28 Years Later Review
28 Years Later (2025) Film Review, a movie directed by Danny Boyle, written by Alex Garland and starring Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes, Alfie Williams, Robert Rhodes, Jack O’Connell, Edvin Ryding, Rocco Haynes, Kim Allan, Sandy Batchelor, Christopher Fulford, Sienna Giblin and Amy Cameron.
Danny Boyle has terrifically directed the riveting and powerful new science fiction thriller, 28 Years Later. In a day and age where zombie movies are commonplace, this new picture needed to up the ante with some extra thrills, deep characterizations and moving plot developments. Boyle has succeeded in creating the definitive film in the series which has enough thought-provoking themes to keep viewers thinking long after the conclusion has arrived. Jodie Comer is the film’s most valuable player. Comer plays a mom named Isla who is sick for much of the film and she is carried on another character’s back for a small portion of the picture. Comer brings complexity to the movie’s most sentimental role and the actress is certainly in top form.
This film begins in a creepy manner with a group of young kids watching the program, “Teletubbies,” when some zombies attack. This sequence sets the stage for the gruesome aspects of the film. There are quite a number of elements here which are unnerving to watch and the film even has one of the creepiest sounding poems you could imagine played early on which was prominently featured in the trailers for this movie. While the picture is always going to appeal most to horror/science fiction fans, the latter half of the movie offers some compelling revelations which could broaden the film’s appeal if they can make it through many of the uglier aspects of the picture.
Young actor Alfie Williams also shines in the film’s pivotal role of the young Spike who alongside his dad, Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), goes out to hunt and kill zombies at the start of the new picture’s central story line. They come across a man hanging upside down which challenges Spike to decide whether he should kill or rescue this given person. It all depends on whether or not any given person was affected by the Rage virus which turns people into zombies. This guy who is hanging has a bag over his head, and Spike is about to delay acting when the man quickly turns into a raging zombie in a matter of seconds.
Though the film explores the shaky bond between Spike and Jamie, Boyle has something else in mind. Jamie and Spike end up in a major argument that threatens to tear them apart, perhaps even forever. However, Boyle is more interested in the character of Isla who Jamie takes for granted. Isla is Jodie Comer’s role and is at the heart of this movie. Her character has fallen gravely ill. Soon, she is transported to see a doctor who may be able to help her recover. That doctor, Dr. Kelson, is played by the stupendous Ralph Fiennes.
When Isla discovers a pregnant zombie, things take a drastic turn as the fight for survival becomes more complicated with the combination of Isla’s illness and the efforts to keep a non-affected newborn alive. Dr. Kelson credits the placenta for keeping the baby unaffected by the virus.
There is a big pile of human skulls which Kelson builds and they play a crucial factor in the movie. This film also serves as a coming-of-age tale in a time of a hostile zombie takeover as Spike must realize his mortality and the vulnerability of everybody around him, including his own mother.
Comer takes this role by the horns and creates a confused woman who is nevertheless emotionally present, and her character becomes a protector of the newborn baby later in the picture. Isla is a strong female character whose personal situations and passions are thrown off balance by her dire physical condition. This is Comer’s best performance since she appeared in 2021’s The Last Duel. Comer puts heart into her performance and makes this role one of the strongest elements of Boyle’s new picture.
Alfie Williams develops his character sufficiently as he transforms from a timid young man into a zombie fighting warrior of sorts as the picture progresses. In the difficult role of Jamie, Aaron Taylor-Johnson gives the performance everything he has and there is some real subtext present as the character becomes a bit unlikable as the plot progresses. Ralph Fiennes shines as the wise doctor who knows how to knock a zombie out for a bit, but suggests that certain plot developments take place to avoid prolonged suffering. Nobody can portray a wise-man like Fiennes can and the actor’s intelligence shines through in the character he plays here.
There are plenty of zombie attacks which are proficiently orchestrated. Towards the end, there are some nicely written musings on life and death as well which Fiennes’ character drives home to the audience. There are also some key plot details that will surprise viewers even more than the zombie kills. Boyle injects his new film with a lot of substance which makes the emotional near-final moments of the picture very touching. Though there is the definite possibility of a follow-up at the conclusion (it has been said another one is already a done deal, in fact), 28 Years Later still works on its own merits as a standalone film.
28 Years Later is a tense thriller that works on many different levels. With Jodie Comer’s riveting turn at its center, expect Danny Boyle’s new film to resonate with viewers beyond its targeted audience. 28 Years Later is fascinating and it’s a bold vision that succeeds as one of the most unique films of 2025 despite being derived from the earlier films before it.
Rating: 8/10
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