Why 28 Days Later still feels so eerily relevant

Prior to the release of 28 Days Later in 2002 in the UK and 2003 in the U.S., zombies weren't so dominant in our culture. Sure, we had George A. Romero's initial zombie trilogy of Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Day of the Dead, but the last film in that sequence came out in 1985. Romero would return to the modern zombie film he pioneered, but not until 2005's Land of the Dead. Meanwhile, The Walking Dead wouldn't premiere on AMC until 2010, with Robert Kirkman's comic debuting in 2003. 28 Days Later was ahead of its time for a lot of reasons and remains eerily relevant. It captures an unstable, post-9/11 world and the isolation that a pandemic causes, a theme that feels all too prescient post-COVID.

Now that director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland have returned with 28 Years Later, it's a great time to revisit the initial film and unpack why it remains so effective as a horror movie.

Warning: This article contains major spoilers for 28 Days Later and some minor spoilers about 28 Years Later.

28 Days Later Captures the Terror of an Unstable, Post-9/11 World

Released not long after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, 28 Days Later really captured the instability of the moment and the uncertainty of the new century. Consider the film's unforgettable opening sequence. It begins with scientists experimenting on chimps, essentially infecting them with the rage virus. One chimp, strapped to a table, watches violent videos over and over again of wars and police beating protestors. Other chimps, already caged, have been infected with the virus, and animal rights activists unknowingly unleash the virus on the British population by freeing the chimps.

It's tough to watch that harrowing opening, especially the videos the chimp watches, and not think of recent headlines, be it the situation in Gaza, or the recent military strikes between Israel and Iran. The world feels as unstable now, or maybe even more so, than it did in back then, especially in the Middle East. Nearly two decades later, the world is at war again, specifically in Europe, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and again in the Middle East. That's why the opening sequence still hits so hard. Meanwhile, the footage of police clashing with protestors also feels like it could have been pulled out of 2025, especially in the U.S., even if the movie is unabashedly a British film. We're still living in a protest era and the shadow of movements like Black Lives Matter.

28 Days Later also shows just how fragile our institutions are. There's a devastating scene late in the film when the group of survivors, Jim (Cillian Murphy), Selena (Naomie Harris), Frank (Brendan Gleeson), and his young daughter Hannah (Megan Burns), witness Manchester on fire. This dashes their dreams of reaching a military safe haven after hearing a broadcast that promises an answer to the infection. The military, like every other institution, has collapsed. The military men the survivors do meet have nefarious intentions. They used the broadcast to attract women and attempt a repopulation of the world, putting Selena and Hannah in grave danger. Post-COVID, we've all learned that some of our institutions don't do well under immense strain. Think of the long waiting periods for the first rollout of vaccines, or how quickly basics like toilet paper flew off the shelves.

28 Days Later Depicts the Isolation of a Pandemic

Though there have been horror films, such as Host, that dealt directly with COVID, few capture the isolation a pandemic can cause as well as 28 Days Later. Think of the moment we first meet Jim, a bike messenger who was struck by a car and woke up alone in the hospital. He wanders the streets of London by himself, befuddled and confused by the quiet. Those shots of him roaming the streets, with empty skyscrapers looming in the background, resemble the early days of COVID lockdowns.

After Jim meets Selena, he returns to his home. He finds his parents in their bed, deceased. They killed themselves to avoid infection. It's one of the film's most heartbreaking moments, and believe me, the movie contains plenty of them. A few minutes later, Jim watches home videos, keeping his parents alive through memory and those old tapes. However, the infected soon attack the house, nearly killing Jim and shortening his grieving process. It's hard to watch this sequence and not recount all those we lost to COVID, especially in the earliest months.

28 Days Later Elevates and Celebrates Humanity

Though 28 Years Later is definitely not a rehash of 28 Days Later and focuses on a set of new characters, both films have very tender moments. The new film tells the story of 12-year-old Spike (Alfie Williams), who comes of age on an island cut off from the rest of Europe. It's a good metaphor for post-Brexit Britain. Yet, some of the film's most human moments occur between Spike and his mom Isla (Jodie Comer), especially late in the film after they meet Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), who, in a lot of ways, represents the best of humanity. He's a well-drawn contrast to the military men in the first film and some of the toxic male characters in the new film.

Boyle and Garland kill off major characters in both films, but despite the threat of the infected, both movies are about living and enduring. This is shown best during the more light-hearted moments among Jim, Hannah, Frank, and Selena, who found each other and formed a family, and among Spike, Isla, and Dr. Kelson. Despite everything, these characters don't lose their humanity, even after the hits keep coming.

28 Days Later set the template for much of what followed in the decade it was released. Its influence is incredibly evident in Zack Snyder's remake of Dawn of the Dead, I Am Legend, and certainly The Walking Dead. It's also a film that holds up surprisingly well, depicting a world teetering on collapse and showcasing isolation following a pandemic. Yet, for all of its kills and gore, 28 Days Later elevates and celebrates humanity, reminding us not to succumb to the rage virus and the worst aspects of ourselves.

28 Days Later is currently streaming for free on Pluto TV.