Days, even though I adore Days.
Saw this opening day, first showing at noon along with 2 friends. We were the only ones in the theater that day and I think it added to the sense of isolation the film goes for initially. I'll always have a soft spot for this movie!
I see a couple of others have mentioned it -- DOG SOLDIERS -- is a great film. A bit of everything in it, Horror, action, comedy, great cinematography and a fun take on a familiar setting. Not many have seen the movie or reacted to it --- well worth being pioneers.
Zombies are the reanimated dead. These people are just infected with a virus, so still just regular humans just exceedingly angry. Stunted intelligence obviously due to extreme rage (as with regular very angry people) but not mindless corpses, or corpses at all. A terrifyingly frightening virus with deadly results...but not zombies by any definition. Therefore an infection movie, not a zombie one. Last gripe...movies with Vampires walking in the light...that IS traditional Vampire lore. Hollywood loves to make its own rules lol
I’m glad you guys enjoyed this film. It’s one of my faves just because there were so many genuine moments in it. From the grocery store to the road trip together. The music and character development is so well done. It’s beautifully made
28 Days Later is such a great movie! Hannah was always my favorite character and almost entirely because her whole part while being drugged up is amazing!
this is the best case scenario with a rage virus. if they had intelligence, they'd be reavers. also, as an added note: theres no way of knowing this because shes so amazing but Selena is Tia dalma in Pirates
Love this comment for two reasons: 1. Wanted to see if anyone mentioned the actress playing both Selena and Tia Dalma. 2. The observation about the Reavers. I had never thought about it, but it's true. Excellent observation!
In the original ending, Murphy’s character died in the hospital from his gunshot wounds. But Danny Boyle said the film studio demanded he reshoot it to finish on a more positive note. The original ending is on the DVD extras
I remember seeing this film on a flight back to the US from London when it hadn't come out here yet and it blew me away. Two other movies that this one brings to mind that I need to push for you to react to are: "Trainspotting" which was Danny Boyle's film after this one and in my top ten favorite films of all time; and "In Bruges" also with Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes, one of the most hilarious black comedies ever and with some of the greatest quotable lines. Finally, I see a guitar back behind Simone, so ... when are we going to get musical intros? Maybe little songs about the film we're about to see you react to and George can beat box (but not hot box) along. I think it's a splendid idea!
In Bruges was a Martin McDonagh film. Danny Boyle directed Sunshine, Yesterday, 127 hours, slumdog millionaire, the beach, a life less ordinary, Steve jobs and the 2012 Olympic opening ceremony (and a few more)
3:30 Yep, Danny Boyle got permission to film in Central London at 3-4 in the morning over a couple of weeks. One of the things that made the shooting schedule possible is that this is one of the first Hollywood movies to be shot on digital rather than film stock.
The rain in England joke just slayed me lol we've just come out of a 4 month heatwave averaging 35 degrees celsius/95 degrees fahrenheit, the hottest days at 39/102. We only just saw rain for the first time a couple of weeks ago and most people loved it haha
They're not really zombies. It's a viral infection that results in uncontrollable rage. Frank doesn't die when he's infected. He dies when he's shot, just like any living thing would. Malor doesn't need to decompose to be non-threatening, he needs to literally starve to death. ETA: Another early 2000's horror film that was also shot digitally, and has the same look as, this is Session 9. It's also... well, it's something. Would make a good reaction.
I agree re the Infected not being zombies, but trust me - you're fighting a losing battle on that score. When Alex Garland was working on the script for this film he was quoted in SFX magazine as saying that he was working on a script for a zombie movie that was 'radical' because 'there are no zombies in it'. Fairly clear, I think - but people just prefer to call them zombies cos it's easier than doing anything else. Irritating, even after twenty years...
@@petersvillage7447 I don't mind people *calling* them zombies. It's an OK short-hand. But there seemed to be some confusion as to what rules applied and what the implications of the infection were.
Fun fact: the music playing while he wanders around deserted London doesn't appear in the released soundtrack. The band that recorded it, "Godspeed You! Black Emperor", opted out. The composition is from their album "F#A# Infinity". Check it out
John Murphy's Out of the house in a heartbeat song from this movie has been used so many times in other media. I remember I used to use it on my ipod when I got to the end of my jog as I lived on a steep hill and wanted to sprint to my house and that song is an amazing motivator
"Return of the Living Dead" is the only Zombie film I can think of, at the moment, that is more about the monsters than a commentary on humanity. It's the film that introduces Zombies eating brains. But even then, as a camp 80's horror comedy, it still has plenty of social commentary mixed in. It's a great watch if you can find it. I highly recommend it.
They added the music in during the sequence when Jim was king through London alone because before when it had no music at all for such a long stretch some people nearly had heart attacks when he looked into the car and set off the car alarm.
I can still remember my brother throwing my jacket at me saying, "Movies. Let's go." and he took me to see this, the only thing he knew was that Danny Boyle directed it and he loved Trainspotting and The Beach. Fast forward a couple of hours and we were blow the hell away. The only thing I can remember differently was when Jim is walking through the city square and the car alarm goes off, there was no music. It didn't start until after the alarm went off; that scared the bejesus out of everybody in the theater. I hope you two can get into more of Boyle's works. Sunshine is on my top ten favorites and is a movie I can always watch whenever.
I remember very little about The Beach (I saw it probably when I was way too young, & purely because of/for Leo), but I remember not really understanding a bit of it & thinking it was the weirdest movie I’d ever seen.
This movie was a huge breath of fresh air for the stale zombie genre, i don't know if it was the first but it definitely popularized the idea of the "fast zombie", and it directly inspired so many games and movies going forward.
I watched this on the day it came out here in the UK back in 2002, I was 11 at the time. It was the first time I was really, truly SCARED watching a film. I grew up watching loads of horror and I'm a huge zombie guy but this movie absolutely just scared the shit out of me when I first saw it. It's so gritty, the camera quality really helps it feel real, the pure anger of the infected to just brutally kill whatever they can get their hands on, all of it is just SO well done. Real proud of my country for this and Shaun of the Dead as far as contributing to zombie movies goes.
@@GarmrsBarking a technicality, at best. They're infected, can't be reasoned with and go out of their way to kill humans, they're zombies in all but name. Technically what Romero created aren't zombies by their original definition either, because they weren't a product of voodoo. At this point in time, Zombie is more of an all encompassing term than a specific one.
@@omegashinra7672 your answer doesn't come up in the thread, but I can see it on my phone so I'll answer anyway... 1. technically, the infected have very little in common with zombies... they are not dead that have come back to life... they do not eat their victims... they are not brainless... they can be killed just as easily as normal humans... they do not infect people by biting them, etc. .. the only things they have in common with zomies is being infected with a virus and attacking people on sight.... 2. this is a moot argument when we talk about tropes about zombies in pop culture it has nothing to do with the religious practices of a minor religion in real life... just like angels in the movies don't look anywhere near what they do in the bible... 3. no not really... there are definitely a wide variety of different zombies out there but they have one thing in common... they are the dead reanimate... e.g. The cannibal genre is not considered to be part of the zombie genre even though they are quite similar.... ok now with all that out of the way... here comes the best argument that they are not zombies... the authors of the manuscript say they are not zombies... and if you follow what happens at the beginning of the film, they show that it is a virus that causes rage... so it is just rabies for humans and not an undead virus...
I’m impressed with Simone, she picked up the flaw with the virus, re: speed of infection, where it comes to intercontinental spread. Only the UK was affected here…… 😉
It's interesting they heard it had reached Paris and New York before radio went dark. Where did that come from, if it didn't actually reach those places? It seems like it really would be near impossible to contain a public outbreak. And why include that rumor in the movie, if it seems to end with international rescue efforts reaching the UK, so the world is alright? Leftover from a different draft? Just a scary line? (Yeah infecting a continent sounds even bleaker than a country.) Given it's possible to capture the infected, some fool COULD'VE transported one of them over the Channel...
So, if you check out the special features on the DVD, you'll see that there's an entire alternate second half of the film, wherein the group doesn't end up at the military base, but gets the 'father' to a hospital wherein there's one paranoid guy who does have a 'cure', but won't leave the room he's in for fear of infection. I won't spoil the ending to it, but it's a tremendous bit of writing. I highly suggest checking it out.
Another wonderful thing is that you don't need a million CGI zombies, just a few and a great feeling of loneliness because that's what the essence of zombie movies is all about.
And so much of it being shot with low-end digital video cameras that make you feel like you're just watching real events someone just happened to capture.
The scene with the father telling his daughter I love you sticks with me. Great movie but that one I remember clearly. Its so quick, simple, but damn was it both sad and deep.
Back in the 80s when I was child, I remember my dad (maybe mom too) watching on TV a movie or show that I will never find again given the years and the hazy memories and the recollections of the mind which tends to fill in blanks with bits imaginary or not....it was one of hundreds of zombie movies or shows. I remember a man and woman onscreen being chased by infected people/zombies in white, running towards some type of craft, maybe a helicopter, trying to get away in the climax of the story. I found that very disturbing. 28 Days Later gave me that "nostalgic" feeling, that memory, that recollection of dread in the form of media, and I absolutely loved the movie and went to see it maybe three times in theaters back then, my introduction to some great British actors. Definitely not a run of the mill "zombie" movie, especially with the chasing and running component of it. Absolutely watch 28 Weeks Later for even more emphasis on relentless survival horror. I will echo will I am sure others have said already somewhere in the comments, watch the alternate ending to this movie. Honestly I think I prefer it because of how it balances the film, but I also appreciate this ending they went with originally.
So glad you guys liked this one, always been one of my favourites! That scene of empty London with the amazing apocalypse song playing (East Hastings) just perfectly sets the atmosphere. The song was actually the directors inspiration for the whole film basically.
I saw some of the special features of the film and the filmmakers were talking about the rage virus. Saying they aren't dead or mindless. They remember everything, they are just so angry that it doesn't matter. They described the state as "Imagine the angriest you have ever been in your life, how violent you were or how close to violence you were, how unreasonable you were, how any little thing could set you off and make it worse. Then imagine that rage being 10 fold, 100 fold, 10,000 fold and that being your default state, made even worse when you saw people. They are simply too enraged to communicate, to really do anything but lash out. What made it worse is that since they retain all memory, the people they knew triggered more anger because they had more memories associated with them with that set them apart from some stranger. So they would likely prioritize loved ones as object of their rage.
At 24:28 I think the shot of Hannah running in front of the camera and then down the dark hallway is one of the most beautiful shots I’ve ever seen in film
If I remember correctly they shot it super early on a Sunday morning and they only had a short window of time to get the shots. Even knowing that, and if you've ever been to London, it seems impossible to get no cars anywhere.
@@jksgameshelf3378 Even then they had to use CGI to paint out cars visible in the distance, and the production hired some people from a modelling agency to act as 'pickets' - on a Sunday morning there were lots of frazzled people coming home from clubbing the night before... So they deployed these attractive people from the agency to intercept them and stop them walking into the shoot.
The scary thing is...they are not zombies but are alive. Which is why they wanted to know how long it would take for one to starve to death because the body would stop working since they still need to eat to keep going.
This movie single-handedly resurrected the zombie genre (pun intended). incidentally; instant infection would be less likely to spread rapidly than a disease that has a longer gestation period (like covid) - you cant fight or avoid what you arent aware of.
Well, but it serves the story, because when the infected turn in less than 30 seconds it will make it a lot faster and therefore more realistic to infect the entire British isle in 28 days. But it would have a hard time to pass barriers like the ocean.
I have never thought of this as a zombie film. More of an outbreak movie. The people are infected with a Rage Virus and are not truly dead. It was Zach Snyder that took that idea and ran with it, pun intended , buy making his zombies fast in his remake of "Dawn of the Dead".
I agree I don't think of this as a Zombie film more like Romero's Crazies. I like Snyder's Dawn of the Dead although I think the original is better, but I feel Return of the Living Dead introduced the idea of fast Zombies first. Honestly the Return Zombies are the most freighting to me fast and are practically indestructible.
The Opening of the movie was on What culture Horror Presents Top 10 Dumbest Decisions In Horror Film History. Also the scene where Cillian Murphy bashes the priest just as he is about to attack him, was on Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments.
There’s actually another zombie show that followed the same boneheaded decision. I was done with that show at episode 1. Thankfully it was cancelled after the first season.
Check out the original Night of the Living Dead (1968). The film that popularized the zombie genre. Not only is it a classic, but it's in the public domain. You could feature the entire film on your channel and not worry about copyright strikes.
Danny Boyle is a bit of a genius. The follow up 28months later is worth a watch too. 28 days later is one of my fav zombie films ever and in small part because it's kind of different to any other zombie films ☺️
Dawn of the Dead (2004, remake) especially, and-but to a lesser extent World War Z, and-but an even lesser extent, I Am Legend, are similar to this movie
The scene when they're all at the table, they were slamming the table and yelling before the food was brought out, and the infected react to noise pretty quickly.
5:00 _"why would you blow up a gas station?"_ Gasoline only lasts 6 month maximum before it loses enough Chemical Potential Energy to no longer be used as fuel in an internal combustion engine; Diesel fuel lasts about 12 months apparently. There are additives that can aid this longevity but work best for diesel fuel and I'm not sure what they are. Alternatively, diesel engines can run on all sorts of fuel - even vegetable oil mixed with certain additives. 1 month after this, I expect there's plenty of fuel around for what little survivors there are, and the threat of the zombies is a greater concern. I'd rather have 0 zombies, and learn to ride a horse (until we can develop fuel again. Plenty of books around).
I do not remember of it was in the original version of the movie (there are several different ones) but Selena talks about being a med student on her way to being a doctor (or something of that nature) before the virus hit. Which is why she has all the drugs on her and originally helps Jim get going after waking up from a coma. Which is also how they were able to save him from the gunshot wound. There is a longer cut version that shows more of them rushing Jim to a hospital and Selena trying to save him. One version is of him dying, which is the last short scene, and then the version of saving him and them being rescued.
Which was written first - 28 Days Later or The Walking Dead comics? Curious which one inspired the other with that "wake from a coma in the apocalypse" opening.
28 Days later was filmed in 2001, probably written at least a year or two before that, and was released in 2002. The Walking Dead came out after, in 2003. Robert Kirkman says he only saw the movie after writing the script to issue 1 of The walking dead. But the other poster is probably right. They were probably both inspired by the beginning of the book, Day Of The Triffids.
A interest fact is that movie have a second final, that is only in the theaters, or special editions, where they live the guy to a hospital, and try to save him from the shoot, and he past in there and then their left him in the hospital and leave in that moment
Frank, the chipper dad, is played by Brendan Gleeson, aka Mad-Eye Moody from Harry Potter 4-7 It's funny he pops up when you're not expecting him in a film. Jim is played by Cillian Murphy who also played Dr Johnathan Crane aka Scarecrow from Batman Begins and the Dark Knight
This movie reminds me of the quote from The Walking Dead; “Fight the dead, fear the living.” Because the living are capable of far worse than the “zombies/walkers/infected”. Great reaction as always. Love to you both!
I definitely hope you move onto other Danny Boyle movies, namely Sunshine, Trainspotting, the sequel T2 Trainspotting, and Slumdog Millionaire. If you're willing to get a bit obscure, as well, the underrated A Life Less Ordinary.
28 Days success expanded our understanding of zombies. As Simone pointed out at the beginning, her image of a zombie was the slow dumb kind, but after this movie was released the pop culture knowledge was updated, there are (George) Romero Zombies, those are the usual ones, and 28 Days Zombies which is the ones you see in the movie, fast moving, relentless machines with different attacks. In the movie the 'zombies' are not undead, there are basically rabies patients taking to an extreme. Rabies is the closest thing we have to a real life zombie (in humans, there are plenty of examples for other animals). This portrayal went to heavily influence media, for example the zombies in the famous game Left 4 Dead are pretty much 28 Days Zombies, and plenty of other videogames took cues from the movie as well.
28 days later is like a deconstruction of the zombie trope while at the same time somewhat parodying it. Danny Boyle really hated zombie films, especially at the time… Please do 28 weeks later, Road trip (2000) and then ghosts of mars if you can :)
They got about an hour each day for the London scenes and yes they were there from 3-4 in the morning. Should also note this isn't a zombie film as they aren't technically dead since they can starve to death.
First time I saw the chanting before dinner I thought 'oh boy, these are cannibals aren't they?'. Either way, excellent movie, I like how it has enough heavy moments to keep it from becoming too campy but enough funny moments to keep it from becoming too gritty. It's a nice balance.
29:27 yes, there are, I'am Legend(Will Smith), The Omega Man(Charlton Heston) and The Last Man on Earth(with the legend, the great Vincent Price). Fun fact, the three are based on the same book.
The vampires burning in sunlight actually comes from movies. Before Nosferatu started the trend in 1922 Vampires of mythology and Bram Stoker's book, Vampires could walk in daylight.
Among the zombie-film histories, this started out so promising with the unique "How it started-!" footage then it deteriorates into the standard "Last Man On Earth/I Am Legend" or "Day Of Triffids" wanderings. NO BLADE OF GRASS is another tale of flight-from-the-city to some magical farm 'up north', but without Olympic-calibre sprinter zombies.
26:34 The alternate ending has Jim die in a hospital they made their way to while they're trying to save him. Kind of bringing him full circle to where he woke up. I guess they figured the movie had been dark enough already, so they went with the happier ending.
the thing i love about this movie is that the banter between the squaddies is so authentic. if you liked this then check out Dog Soldiers. another british movie about the british army and werewolves. some damn funny banter between characters
This movie is actually pretty much an unofficial adaptation of the 1951 John Wyndham novel The Day of the Triffids, just with the general premise being different. In that story, the monsters are not zombies but the titular triffids, giant ambulatory plants capable of stinging and consuming people, which become a threat after most humans are blinded after witnessing an unexplained event of flashing lights in the sky (which the central characters coincidentally missed for various reasons). The setup in the movie is obviously pretty different, but the setting, character dynamics and plot progression is pretty much exactly the same (man waking up in a hospital, exploring the ruined London, traveling around with a woman and girl he meets, escaping a militaristic villain at the end by turning the monsters against him). The movie has some more tragic alternate endings, but the more optimistic theatrical one also echoes the ending in Triffids, where the group of survivors escape to the Isle of Wight and meet up with another group the protagonist had formerly met in London, and manage to work together to keep the island free of triffids and build up a new society there.
I wonder if the premise of the novel also influenced the development of "Bird Box". That's what I thought of from your description, though admittedly I misunderstood a sentence at first as meaning that the triffid victims would later become dangerous/violent.
I’m glad you guys watched this movie. It’s one of favorites to watch over and over. Now when it’s comes to 28 weeks later, I love that movie! I can’t wait for you guys to react to it…
11:35 "...oh, but if they're all running one direction..." When he said that I started laughing hard as my brain came up with the joke: "...if they're all running N'sync..."
12:09 I thought the implication was that these zombies don't like sunlight. Or it paralyzes them of something. Mark said earlier to only travel in daylight.
The scene of Selena choosing to give Hannah the Valium was a great subtle character arc coming to its conclusion. Selena has been a primarily self-serving person up until she meets Hannah and her dad. Then she grows to care for Hannah, and now as the primary protector of her, she chooses to give HER the Valium instead of just sneakily taking it for herself. They're about to be gang r*ped and Selena chooses to dope up Hannah so she won't care and feel pain, instead of choosing to protect herself, as she has up until that point. It's small and subtle, since Selena isn't the main character but I always appreciate that little moment.
she lost her humanity in the chaos and regained it through relationships
Liked her character arc and how she became softer once she met Hannah and Frank and realised that “not everything is fucked”. This is seen at the end when she hesitated in killing Jim even though she thought he was infected.
According to the writers of the film, the infected are not considered to be "Zombies" in the traditional sense. They are not undead, moreso they are simply affected by a brain-type virus akin to rabies.
Traditional zombies tend to be a lot slower and they aren't dangerous individually just in big packs
@XyZ313 I have been a fan of zombie movies for a long time. A personal favorite is watching Rifftraxx doing Night of the Living Dead, but the original Dawn of the Dead is probably my all-time favorite. A good zombie movie actually has very little to do with the zombies and more to do with the human element and how they adapt to the situation. Train to Busan is probably the best zombie movie to have come out in a long while, and I am so sad people feel it needs to be remade for a western audience. It's perfect as is. But given 28 Days deals with similar themes in terms of the human side of things yes it's very much still in line with being a zombie movie overall.
A brain-type virus akin to rabies...or TDS
The 1st time I saw this movie, I thought the same thing. To me these things, at least when they are 1st infected or more like reavers from serenity. The virus 1st kills the humanity in a person, turns them into an insane, raging animal, then as time goes on, it kills then and makes them into zombies.
@@wolf9walker Well I mean zombie in a traditional sense is someone who is not exactly alive, Even in the voodoo origins of it a zombie is someone whose soul has been abducted by the voodoo caster leaving them a mindless slave. In cinema however zombies have unilaterally become something that was once dead, but is now alive again and often lacking its prior mental faculties to be driven soley on instinct. The creators of 28 Days have explicitly said that the infected in their film are in fact not zombies, though they do draw parallels.
The original script actually had en entirely different third act wherein after Frank was infected at the blockade, Jim would have been able to knock him out and bind him. The group would then go on to find a medical facility under lockdown wherein a single scientist remained. He would tell them that he'd indeed found the cure for infection but, that it was pointless because the cost was too great. Several days would pass with Jim pleading to help them for the sake of Frank until the scientist finally relented and told them the cure. It would require a complete blood transfusion from a willing donor, who of course would wind up becoming infected themselves. With a bit of digging they'd find Jim to be a blood match for Frank, and Jim would volunteer for the procedure resulting in Frank being cured and Jim being left strapped to a table as an infected as the movie ended.
In the end they decided that this all would not work out, as they'd established that the virus' infection rate had already been established as taking only seconds to fully infiltrate a host and take over, and so the idea of a lengthy blood transfusion working the way they'd wanted it to wouldn't make sense. And so the idea of the Soldiers and the cinema ending we got was made instead, which, ALSO had an alternative ending where Seleena fails to save Jim from his gunshot wound and ends with her and Hannah walking off together into the darkness armed with guns.
It's always a huge whiplash to hear Finnish in non-finnish movies
(26:57) "Lähetätkö helikopterin?" = "Could you send a helicopter?"
I honestly always thought it was english that was garbled by being a radio transmission that I couldn't quite hear clearly due to some hearing damage I have.
I was perplexed too. Jukka Hiltunen, actor who said the line in Finnish, was also playing one of the three activists at the start of the movie. What I heard he apparently is good friends with the director Danny Boyle, so Boyle choose him to play two roles in the movie.
Loved that they added that bit and made it Finnish, just makes it seem much more realistic. NATO quarantines Great Britain but other countries outside NATO like close partners like Finland would likely do some bit to help like they do here. If the guy sounded American I don't think it would give the same impact
I like hearing about George not liking Twilight, it really brings out the Canadian in Simone's voice, lol.
6.37 if people want to find the clip quickly :)
I think the glitter skin ruined his secret disco ball purchase plan. ✨
When George was talking about vampires standing in daylight I was thinking "But even Dracula could do that!" in both the novel and the 1992 movie. =/
@@durge12 by the way if you do a : instead of a . then you can click on the time and it immediately goes to that part of the video….
Sounds like George needs to see Near Dark to flush those Twilight vamps out of his brain.
Danny Boyle's "Sunshine" I believe is the most underrated Scifi movie ever....love it
Yes, one of the most poignant scifi movie ever made, an instant cult for sure.
@@stefanodoro8817 if the trailer doesn't hook you in.....then u probably need a pulse check. 🤯
@@613lcd 😄😄😄👍👍👍
i think its a great audio/visual experience, but its not a great movie. the story is kind of meh and gets a bit too weird at the end.
@@necrionos that's fair. It's like a perfect gymnastics routine but stumbles a bit at the end
Even in George Romero's original Night of the Living Dead it wasn't really about the "zombies." He more wanted to explore and display the evils of man in apocalyptic situations.
@@Skrubb_Lord good zombie movies tend to do that. They just use zombies as a resource to expose the true rot of men.
The soldiers in this movie are a great example. The infected can't help it, they're sick, but those men have no excuse.
This is one of only two movies that have ever really, truly scared the ever-loving shit out of me. That scene in the church, where some of the infected sit up and just stare with those empty fish-eyes, is so much creepier than it should be. The atmosphere is just phenomenal.
Definitely one of the best scenes
I absolutely love this movie. The orchestral, choir-like music gives the whole film a dreamy quality.
Also, the dad's death still crushes me even after all these years. I always want to jump into the movie and warn him.
It's both haunting and interesting how as soon as the good father figure dies he is replaced by a malevolent father figure who gives the girls over to a group of rapists.
I remember the (writer? director?) talking about how they originally wanted to have a cure, which woked via a blood transfusion, but having established that even one drop of infected blood in your eye causes you to turn within seconds, how would it possibly be logical? You'd never be able to completely purge the infected blood.
I watched the movie and was confused, because one of the tracks (In the House - In a Heartbeat) was later used in two Metro trailers.
They took them from him ya dunce
I don't think Danny Boyle gets the credit he deserves for this movie. This was the movie that reinvented the zombie genre and gave rise to the epidemic of zombie games and movies that we enjoyed in the mid-to-late 2000s. All of that craziness started with this film and nobody ever really acknowledges how amazing of a feat that was, especially given the budget and indie techniques used to film it.
Such a good British movie, I really hope you two get round to watching Dog Soldiers some day. Its superb and deserves a review purely on the lengths the writers went too to get it made, let alone how good it is,
Yes Dog Soldiers!!!
Definitely need to watch Dog Soldiers..
Yes! Love Dog Soldiers!
Dog Soldiers & The Descent!
Try to watch 28 weeks later. Good sequel (not as good as the original, but pretty good) and one of the best and most remarkable opening scenes I’ve ever seen
Welcome to City 17
made me think of Half Life 2 ep 2's opening
I once had a dream that I was in '28 months later' and was making friends with zombies on fair rides🤷♀.
Every movie has plot holes and errors. Doesn’t take away from good storytelling or cinematography.
@@YeeLeeHaw The Sequel is not that bad. But They should continue with the Planet of the Apes Trilogy, it's really worth it. Almost every reactor out there did all 3.
But they don't even read the YT comments, so...
They almost don't do Sequel reactions at all ( Only T2 and Deadpool 2 as i can remember)
And they don't read the YT comments.
I forgot this was directed by Danny Boyle.
Danny Boyle also directed Sunshine (2007). My favourite space film before Interstellar came along.
You guys haven't watched it, have you?
Sunshine is amazing
The introduction to zombies that sprint at you like Usain Bolt. I think that with the rage on their faces put zombies on top of most horrifying monsters again.
They could be smiling and still be terrifying. Fast zombies is not good
Train to Busan , has better zombies .
They are not dead, therefore they are not zombies.
@@brettharlow7010 I was about to comment this, 28 days is not a zombie film, the infected are not undead or zombies.
Fast zombies = Terror. Slow zombies = Horror.
The song playing while Jim explores the empty streets of London is “East Hastings” by Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Incredibly fitting and apocalyptic track that, despite being almost 20 minutes long, is well worth a listen.
Godspeed is so great.
I may be wrong but I think I remember reading that east hastings was inspired by a big homeless area somewhere in Canada that looked apocalyptic 🤔
@@pleviousryonrost this is accurate! It’s Hastings Street in Vancouver, BC. It’s essentially like a “skid row” type of deal. Many homeless tents, even some makeshift markets where they try and sell things. I got to visit Vancouver this year in July for the first time in 17 years, and Hastings has actually gotten worse than the first time I was there. My experiences with it have always been just driving through the area as Hastings is still a major street in the city, but let me tell you it really does look apocalyptic in certain areas more than others. During this last visit to Vancouver I was listening to this song while we were driving through the area as I’m a big fan of Godspeed and 28 Days Later. It’s kind of surreal putting the music and the place together.
There was a great scene filmed where they walked through an abandoned makeshift hospital on a train, but it was raining and would have caused a continuity blooper. George and Simone still need to watch Children of Men!
"Children of Men" - awesome movie!!!!!!!!!!!1
@@steveswafen2528 ua-cam.com/video/lEi-qTJLQOw/v-deo.html
This is a link to some deleted scenes.
Children of Men is fantastic!!!
Yes! Gets better with every rewatch.
Yes, Children of Men is excellent
Love that no one notices that the lights are on in the grocery store. Boyle had the camera purposely show the ceiling...and there are *no* light fixtures, so you don't think about it. The scene just wouldn't be as fun and literally bright if they had to use flashlights. Boyle's a genius.
I was in high school when this came out, and I was hypnotized by this movie. The music when they're escaping the military encampment is one of my favorite tracks ever. Also, when the dad has just enough time to realize what's happening and to tell his daughter he loves her---ugghh, still rips my heart out
"In the House in a Heartbeat". I had it on repeat a few times in high school. _Kick-Ass_ used it as well as a bunch of trailers. Iconic music!
For anyone pointing out that the beginning of this is similar to TWD, with the main protagonist waking up in a hospital having missed the bulk of the apocalyptic fireworks, remember that 28 Days Later came out a year before even the Walking Dead comic debuted let alone the show.
Although "protagonist wakes up in a hospital having missed the apocalypse" isn't original to 28 Days Later. I'm pretty sure I've seen an interview with Danny Boyle where he acknowledges that the opening was a direct homage to John Wyndham's 'The Day of the Triffids' published in 1951. Whether 'The Walking Dead' was inspired by that or by '28 Days Later' (or the writers came up with it genuinely independently, believing it was their original idea) I can't say.
@@stevedowdy1 Never read the Walking Dead comic, does Rick wake up alone in the hospital after the chaos is over in it like he does in the show? If so, I'd have to say the timing of the comic coming out the year after 28 Days Later would make me think this was the influence.
@@jthomann71 No idea, I've never read the comic or watched the show, I've just seen several comments on reactions to 28 Days Later about the similarities between the two, and accusing one of copying the other. I don't disagree with you about the timing, I'm just a little wary about claiming that WriterA was inspired by WriterB, when WriterB was themselves inspired by WriterC, who could actually have been the source of WriterA's inspiration.
Yes
Waking up alone in hospital after an event to find the place deserted goes back to old The Day Of The Triffids film and later TV series, and was even used at in Anderson’s Resident Evil films - think at end of first/beginning of second
The entire scene inside the tunnel is still one of my FAVORITE moments in horror…gets my heart racing every time
28 days later was responisible for the Zombie craze in the 2000s and early 2010s. A certain comic writer by the name Robert Kirkman was inspired to write his own zombie series we now know as "The Walking Dead".
TWD even copies the idea of a comatose man waking up after the world is in shambles after the zombie infection.
The comatose man (or at least guy waking up in a hospital not knowing WTH has happened while he was out) was used in John Wyndham's 1951 novel "The Day of the Triffids" (filmed a few times with varying success). One of the best post-apocalyptic stories ever.
@@bjornh4664 Cooool.
@@bjornh4664 I've always considered 28 Days to be an unofficial adaptation of Day of the Triffids
@@bjornh4664 Day of the triffids! Loved those wacky sci-fi films as a kid. Original War of the Worlds is miles ahead of the Tom Cruise version. My dad even has the records of the musical by Jeff Wayne. I would love a newer Day of the Triffids, but I doubt anyone would do it properly nowadays. All CGI and annoying human characters to fill quotas.
Are those old films still around on the net anywhere?
@@RaptorShadow Hmm... There are quite a few similarities now when you mention it...
I think you two hit the nail on the head about what makes this movie so special: it's a great story with great characters first and foremost, and an end-of-the-world "horror movie" second. And all those moments of heart and humor really help you connect with the characters and feel like you're on a wild road-trip with a gang of friends.
Yes they did clear Westminster Bridge for the shoot. I was working at St Thomas hospital at the time (agency staff)....I came out one sunday morning from a nightshift and saw them packing up. The bridge had just been reopened. They had it shut down for a short time so they could get the few shots needed. I knew it was a film production but thats all i knew. It wasnt until the film came out that I realised what was being filmed. This is one of my favorite zombie films. The way they *RUN* after you...and the way that they die off from starvation if they cant feed. Rob (London)
Fail to see how it can be one of your fav zombie movies when there's no zombie's in the movie. That's like me sayin 50 shades of gray is me fav alien movie 🤦♂️
They also hired some pretty girls to stand on the side of hte road in bikinis to slow the traffic down
This movie's budget was only 8 million dollars. Danny Boyle couldnt get permits to film in some places so they had to sneak in and get their shots at night. The whole movie is a testament to gritty, guerilla filmmaking. One of my fave movies of all time. The score was done by John Murphy and he worked on Sunshine with Danny Boyle too, another iconic movie.
Love this movie because it changed the "zombie" trope of them being slow moving and dead with them being fast moving and very much alive, just overwhelmed with unspeakable rage to the point where they can't even eat.
Return of the Living Dead already did that IN THE 80's.
@@reptomicus They were definitely dead, reanimated, and they ate a LOT; it was their main goal in order to fight back the agonizing pain of being reanimated. It did, to my knowledge, introduce very smart zombies though. Day Of The Dead did have some zombies starting to come around but not full on speech and coordinated attacks like in RotLD.
@@worsel555 Return of the Living Dead also had fast zombies that run
George A. Romero's *Night of the Living Dead*
popularized the zombie 1968, but - as far as I remember - even _that_ movie had the "people are still worse" element.
28 Day Later reinvigorated the zombie genre with those fast bastards and the instant effects of getting infected.
I love how brief your Patrion promotions are. It makes me want to spend the time to look into it just for gratitude's sake
The scene with the buckets to collect water always stuck with me. I live in the south of the UK where August had a heatwave (35c/95f) most days in a country not built for it. At its height, my village lost its water supply for 5 days (we made national news). There was then a mad scramble for bottled water...amazing how quickly this survival basic staple just vanishes
Were people willing to share? I remember when people stocked up on toiletpaper during the pandemic. If people are already being so egotistical about cleaning their bum, I can only imagine what it must be like when it comes to something essential as water.
The thing about 28 Days Later is that other than George Romero still plugging away occasionally, the zombie genre was very much cult, direct-to-video fodder for the most part with shambling, largely unthreatening corpses. This came out of nowhere introducing the relentless infected hordes charging around full speed everywhere and a couple of years later the Dawn of the Dead remake comes out also with turbo charged attackers; The Walking Dead comic sticks with the traditional zombies but basically rips off 28 Days Later for its opening with the protagonist waking up to find empty streets and the world gone to hell...skip forward a decade and zombie stuff is everywhere, films, shows, books games.
I truly believe it's one of the most influential films of the 21st century. It complete revitalised the genre despite, y'know, not actually being a zombie movie per se.
DEFINITELY check out the other Danny Boyle films, like the other people in the comments have recommended. He's one of the best directors out there. Top 10 easily.
Shallow Grave. Immensely underrated
@Lion Hunter I love that movie, the plot twist is just bad! I would have loved if they had a chain reaction of bad luck instead of a fool who thought it was his mission in life to end all life on earth!
I really liked the idea of "The Beach." I just wanted to get away without a plan or schedule, of course without the darkness that went with it. It was interesting and looked good. Twenty-two years later, it barely gets much attention. It also had the appeal of being Leonardo DiCaprio's first movie after "Titanic," letting the hype and his unfair reputation as just a pin-up teen idol die down for two years.
28 Weeks Later… Try it. 😉 But the Sound Design and Soundtrack for both films is incredible and awesome.
Best movie start ever. The chase at the beginning. My favorite.
Also a pre-famed Jeremy Renner in it as well.
28 weeks later is a bit hit or miss i think. I did not like it very much, but I think giving it a try after the first is okay. Maybe you guys will like it.
And the sandra bullock one is very good, too. I support this suggestion B-)
When I first saw 28 weeks it scared me more than the original. Going back to it I found it a more uneven film, but it has some really amazing set pieces and I’ll never forget that opening.
28 Weeks later is one of those rare examples of a sequel living up to the original, by being similar, but different. I actually prefer Weeks to Days, even though I adore Days.
Saw this opening day, first showing at noon along with 2 friends. We were the only ones in the theater that day and I think it added to the sense of isolation the film goes for initially. I'll always have a soft spot for this movie!
I see a couple of others have mentioned it -- DOG SOLDIERS -- is a great film. A bit of everything in it, Horror, action, comedy, great cinematography and a fun take on a familiar setting. Not many have seen the movie or reacted to it --- well worth being pioneers.
This movie was my introduction to the concept of "fast zombies". Terrifying stuff.
Zombies are the reanimated dead. These people are just infected with a virus, so still just regular humans just exceedingly angry. Stunted intelligence obviously due to extreme rage (as with regular very angry people) but not mindless corpses, or corpses at all. A terrifyingly frightening virus with deadly results...but not zombies by any definition. Therefore an infection movie, not a zombie one. Last gripe...movies with Vampires walking in the light...that IS traditional Vampire lore. Hollywood loves to make its own rules lol
If I remember, this was the movie that made it famous, if not being the first to use fast zombies.
Walking dead zombies arent even scary because they are so slow. You can just walk around them. Fast zombies are terrifying
If we had a zombie apocalypse with lethargic,and lazy zombies, we'd be fine.
Fast and Furious
I’m glad you guys enjoyed this film. It’s one of my faves just because there were so many genuine moments in it. From the grocery store to the road trip together. The music and character development is so well done. It’s beautifully made
28 Days Later is such a great movie! Hannah was always my favorite character and almost entirely because her whole part while being drugged up is amazing!
this is the best case scenario with a rage virus. if they had intelligence, they'd be reavers.
also, as an added note: theres no way of knowing this because shes so amazing but Selena is Tia dalma in Pirates
Love this comment for two reasons: 1. Wanted to see if anyone mentioned the actress playing both Selena and Tia Dalma. 2. The observation about the Reavers. I had never thought about it, but it's true. Excellent observation!
In the original ending, Murphy’s character died in the hospital from his gunshot wounds. But Danny Boyle said the film studio demanded he reshoot it to finish on a more positive note. The original ending is on the DVD extras
I remember seeing this film on a flight back to the US from London when it hadn't come out here yet and it blew me away. Two other movies that this one brings to mind that I need to push for you to react to are: "Trainspotting" which was Danny Boyle's film after this one and in my top ten favorite films of all time; and "In Bruges" also with Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes, one of the most hilarious black comedies ever and with some of the greatest quotable lines. Finally, I see a guitar back behind Simone, so ... when are we going to get musical intros? Maybe little songs about the film we're about to see you react to and George can beat box (but not hot box) along. I think it's a splendid idea!
Trainspotting was before 28 days
In Bruges is a classic.
I never knew In brugues is from boyle. that is great, too.
In Bruges was a Martin McDonagh film. Danny Boyle directed Sunshine, Yesterday, 127 hours, slumdog millionaire, the beach, a life less ordinary, Steve jobs and the 2012 Olympic opening ceremony (and a few more)
Trainspotting👍👍👍🤟😎
26:57 OMG finnish spoken in movie "Will you send chopper?" (Lähetätkö helikopterin)
Wow!! Cillian Murphy was so young in this. It's strange having just seen him in peaky blinders.
3:30 Yep, Danny Boyle got permission to film in Central London at 3-4 in the morning over a couple of weeks. One of the things that made the shooting schedule possible is that this is one of the first Hollywood movies to be shot on digital rather than film stock.
It's not a Hollywood movie, is it? It was produced entirely in the UK, far as I'm aware.
@@JamesWhoMakesGames Produced in the UK yes, but still made with Hollywood money as far as I understand.
@@JamesWhoMakesGames it’s means produced by a studio, it’s not a reference to the location it was shot lol
Produced by the UK Film Council and a British company called DNA Films. Doesn't really sound like Hollywood money to me.
@@HkFinn83 I'm not sure that's true for movies made outside the US.
the music for this is so damn good, this and sunshine both have soundtracks so iconic Id heard them before even wathcing the movies
The rain in England joke just slayed me lol we've just come out of a 4 month heatwave averaging 35 degrees celsius/95 degrees fahrenheit, the hottest days at 39/102. We only just saw rain for the first time a couple of weeks ago and most people loved it haha
They're not really zombies. It's a viral infection that results in uncontrollable rage. Frank doesn't die when he's infected. He dies when he's shot, just like any living thing would. Malor doesn't need to decompose to be non-threatening, he needs to literally starve to death.
ETA: Another early 2000's horror film that was also shot digitally, and has the same look as, this is Session 9. It's also... well, it's something. Would make a good reaction.
I agree re the Infected not being zombies, but trust me - you're fighting a losing battle on that score. When Alex Garland was working on the script for this film he was quoted in SFX magazine as saying that he was working on a script for a zombie movie that was 'radical' because 'there are no zombies in it'. Fairly clear, I think - but people just prefer to call them zombies cos it's easier than doing anything else. Irritating, even after twenty years...
@@petersvillage7447 I don't mind people *calling* them zombies. It's an OK short-hand. But there seemed to be some confusion as to what rules applied and what the implications of the infection were.
Fun fact: the music playing while he wanders around deserted London doesn't appear in the released soundtrack. The band that recorded it, "Godspeed You! Black Emperor", opted out. The composition is from their album "F#A# Infinity". Check it out
John Murphy's Out of the house in a heartbeat song from this movie has been used so many times in other media. I remember I used to use it on my ipod when I got to the end of my jog as I lived on a steep hill and wanted to sprint to my house and that song is an amazing motivator
"Return of the Living Dead" is the only Zombie film I can think of, at the moment, that is more about the monsters than a commentary on humanity.
It's the film that introduces Zombies eating brains. But even then, as a camp 80's horror comedy, it still has plenty of social commentary mixed in.
It's a great watch if you can find it. I highly recommend it.
The opening scene of 28 weeks later is like.. one of the best scenes in my mind, so i'd love for y'all to react to that next
They added the music in during the sequence when Jim was king through London alone because before when it had no music at all for such a long stretch some people nearly had heart attacks when he looked into the car and set off the car alarm.
I can still remember my brother throwing my jacket at me saying, "Movies. Let's go." and he took me to see this, the only thing he knew was that Danny Boyle directed it and he loved Trainspotting and The Beach. Fast forward a couple of hours and we were blow the hell away. The only thing I can remember differently was when Jim is walking through the city square and the car alarm goes off, there was no music. It didn't start until after the alarm went off; that scared the bejesus out of everybody in the theater.
I hope you two can get into more of Boyle's works. Sunshine is on my top ten favorites and is a movie I can always watch whenever.
I remember very little about The Beach (I saw it probably when I was way too young, & purely because of/for Leo), but I remember not really understanding a bit of it & thinking it was the weirdest movie I’d ever seen.
This movie was a huge breath of fresh air for the stale zombie genre, i don't know if it was the first but it definitely popularized the idea of the "fast zombie", and it directly inspired so many games and movies going forward.
A really overlooked Danny Boyle movie is Sunshine.. cool sci-fi, I think you guys would like it
This one! One of my favorite Scifi films!
Sunshine is amazing!
I watched this on the day it came out here in the UK back in 2002, I was 11 at the time. It was the first time I was really, truly SCARED watching a film. I grew up watching loads of horror and I'm a huge zombie guy but this movie absolutely just scared the shit out of me when I first saw it. It's so gritty, the camera quality really helps it feel real, the pure anger of the infected to just brutally kill whatever they can get their hands on, all of it is just SO well done.
Real proud of my country for this and Shaun of the Dead as far as contributing to zombie movies goes.
This film also has my favourite song in a film ever, that haunting Piano track that builds and builds, it's so intense.
yeah but they are not zombies though...
I watched this about a month after it was released... in an all but empty cinema.
@@GarmrsBarking a technicality, at best. They're infected, can't be reasoned with and go out of their way to kill humans, they're zombies in all but name.
Technically what Romero created aren't zombies by their original definition either, because they weren't a product of voodoo.
At this point in time, Zombie is more of an all encompassing term than a specific one.
@@omegashinra7672 your answer doesn't come up in the thread, but I can see it on my phone so I'll answer anyway...
1. technically, the infected have very little in common with zombies...
they are not dead that have come back to life... they do not eat their victims... they are not brainless... they can be killed just as easily as normal humans... they do not infect people by biting them, etc. ..
the only things they have in common with zomies is being infected with a virus and attacking people on sight....
2. this is a moot argument when we talk about tropes about zombies in pop culture it has nothing to do with the religious practices of a minor religion in real life... just like angels in the movies don't look anywhere near what they do in the bible...
3. no not really... there are definitely a wide variety of different zombies out there but they have one thing in common... they are the dead reanimate...
e.g. The cannibal genre is not considered to be part of the zombie genre even though they are quite similar....
ok now with all that out of the way...
here comes the best argument that they are not zombies... the authors of the manuscript say they are not zombies...
and if you follow what happens at the beginning of the film, they show that it is a virus that causes rage... so it is just rabies for humans and not an undead virus...
I’m impressed with Simone, she picked up the flaw with the virus, re: speed of infection, where it comes to intercontinental spread. Only the UK was affected here…… 😉
It's interesting they heard it had reached Paris and New York before radio went dark. Where did that come from, if it didn't actually reach those places? It seems like it really would be near impossible to contain a public outbreak. And why include that rumor in the movie, if it seems to end with international rescue efforts reaching the UK, so the world is alright? Leftover from a different draft? Just a scary line? (Yeah infecting a continent sounds even bleaker than a country.) Given it's possible to capture the infected, some fool COULD'VE transported one of them over the Channel...
So, if you check out the special features on the DVD, you'll see that there's an entire alternate second half of the film, wherein the group doesn't end up at the military base, but gets the 'father' to a hospital wherein there's one paranoid guy who does have a 'cure', but won't leave the room he's in for fear of infection. I won't spoil the ending to it, but it's a tremendous bit of writing. I highly suggest checking it out.
Another wonderful thing is that you don't need a million CGI zombies, just a few and a great feeling of loneliness because that's what the essence of zombie movies is all about.
And so much of it being shot with low-end digital video cameras that make you feel like you're just watching real events someone just happened to capture.
Necessity breeds creativity. The film had almost no real budget
The scene with the father telling his daughter I love you sticks with me. Great movie but that one I remember clearly. Its so quick, simple, but damn was it both sad and deep.
Back in the 80s when I was child, I remember my dad (maybe mom too) watching on TV a movie or show that I will never find again given the years and the hazy memories and the recollections of the mind which tends to fill in blanks with bits imaginary or not....it was one of hundreds of zombie movies or shows. I remember a man and woman onscreen being chased by infected people/zombies in white, running towards some type of craft, maybe a helicopter, trying to get away in the climax of the story. I found that very disturbing.
28 Days Later gave me that "nostalgic" feeling, that memory, that recollection of dread in the form of media, and I absolutely loved the movie and went to see it maybe three times in theaters back then, my introduction to some great British actors. Definitely not a run of the mill "zombie" movie, especially with the chasing and running component of it. Absolutely watch 28 Weeks Later for even more emphasis on relentless survival horror.
I will echo will I am sure others have said already somewhere in the comments, watch the alternate ending to this movie. Honestly I think I prefer it because of how it balances the film, but I also appreciate this ending they went with originally.
So glad you guys liked this one, always been one of my favourites! That scene of empty London with the amazing apocalypse song playing (East Hastings) just perfectly sets the atmosphere. The song was actually the directors inspiration for the whole film basically.
Cillian Murphy is so great in this. And despite being a minor character, I also love his take on Dr. Jonathan Crane in Batman Begins.
Mr.Murphy is brilliant in everything he does ☺️ particularly enjoy him in Red Eye & Breakfast on Pluto
I saw some of the special features of the film and the filmmakers were talking about the rage virus. Saying they aren't dead or mindless. They remember everything, they are just so angry that it doesn't matter.
They described the state as "Imagine the angriest you have ever been in your life, how violent you were or how close to violence you were, how unreasonable you were, how any little thing could set you off and make it worse. Then imagine that rage being 10 fold, 100 fold, 10,000 fold and that being your default state, made even worse when you saw people. They are simply too enraged to communicate, to really do anything but lash out.
What made it worse is that since they retain all memory, the people they knew triggered more anger because they had more memories associated with them with that set them apart from some stranger. So they would likely prioritize loved ones as object of their rage.
Both 28 Weeks later, and Sunshine another boyle movie staring Cillian Murphy are worth watching.
At 24:28 I think the shot of Hannah running in front of the camera and then down the dark hallway is one of the most beautiful shots I’ve ever seen in film
Great movie I hope you guys decide to watch the second one as well 28 Weeks Later the opening is terrifying
One of the best things about this movie is the soundtrack - "In The House, In A Heartbeat" is fantastically chilling and tense piece of music.
Yeah! It was a big deal that downtown London was empty for the filming of the opening.
If I remember correctly they shot it super early on a Sunday morning and they only had a short window of time to get the shots. Even knowing that, and if you've ever been to London, it seems impossible to get no cars anywhere.
@@jksgameshelf3378 Even then they had to use CGI to paint out cars visible in the distance, and the production hired some people from a modelling agency to act as 'pickets' - on a Sunday morning there were lots of frazzled people coming home from clubbing the night before... So they deployed these attractive people from the agency to intercept them and stop them walking into the shoot.
The scary thing is...they are not zombies but are alive. Which is why they wanted to know how long it would take for one to starve to death because the body would stop working since they still need to eat to keep going.
This movie single-handedly resurrected the zombie genre (pun intended).
incidentally; instant infection would be less likely to spread rapidly than a disease that has a longer gestation period (like covid) - you cant fight or avoid what you arent aware of.
Well, but it serves the story, because when the infected turn in less than 30 seconds it will make it a lot faster and therefore more realistic to infect the entire British isle in 28 days. But it would have a hard time to pass barriers like the ocean.
for me as european, this Movie is a Masterpiece. it feels so real.
I have never thought of this as a zombie film. More of an outbreak movie. The people are infected with a Rage Virus and are not truly dead. It was Zach Snyder that took that idea and ran with it, pun intended , buy making his zombies fast in his remake of "Dawn of the Dead".
I agree I don't think of this as a Zombie film more like Romero's Crazies. I like Snyder's Dawn of the Dead although I think the original is better, but I feel Return of the Living Dead introduced the idea of fast Zombies first. Honestly the Return Zombies are the most freighting to me fast and are practically indestructible.
yep no zombie in sight...
Anyone who actually pays attention to the beginning knows that it's not a zombie movie. Quite literally just a rage virus.
@@KandiStomper been saying that for years...
The Opening of the movie was on What culture Horror Presents Top 10 Dumbest Decisions In Horror Film History.
Also the scene where Cillian Murphy bashes the priest just as he is about to attack him, was on Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments.
There’s actually another zombie show that followed the same boneheaded decision. I was done with that show at episode 1. Thankfully it was cancelled after the first season.
Check out the original Night of the Living Dead (1968). The film that popularized the zombie genre. Not only is it a classic, but it's in the public domain. You could feature the entire film on your channel and not worry about copyright strikes.
Danny Boyle is a bit of a genius. The follow up 28months later is worth a watch too. 28 days later is one of my fav zombie films ever and in small part because it's kind of different to any other zombie films ☺️
Dawn of the Dead (2004, remake) especially, and-but to a lesser extent World War Z, and-but an even lesser extent, I Am Legend, are similar to this movie
Another awesome Danny Boyle movie : Sunshine.
The scene when they're all at the table, they were slamming the table and yelling before the food was brought out, and the infected react to noise pretty quickly.
5:00 _"why would you blow up a gas station?"_
Gasoline only lasts 6 month maximum before it loses enough Chemical Potential Energy to no longer be used as fuel in an internal combustion engine;
Diesel fuel lasts about 12 months apparently.
There are additives that can aid this longevity but work best for diesel fuel and I'm not sure what they are.
Alternatively, diesel engines can run on all sorts of fuel - even vegetable oil mixed with certain additives.
1 month after this, I expect there's plenty of fuel around for what little survivors there are, and the threat of the zombies is a greater concern.
I'd rather have 0 zombies, and learn to ride a horse (until we can develop fuel again. Plenty of books around).
I do not remember of it was in the original version of the movie (there are several different ones) but Selena talks about being a med student on her way to being a doctor (or something of that nature) before the virus hit. Which is why she has all the drugs on her and originally helps Jim get going after waking up from a coma. Which is also how they were able to save him from the gunshot wound. There is a longer cut version that shows more of them rushing Jim to a hospital and Selena trying to save him. One version is of him dying, which is the last short scene, and then the version of saving him and them being rescued.
Which was written first - 28 Days Later or The Walking Dead comics? Curious which one inspired the other with that "wake from a coma in the apocalypse" opening.
Both are inspired by the opening of Day of the Triffids from 1951.
28 Days later was filmed in 2001, probably written at least a year or two before that, and was released in 2002. The Walking Dead came out after, in 2003. Robert Kirkman says he only saw the movie after writing the script to issue 1 of The walking dead. But the other poster is probably right. They were probably both inspired by the beginning of the book, Day Of The Triffids.
A interest fact is that movie have a second final, that is only in the theaters, or special editions, where they live the guy to a hospital, and try to save him from the shoot, and he past in there and then their left him in the hospital and leave in that moment
If you haven't already, ya'll should watch "Contagion". It's the movie where Gwyneth Paltrow gets what she deserves.
😅
Frank, the chipper dad, is played by Brendan Gleeson, aka Mad-Eye Moody from Harry Potter 4-7
It's funny he pops up when you're not expecting him in a film.
Jim is played by Cillian Murphy who also played Dr Johnathan Crane aka Scarecrow from Batman Begins and the Dark Knight
Please watch the STAR TREK movies! 🖖
This movie reminds me of the quote from The Walking Dead; “Fight the dead, fear the living.” Because the living are capable of far worse than the “zombies/walkers/infected”.
Great reaction as always. Love to you both!
I definitely hope you move onto other Danny Boyle movies, namely Sunshine, Trainspotting, the sequel T2 Trainspotting, and Slumdog Millionaire. If you're willing to get a bit obscure, as well, the underrated A Life Less Ordinary.
28 Days success expanded our understanding of zombies. As Simone pointed out at the beginning, her image of a zombie was the slow dumb kind, but after this movie was released the pop culture knowledge was updated, there are (George) Romero Zombies, those are the usual ones, and 28 Days Zombies which is the ones you see in the movie, fast moving, relentless machines with different attacks.
In the movie the 'zombies' are not undead, there are basically rabies patients taking to an extreme. Rabies is the closest thing we have to a real life zombie (in humans, there are plenty of examples for other animals).
This portrayal went to heavily influence media, for example the zombies in the famous game Left 4 Dead are pretty much 28 Days Zombies, and plenty of other videogames took cues from the movie as well.
28 days later is like a deconstruction of the zombie trope while at the same time somewhat parodying it. Danny Boyle really hated zombie films, especially at the time…
Please do 28 weeks later, Road trip (2000) and then ghosts of mars if you can :)
They got about an hour each day for the London scenes and yes they were there from 3-4 in the morning.
Should also note this isn't a zombie film as they aren't technically dead since they can starve to death.
First time I saw the chanting before dinner I thought 'oh boy, these are cannibals aren't they?'. Either way, excellent movie, I like how it has enough heavy moments to keep it from becoming too campy but enough funny moments to keep it from becoming too gritty. It's a nice balance.
29:27 yes, there are, I'am Legend(Will Smith), The Omega Man(Charlton Heston) and The Last Man on Earth(with the legend, the great Vincent Price). Fun fact, the three are based on the same book.
The vampires burning in sunlight actually comes from movies. Before Nosferatu started the trend in 1922 Vampires of mythology and Bram Stoker's book, Vampires could walk in daylight.
Among the zombie-film histories, this started out so promising with the unique "How it started-!" footage then it deteriorates into the standard "Last Man On Earth/I Am Legend" or "Day Of Triffids" wanderings. NO BLADE OF GRASS is another tale of flight-from-the-city to some magical farm 'up north', but without Olympic-calibre sprinter zombies.
26:34 The alternate ending has Jim die in a hospital they made their way to while they're trying to save him. Kind of bringing him full circle to where he woke up. I guess they figured the movie had been dark enough already, so they went with the happier ending.
the thing i love about this movie is that the banter between the squaddies is so authentic. if you liked this then check out Dog Soldiers. another british movie about the british army and werewolves. some damn funny banter between characters
Two things worth noting:
This was inspired by John Wyndham's classic SF story 'The Day of the Triffids'
The French for rabies is 'la rage'.
The US theatrical release had an alternate ending (shown after the credits) in which Jim dies in the hospital.
This movie is actually pretty much an unofficial adaptation of the 1951 John Wyndham novel The Day of the Triffids, just with the general premise being different. In that story, the monsters are not zombies but the titular triffids, giant ambulatory plants capable of stinging and consuming people, which become a threat after most humans are blinded after witnessing an unexplained event of flashing lights in the sky (which the central characters coincidentally missed for various reasons). The setup in the movie is obviously pretty different, but the setting, character dynamics and plot progression is pretty much exactly the same (man waking up in a hospital, exploring the ruined London, traveling around with a woman and girl he meets, escaping a militaristic villain at the end by turning the monsters against him).
The movie has some more tragic alternate endings, but the more optimistic theatrical one also echoes the ending in Triffids, where the group of survivors escape to the Isle of Wight and meet up with another group the protagonist had formerly met in London, and manage to work together to keep the island free of triffids and build up a new society there.
I wonder if the premise of the novel also influenced the development of "Bird Box". That's what I thought of from your description, though admittedly I misunderstood a sentence at first as meaning that the triffid victims would later become dangerous/violent.
I’m glad you guys watched this movie. It’s one of favorites to watch over and over. Now when it’s comes to 28 weeks later, I love that movie! I can’t wait for you guys to react to it…
11:35
"...oh, but if they're all running one direction..."
When he said that I started laughing hard as my brain came up with the joke:
"...if they're all running N'sync..."
Fun fact, at the end the pilot who spots them is speaking Finnish.
12:09 I thought the implication was that these zombies don't like sunlight. Or it paralyzes them of something. Mark said earlier to only travel in daylight.
The water collection. One of those was a laundry basket with holes all over it