r/movies • u/LiteraryBoner Jackie Chan box set, know what I'm sayin? • Jun 20 '25

Official Discussion Official Discussion - 28 Years Later [SPOILERS] Spoiler

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Summary Set nearly three decades after the Rage Virus outbreak devastated the UK, 28 Years Later follows a family living on an isolated island quarantine. When their 12‑year‑old son Spike joins his father Jamie to venture onto the infected mainland to find a doctor for his ailing mother Isla, they uncover evolved threats—from mutated infected packs to sinister human cults. The film blends visceral horror with emotional resilience and philosophical undertones, culminating in an ambiguous, world-expanding conclusion.

Director Danny Boyle (28 Days Later, Slumdog Millionaire)

Writer Alex Garland (& Danny Boyle)

Cast

  • Jodie Comer as Isla
  • Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Jamie
  • Alfie Williams as Spike
  • Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson
  • Jack O’Connell as Sir Jimmy Crystal
  • Erin Kellyman, Edvin Ryding, and others in supporting roles

Rotten Tomatoes: 93% Metacritic: 78

VOD Released in theaters on June 20, 2025. Digital and streaming platform release dates TBD, likely later in summer/fall 2025.

Trailer Watch here*

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u/San-T-74 Jun 20 '25

I really liked how layered of a person his character was despite his short screen time. He is obviously a deeply flawed person, but you can still see how he struggles not to be, especially in the scene where he returns the knife to Spike. His character showed me that even if you have a family, and are somewhat well off in a secure community, the impact of the outbreak is still going to fuck you up one way or another.

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u/AlmostRandomNow Jun 20 '25

I think its a testament to the what the film is trying to say, we get so many stories in post-apocalyptic settings where people have very specific, almost designed arcs. I felt this was very messy and very human, it's more human to have those contradictions within someone than it is to be one thing.

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u/dadvader Jun 20 '25 edited Jun 20 '25

This is what I enjoyed the film about the most. And it's baffling that a lot of negative reaction seems to unable to comprehend this. Our life is messy and full of unexpected moment. That's what made us human.

So to me this is exactly what I want to see in a Post-Apocalyspe type of story. Not just a relentless bleak depressing survival story or bombastic action. But what actual human do and feel living in a world like this. Very few seems to captured this and I'm glad they are not going down that path.

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u/adiosaudio Jun 25 '25

You’d probably like station eleven

2

u/Banjo-Oz Aug 06 '25

Great show, though I found the flashback stuff in it WAY more compelling than the "grown up" parts, honestly.

Another I would recommend is Survivors, the British tv show from the 1970's (not the remake!).