28 Days Later (sometimes stylized with an ellipsis as 28 Days Later...) is a 2002 British post-apocalyptic horror film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland. It stars Cillian Murphy as a bicycle courier who awakens from a coma to discover that the accidental release of a highly contagious, aggression-inducing virus has caused the breakdown of society. Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, and Brendan Gleeson appear in supporting roles. Garland took inspiration from George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead film series and John Wyndham's 1951 novel The Day of the Triffids. Filming took place in various locations in the United Kingdom in 2001. The crew filmed for brief periods during early mornings and temporarily closed streets in London to capture recognizable and typically busy areas when they were deserted. John Murphy composed an original soundtrack for the film, with other instrumental songs by Brian Eno, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and other artists. 28 Days Later was released on 1 November 2002 in the United Kingdom by Fox Searchlight Pictures. It received generally positive reviews and was a commercial success. Grossing $82.8 million worldwide on a budget of $8 million, it became one of the most profitable horror films of 2002. Reviewers praised Boyle's direction, the cast's performances, Garland's screenplay, the atmosphere and soundtrack. Despite Boyle not considering it a zombie film, 28 Days Later is credited with reinvigorating the genre and influencing a revival in it a decade after its release, with its fast-running infected and character-driven drama. It has been featured in several "best-of" film lists. The film's success launched its titular film series, featuring three further instalments: 28 Weeks Later (2007), 28 Years Later (2025), and 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026). A wider franchise also includes the graphic novel 28 Days Later: The Aftermath (2007), and the comic book series 28 Days Later (2009–2011).
Plot A group of animal rights activists infiltrate a laboratory in Cambridge which houses abnormally aggressive chimpanzees. Despite a scientist warning that the chimpanzees are "infected" with "rage", an activist frees one; it attacks her and, within seconds of exposure, she succumbs to the virus. She immediately attacks the others, and the virus spreads rapidly across Great Britain, resulting in total societal collapse. Twenty-eight days later, bicycle courier Jim, who had a traffic accident and fell into a coma before the outbreak, wakes in St Thomas' Hospital in London to find it deserted. Leaving the hospital, Jim wanders the empty streets of London, discovers newspapers headlining a mass evacuation, and eventually enters a church and witnesses the aftermath of a massacre, presumably caused by the infected people. An infected priest and members of the public appear and chase after Jim, but he is rescued by survivors Selena and Mark, who take him to their refuge in a Tube station shop. At Jim's request, the group travels on foot to his parents' house in Deptford, where he learns that they have died by suicide, leaving a note instructing him to "never wake up". When dusk settles in, the group decides to stay the night. Staying up, Jim reminisces over family memories and lights a candle, drawing the infected neighbours to the house. Mark is infected while eliminating them, forcing Selena to kill him. Jim and Selena make their way up Balfron Tower after seeing a makeshift signal lamp in a flat belonging to cab driver Frank and his young daughter Hannah. Frank plays them a military radio broadcast offering protection and "salvation from infection" at a blockade outside Manchester. Frank plans to take Hannah to the blockade, and the four agree to travel together. Reaching Manchester, they find the blockade deserted. Frank, frustrated, kicks a gate on which a dead infected body is balanced. A drop of blood from the corpse falls into Frank's eye, infecting him. As he warns the others to keep their distance, hidden soldiers appear and shoot him dead as he turns. The soldiers bring Jim, Selena and Hannah to a heavily fortified country house under the command of Major Henry West, treat their guests to a tour and banquet and introduces him to "Private Mailer", an infected soldier kept chained up for observation. However, the sanctuary turns out to be a ruse; West reveals to Jim that his broadcast was intended to lure female survivors into sexual slavery to maintain his troops' morale, giving them faith in a future where the human race survives. Jim and Sergeant Farrell refuse to go along with this scheme, so West orders them to be imprisoned. While chained, Farrell tells Jim that the infection has not spread across the Atlantic and that Britain has been quarantined from the rest of the world. Two soldiers shoot Farrell and then argue, allowing Jim to escape into the woods. Jim notices a jet contrail in the sky, showing proof that the outside world is still active. After luring West away from the mansion with a siren, Jim returns and frees Private Mailer in order to infect and kill the remaining soldiers. Corporal Mitchell attempts to abduct Selena, but Jim kills him. Jim, Selena, and Hannah attempt to escape in Frank's cab, but West, who has hidden in the back seat, shoots Jim in the stomach. Hannah retaliates by putting the cab in reverse, causing Mailer to burst through the rear window and drag West out before mauling him to death as the car drives away. Another twenty-eight days later, Jim recovers at a remote cottage in Cumbria, where the infected are shown lying on the roads, dying of starvation. As a Hawker Hunter jet flies overhead, Jim, Selena, and Hannah unfurl a huge cloth banner spelling the word "HELLO". All three survivors wave at the jet, and wonder among themselves if the pilot has spotted them.
Cast
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