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| Fox (Australia). Region 2 & 4 PAL. 1.85:1 (16:9 enhanced). English DD 5.1, Italian DD 5.1. English, Italian Subtitles. 108 minutes |
| The Movie |
| Cover Art |
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| Credits |
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Cillian Murphy,
Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns
Screenplay: Alex Garland
Country: UK |
Horror is a strange beast. Finding a storyline
that will scare everyone is something that would
be almost impossible, unless it is something that
COULD affect everyone. Then that premise becomes
scary. Films with a premise like Jaws aren't necessarily scary to someone who
never frequents the beach. What if, though, the
premise for the film is something that no one
could escape, that being a living breathing human
being was the only criteria for the villain of
the piece to be able to get you? What if the villain
wasn't something you could hit, or stab,
or run, or swim away from? Something like a virus…a
pandemic virus. A virus that infects you immediately
with a rage that makes you want to destroy everything
around you, especially your fellow man. Director
Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) and
writer Alex Garland decided to explore that very
scenario in their 2002 film, 28 Days Later.
Cycle courier Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up
in a hospital after being in a coma from an accident
he had while on his bike. He finds the hospital,
and the streets abandoned. After a particularly
unpleasant encounter with some people who appear
to have gone stark raving mad, he meets with Mark
(Noah Huntley) and Selena (Naomie Harris), who
explain to him that the entire population has
been infected with the Rage Virus, a disease that
acts almost immediately upon infection, causing
uncontrollable insanity in its victim. Their group
fluctuates in numbers and their eventual efforts
to get out of London lead them to Major Henry
West (Christopher Eccleston), but is he their
salvation, or their extinction…
Filmed almost entirely in digital (the ending
was filmed in 35 mm) to give it a rugged, urban
feel, 28 Days Later stands as
a compelling look at how society would break down
if a planet-wide disaster was to strike. These
themes have been explored before in The
Day of The Triffids, The Omega
Man, and Romero's Dead Trilogy
(now quadrology, but for the sake of when this
film was produced, the films still lay at three),
and Garland and Boyle recognize the influence
in several homages throughout the movie. This
film should almost be quantified as a disaster
film, if it wasn't for the excellent gore,
the chilling silence of the landscape and the
plain out and out scary madmen.
A top watch, and an excellent film for further
discussion. |
| Video |
| As a recent film that is shot on digital, you
would expect this to be a clean transfer, and it
is! Every moody lit scene presented excellently
in 1.85:1. There doesn't appear to be any
imperfections in the picture at all, although one
does have to bear in mind that with it being shot
on digital, it gives a grainy appearance, which
was the intention of the director, to give it more
of a documentary style feel, to draw you into the
story more, as if you were watching it take place
on a security camera. |
| Audio |
| The audio is excellent and is presented in English
or Italian in Dolby Surround 5.1. |
| Extra Features |
The commentary by Director Danny Boyle and Writer
Alex Garland is nothing short of brilliant. Descriptive,
educational and occasionally cheeky, these two seem
to have a great respect and affection for this film,
as they have something of relevance to say in every
new scene.
The Deleted Scenes are just that. They come with
or with out a commentary by Danny Boyle and Alex
Garland. Mostly, they are unprocessed and have unclear
sound or special effects incorporated into them,
to the point the one titled 'Motorway Carnage'
still has a degree of camera shake from the crane,
and the streets are filled with cars driving about.
This really needs to be watched after watching the
director's commentary as it references points
made in there.
There is also an alternate ending which again can
be watched with or without commentary by Danny Boyle
and Alex Garland. Not really that interesting, just
a varying survival quantity.
Pure Rage: The Making of 28 Days Later (24 minutes 20 seconds) is as much a documentary
about pandemic viruses as a making of feature. This
is incredibly interesting, not just from a filmmaking
point of view, but also from a survival of humanity
point of view. It features interviews with stars
Cillian Murphy , Brendan Gleeson, Christopher Eccleston,
Megan Burns and Naomie Harris , along with director
Danny Boyle and various experts on viruses. This
is hosted by ex- BBC 1 radio presenter Lisa I'Anson,
and was directed by Toby James, who is also responsible
for the 'Making of I Robot'.
The photo galleries both have commentaries that
are far more interesting than your Aunt Beryl's
slide from her last trip to the Gold Coast. The
galleries are quite interesting and much better
than just a static image gallery that you get on
most DVDs. The galleries are: Production Gallery
(18 minutes 38 seconds) and a Poloroid Gallery (4
minues 9 seconds). The commentary actually stops
half way through the poloroid gallery as Boyle decides
he is just waffling on about nothing, but his comments
are really informative.
The special feature labeled Marketing actually consists
of 4 smaller features: the Theatrical Teaser Trailer
(1 minute 30 seconds), the Theatrical Trailer (1
minute 58 seconds ), the Animated Storyboard from
the original U.K. Website (1 minute 31 seconds)
which is an online, animated trailer and a music
video by Jacknife Lee (6 minutes 25 seconds). |
| The Verdict |
I have always found this sort of movie the most
terrifying. There is no solution; no walking into
the sunset after the villain has been conquered.
The only way to win is to survive, and survival
is difficult when the odds are stacked against you.
Danny Boyle has assembled an excellent cast to create
a truly scary movie more because of its familiarity
and realism, rather than its 'cinema shock
tactics'. A must see.
Got something else to say? Spill your guts on the
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