FILM REVIEW: 28 YEARS LATER (15) ESP RATING: 3.5/5

28 Years Later may very well be the most divisive film of the year.

Search for any post about it online, dive into the comments, and you’ll see the split.

Some are hailing it as a daring masterpiece, others are tearing it apart as a baffling mis-step. The reactions are so wildly contradictory, it almost feels like they’re talking about two different films – and in a strange way, that might be the most accurate description of what this movie actually is.

From the outset, it’s clear this is not the film the trailers promised. And it’s certainly not the sequel many were expecting. In fact, it boldly wipes 28 Weeks Later off the map, effectively retconning it entirely. That alone has ruffled feathers among long-time fans. But 28 Years Later doesn’t seem interested in nostalgia or continuity – it’s a film with its own agenda, and whether you admire or resent that will likely shape your entire experience.

At its core, the story unfolds in two mirrored halves. In the first, a father (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) takes his son (Alfie Williams) from their secluded island sanctuary to the infected mainland. It’s framed as a rite of passage – the boy’s coming-of-age moment, where he's expected to kill his first zombies (yes, I know they’re not technically zombies, but the film itself leans into that terminology, so I am too).

This first half, while slow, has its intense moments – it’s unsettling, and oddly tender. But just as the emotional weight of that arc begins to settle, the film pivots – sharply. Just the next day, the boy is back on the mainland again, this time with his mother (Jodie Comer), on a separate journey to find a doctor who might be able to help her. It’s a sudden narrative loop that makes the film feel like it’s hitting ‘reset’ halfway through, and while that symmetry might work thematically, it risks undercutting the momentum.

There are plenty of compelling ideas woven throughout. The concept of fractured mini-societies forming in the ruins of civilisation is fascinating – each community has its own rules, its own logic, its own twisted sense of order. These glimpses into post-collapse life are intriguing moments, but they’re never fully explored. You get the sense that there’s a much larger, richer world out there just beyond the frame, but the film never quite commits to pulling back that curtain. Hopefully all will be revealed in the next two upcoming instalments.

Visually, the film is often breathtaking. There are moments that genuinely stop you in your tracks - haunting compositions of crumbling towns, star-filled skies untouched by light pollution, and an eerie stillness that suggests the world has quietly moved on without us. It’s rich with atmosphere and weight, and at times, it’s nothing short of stunning.

But then come the strange stylistic choices – chief among them, a dated bullet-time effect used during zombie kills. It’s jarring, unnecessary, and feels like something pulled straight from an early-2000s video game. Strangely, this effect vanishes in the film’s final act, and when it does, it just flows better.

And then there’s the ending. Without giving too much away, the climax introduces a bizarre, almost campy twist involving costuming and choreography that feels completely out of sync with the rest of the film. Imagine a group of survivors dressed like knock-off Power Rangers, and you’re halfway there. It’s a bold move, sure, but it veers so far into absurdity that it risks undoing everything the film had worked to build.

And yet – despite all of this – I liked the movie. 28 Years Later is messy and uneven, but it’s also ambitious and undeniably bold. It swings big. Sometimes misses. But there’s something admirable in its willingness to take risks.

Whether you walk out impressed or irritated, one thing’s for sure: this film leaves an impression. It’s not what you expect, not what you were promised, and maybe not what you wanted – but maybe that’s the point.

Love it or hate it, this dares to be different. And in today’s landscape of safe sequels and nostalgia bait, that alone perhaps makes it worth your consideration.

ESP Rating: 3.5/5

Mike Clarke

Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough & Odeon Luxe Peterborough, Out Now

Cast: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, Alfie Williams, Edvin Ryding, Chi Lewis-Parry, Christopher Fulford, Amy Cameron & Jack O’connell

Running Time: 1 Hr 55 Mins

Director: Danny Boyle

Film Review Venue: Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough

For all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux & Odeon Luxe Cinemas go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk and www.odeon.co.uk