History Film / TwentyEightDaysLater

[[TitleConfusion Do not confuse]] this film with ''[[Film/TwentyEightDays 28 Days]]'', where an alcoholic SandraBullock dries out. That film also features no zombies (unless you count Sandra Bullock's film career).

* FauxSymbolism: Jim's most harrowing moment of despair is when he dreams he's been abandoned.

''28 Days Later'' is a 2002 horror film. A literal {{hate plague}} begins taking over Britain after animal rights activists set loose an Infected chimp in a lab at Cambridge University. The [[HatePlague Rage virus]] is a virus meant to neutralise violent impulses GoneHorriblyWrong - it has the ''exact'' opposite effect. The chimp starts to excarnify its would-be rescuers. Cue the cut-away.

Jim (CillianMurphy) wakes from a coma twenty eight days after the outbreak. He wakes naked in a totally deserted hospital, in the middle of an eerily abandoned London. He's got a scarred-over head wound, an impressive growth of facial hair and no idea of what's going on. Our protagonist wanders around the city, plastic bag of Pepsi cans in hand, while suspenseful music plays. He then meets some [[ZombieGait non-shambling]], [[HatePlague angry-arse]] Infected pseudo-zombies. Soon after he teams up with fellow survivors and kicks some ass in search of the escape and cure promised by the radio broadcasts from a distant barricade.

The promised land is far from what it seems, and the scale of the infection has yet to be realised.

Survivor Selena (Naomie Harris) is a realist, considering survival the only option and Jim's naiveté a hindrance. Frank (Brendan Gleeson) and Hannah, father and daughter, see things less bleakly and suffer for it.

The premise is played for drama. The films avoids using the word [[NotUsingTheZedWord 'zombie']] and avoids several common zombie tropes. The Infected are fast-moving, agile and mindlessly violent. But they are not hungry for brains. The infection itself is devastating, toppling society and causing an apocalypse due to the ease of transmission and the panic. Generally pigeonholed as a zombie movie, nevertheless. The film did fairly well at the box office and has spawned several comics exploring the lacuna of time in between the initial outbreak of infection and the film. It has a sequel, ''TwentyEightWeeksLater''.

Not to be [[TitleConfusion confused]] with ''[[Film/TwentyEightDays 28 Days]]'' where an alcoholic SandraBullock dries out. And is killed by zombies. Or not.

!!This film provides examples of:

* TooDumbToLive: Let's start with the scientists who decided to use chimpanzees, which are incredibly strong and can get pretty damn aggressive already, as guinea pigs for the Rage virus. Then the animal rights activists who release said infected chimpanzees ''after being warned that they're contagious.'' Additionally said scientists use a facility that doesn't even incorporate the most basic of quarantine procedures.

The premise is played for drama. The films avoids using the word [[NotUsingTheZedWord 'zombie']] and avoids several common zombie tropes. The Infected are fast-moving, agile and mindlessly violent. But they are not hungry for brains. The infection itself is devastating, toppling society and causing an apocalypse due to the ease of transmission and the panic. Generally pigeonholed as a zombie movie, nevertheless. The film did fairly well at the box office and has spawned several comics exploring the lacuna of time in between the initial outbreak of infection and the film. It has a sequel, ''TwentyEightWeeksLater'', and another film in the works for 2011.

* EyeScream: [[spoiler:Jim]] does this to one of the soldiers.

Not to be [[TitleConfusion confused]] with ''28 Days'' where an alcoholic SandraBullock dries out. And is killed by zombies. Or not.

''28 Days Later'' is a 2002 horror film. A literal {{hate plague}} begins taking over Britain after animal rights activists set loose an Infected chimp in a lab at Cambridge University. The [[HatePlague Rage virus]] is a virus meant to neutralise violent impulses GoneHorriblyWrong. It has the opposite effect. The chimp starts to excarnify its would-be rescuers. Cue the cut-away.

** Naomi Harris explained that her and Danny Boyle came up with a backstory that Selena had to kill her whole family in one afternoon including younger siblings to explain her harsh outlook on life.

* CrazySurvivalist: Although Selena isn't exactly crazy (yet), she's incredibly ruthless and will leave anyone behind if they can't catch up, distrusts others, and openly mocks any plans for salvation. "Staying alive is as good as it gets." She warms up once she's spent some time with the others, though.\\
\\
Naomi Harris explained that her and Danny Boyle came up with a backstory that Selena had to kill her whole family in one afternoon including younger siblings to explain her harsh outlook on life.

* AbandonedHospital: Where Jim wakes up. [[spoiler:He winds up in an abandoned hospital again after being shot during the climax]].

* EarnYourHappyEnding: The ending as released. [[spoiler:Jim survives, all the main characters survive the mansion assault at the end, the infected die off from starvation, and a passing jet sees their distress message laid out in the grass and radios in a rescue]].

* TechnicallyLivingZombie: The Infected.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Nice job breaking out those lab monkeys.

Survivor Selena (Naomie Harris [[hottip:*:Of ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' fame.]]) is a realist, considering survival the only option and Jim's naiveté a hindrance. Frank (Brendan Gleeson) and Hannah, father and daughter, see things less bleakly and suffer for it.

* OfficerAndAGentleman: Played with in Major West, who [[spoiler:uses it to sucker in the women as sex toys for his men to keep up morale]].

'''Spoilers ahead.'''

* EarnYourHappyEnding: The ending as released. [[spoiler:Jim survives, all the main characters survive the mansion assault at the end, the infected die off from starvation, and a passing jet sees their distress message laid out in the grass and radio's in a rescue]].