Director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland created “28 Days Later” in 2003 and it broke new ground with its fast-moving zombies. They’ve reunited for this sequel where Great Britain has been quarantined from the world, but a few non-infected still exist…especially on a small island connected to the mainland by a causeway. A father and son (Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Alfie Williams) cross the waters for a rather bland adventure. To make matters more implausible, the son ventures back with his sick mother (Jodie Comer) in search of a cure. The expected element of this film is the terror unleashed by the undead and even though they pop up regularly, the encounters are never frightening. This is partially because Boyle decided to use flashing editing and loud sound effects to amplify the violence, but it only serves to take us out of the story and make them less threatening. Much more time is spent with dramatic interactions than zombie fights. A dramataic disappointment. (And there’s already a sequel in the works) 
(1.5 / 5)
