'28 Weeks Later' is a zombie flick with a political message

When scary movies built on a shoestring budget do well, it's kind of cool, because working outside the studio system, one is allowed a tremendous amount of freedom on what direction the movie will go.

When the movie is a hit and the studios throw money at you for a sequel ... well, things get interesting. On one hand, you have a hit, and a major studio wants a piece of the action, hiring you with millions to make another "independent," but this time on a studio budget. Hmmm ... the dilemma. Can you still insert your covert message that goes well beyond the scare factor without coming across like you're soapboxing the uninitiated?

First, rent the original outing, "28 Days Later" to familiarize yourself with why a sequel was even made to begin with. Danny Boyle's tale of what happens when a virus is unleashed upon the UK was pretty horrific, but nothing compared to its catastrophic follow-up, "28 Weeks Later."

It always amazed me that zombies needed to feed off living humans in order to stay alive, and not just chew on other zombies. It's all about the freshness of the product, really. Never thought one could add to the zombie genre, since everything had already been covered, too. But why do they always seem to just poke along at a very slow pace? I guess death slows you down some, huh?

At some point the zombies have depleted their food supply and have died off (again), and Britain's population has also been thinned considerably, but the British government has determined that it's safe to return to their homes, as the virus that started it all has been killed off as well.

Family man Don (Robert Carlyle) winds up in London as part of the massive relocation/reconstruction program, trying to corral the populus and get things back to normal. Don is also trying to grapple with what has happened to his wife, Alice (Catherine McCormack), and how he must tell his children, Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton) and Tammy (Imogen Poots) what happened to her. The kids were abroad, so they escaped the homicidal carnage, but what's up with dad? Is he not telling the truth regarding the kids' mom? Did she die or what? Was she abandoned or did she survive the zombie attacks? And why has the United States been given the task of taking over Britain's problems? Are we being the police force once again for another nation?

It becomes really obvious that director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo ("Intacto") is sending out several messages, both politically and religiously, depending on your slant. Fresnadillo (who also co-wrote the script) took over directing duties from Boyle, who in fact is still on board serving as a second unit director this time around.

One wouldn't usually expect blatant messages about our government and its policies buried inside a horror movie, but then I got to thinkin' about past scare fests and what they were really saying about our society. From George Romero's classic "Night of the Living Dead," which dropped hints of social unrest in the '60s, to Joe Dante and Sam Hamm's "Masters of Horror" 2005 episode, "Homecoming," commenting on dead soldiers rising out of their coffins to cast votes against the Iraq war, horror movies are more than just about the scare factor - scaring us with commentary sometimes about the world we live in.

- Howie Nave is host/manager of The Improv comedy club inside Harveys and reviews films for seven radio stations throughout northern California and Nevada, including the Sirius Radio Network every Sunday evening. He hosts "Howie's Morning Rush" on Tahoe's KRLT radio and you can see his film reviews every Friday morning on KOLO ABC TV Channel 8.



Keepin' it reel:

Now Playing: "28 Weeks Later"

Starring: Catherine McCormack, Robert Carlyle, Amanda Walker, Shahid Ahmed, Garfield Morgan, Emily Beecham, Beans El-Balawi, Chris Ryman, Jeremy Renner, Harold Perrineau, Rose Byrne, Imogen Poots and Mackintosh Muggleton

Directed by: Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

Rated: R for strong violence and gore, language and some sexuality/nudity

Running time: 100 minutes

Howie gives it: 4 out of 5 bagels