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Jim eventually finds two other survivors, Selena (Naomie Harris) and Mark (Noah Huntley)
Of course, something will happen to them â€â€? or at least some of them â€â€? by the time they find shelter at an Army post led by Major West (Christopher Eccleston) They tell Jim that while he was unconscious, a virus wiped out much of the population It's transmitted by blood and takes over within seconds, rendering the infected possessed, zombielike
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Motion Picture Association of America rating definitions:
G â€â€? General audiences
British director Danny Boyle's latest film proves he still has the eye for vivid imagery and the feel for heart-pounding pacing that established him in 1996 with "Trainspotting
What also makes "28 Days Later" effective, and sets it apart from other thrillers, is that it makes you care about the characters Familiar tourist traps that ordinarily would be packed with people are still and empty
PG-13 â€â€? Special parental guidance strongly suggested for children under 13 And they aren't preying on others to eat them â€â€? they run, shrieking and flailing, seemingly out of fear, which makes them far more sympathetic figures Some material may not be suitable for children Selena and Mark have learned to stay alive by killing whomever they must â€â€? even their own family members â€â€? and they agree to help protect Jim from these creatures
As he walks the silent corridors, then wanders into the streets, he finds nothing, no one )
Which brings us to the social relevance section of our review: The fast-moving infection may be reminiscent of the recent SARS outbreak, or the foot-and-mouth and mad cow diseases before that, or the spread of AIDS before that
PG â€â€? Parental guidance suggested And while the film takes a couple of implausible twists there, it's forgivable, because everything else that came before is so overwhelming " This time, he turns his skills toward the story of a post-apocalyptic London after a virus outbreak
Bike courier Jim (Cillian Murphy) awakens in a hospital bed after 28 days in a coma No matter how you choose to interpret the message, though, it will surely strike a chord Jim and his companions hook up with taxi driver Frank (the always solid Brendan Gleeson) and his teenage daughter, Hannah (Megan Burns), who are also struggling to survive (Boyle and his crew got these shots at dawn, quickly and precisely, using digital video
(And technically, they're not really zombies because they're not the undead Running time: 108 minutes And you grow so fond of them all, the idea of anything happening to any of them is devastating
It's far scarier than a lot of recent thrillers â€â€? and far more inventive than most films this year â€â€? even though it's based on a simple, classic genre: the zombie flick Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian Shot beautifully by Anthony Dod Mantle and edited deliberately by Chris Gill, the sequence builds slowly, sucks you in and leaves a haunting impression for the rest of the film
R â€â€? Restricted
It may seem too conveniently ripped from the headlines, but Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland (who wrote the book "The Beach," which Boyle turned into a 2000 film) have said the disease is a metaphor for rage, for the anger that permeates society
NC-17 â€â€? No one under 17 admitted
"28 Days Later," a Fox Searchlight release, is rated R for strong violence and gore, language and nudity '28 Days Later' Is a Scary Zombie Flick
Jun 26, 12:20 PM EST
"28 Days Later" is not the sequel to 2000's "28 Days" â€â€? it's far scarier than the idea of a second movie starring Sandra Bullock as a recovering alcoholic )
It's absolutely striking â€â€? the silence and sparseness are far more effective than the typically overbearing horror effects Some material may be inappropriate for young children All ages admitted They're alive but infected
Unlike the monsters in classic zombie films like 1968's "Night of the Living Dead" and the throwaway copycats that followed, these aren't lumbering, mumbling zombies â€â€? these are twitching, hissing zombies Three and a half stars out of four |