28 Days Later

Zombie retrospective. I remember reading about this before it came out. Film nerds (like me) were very skeptical that a theatrical feature could be shot on consumer video cameras and not feel cheap and gimmicky. But Danny Boyle proves with his track record that he welcomes risk. It’s scary. Scenes on the abandoned London streets are truly eerie. And Cillian Murphy’s commitment to the bit is unwavering. As usual, zombie parables inevitably chart how quickly people can turn on each other when the undead start lumbering around. There’s an unsavory rapey-ness to the final third of this. Thankfully, revenge is sweet. Interesting, too, to watch the DVD of this, with the alternate endings (I can’t remember the last time I watched a DVD). Filmmakers conclude with a small amount of hope for mankind. But they sill had their doubts.