Post-Apocalyptic – STREAMING MOVIE NIGHT

Time Didn’t Heal Anything….

28 Years Later plunges viewers back into the bleak aftermath of the Rage Virus outbreak, delivering an intense blend of survival horror, emotional depth, and chilling philosophy. Streaming on Netflix, Danny Boyle’s latest horror chapter explores human fragility and monstrous transformation nearly three decades after the initial pandemic.

The story centers on a fortified community on the island of Lindisfarne, cut off from the mainland by a causeway. Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) prepares his son Spike (Alfie Williams in his Feature Film Debut) for a coming-of-age hunting ritual, teaching him to hunt infected with bow and arrow. Their precarious existence shatters when Spike’s mother, Isla (Jodie Comer), falls mysteriously ill. Spike escapes to the mainland with her, determined to find Dr. Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), a reclusive doctor known for his troubling fixation on death.

The infected are more terrifying and evolved, exemplified by Samson, an Alpha infected with increased strength and cunning who leads vicious packs of infecteds. The film’s hunting sequences are taut and brutal, focusing on survival amid fast, relentless infected terrorizing the once-familiar landscape.

Dr. Kelson embodies the film’s somber philosophical heart. Living among the dead, he has constructed a sinister Bone Temple: a towering, macabre monument made from collected skulls and bones, including those of infected victims and fallen survivors. This shrine serves as a memento mori, a reminder of death’s permanence and humanity’s mortality. Kelson’s obsession with the Bone Temple reflects his struggle to find meaning in devastation, a fixation cloaked in ritual and melancholia.

The film opens with a 2002 scene featuring young Jimmy Crystal, a boy fleeing the initial chaos of the Rage outbreak alongside his father, a priest. His father gifts him a crucifix necklace and speaks of judgment day, embedding faith and destiny into the boy’s psyche. The movie’s closing scenes reveal Jimmy as an adult and charismatic cult leader, Sir Jimmy Crystal, whose followers share his name and mimic his appearance. This powerful connection between the innocent boy at the start and the manipulative cult figure at the end deepens the film’s exploration of trauma, faith, and power in a broken world. Sir Jimmy Crystal was reportedly inspired by the controversial British TV personality and charity fundraiser Jimmy Savile, who, after his death in 2011, was revealed to have been a prolific sexual predator.

Throughout, 28 Years Later weaves harrowing survival with emotional storytelling, including the pregnant infected woman who gives birth amid chaos, a stark metaphor for hope and life’s persistence. The dire truths of illness, betrayal, and loss underscore Spike’s journey from boyhood into brutal adulthood, navigating a savage world where faith itself is weaponized.

28 Years Later and its sequel 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple were filmed back-to-back during the summer of 2024, allowing for a seamless continuation of the story with consistent casting and tone. The Bone Temple, directed by Nia DaCosta with a screenplay by Alex Garland, is set to release on January 16, 2026. The sequel picks up where the first film leaves off, deepening the story of Spike’s induction into Sir Jimmy Crystal’s violent cult and Dr. Kelson’s dark discoveries. Cillian Murphy reprises his role from the original 28 Days Later as Jim, making a pivotal return in the ending of The Bone Temple, which sets up the highly anticipated third film in the trilogy, which is still in development.

Why stream: With a gripping storyline, fearsome new infected, and haunting meditations on death and belief through Dr. Kelson’s Bone Temple and Jimmy’s rise, 28 Years Later offers a fresh, profound evolution of Boyle’s groundbreaking horror saga. And if you’ve come this far on the journey, watching 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, you have to watch this one!

2024 Filmoption

Rated: TV-MA

Length: 1 hr 30min

Horror ~ Thriller

Directed by: Lowell Dean

Starring: Carrie-Anne Moss, Douglas Smith, Kimberly-Sue Murray and Frank Grillo.

How far would you go for the people that you love?

FROM THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE: (www.diealonethemovie.com)

Lost in a world reclaimed by nature and overrun by mysterious creatures, Ethan, a young man with amnesia navigates the dangerous landscape in search of his lost love, Emma. His journey takes an unexpected turn when he encounters Mae, a hardened and eccentric survivor. Together, Ethan and Mae face threats both human and otherwise before a fateful encounter with Kai unravels a secret that lies just beyond Ethan’s fractured memory.

The story of DIE ALONE took years to morph into the final version of our film. Years ago, it was a simple survival story of a young couple starting their life, only to be faced with the end of the world. Then, as the years (and script drafts) went on, I got less interested in the idea of a zombie apocalypse and more interested in the idea of what it takes to be a ‘survivor’. At its core, this film is really about one question – how far would you go for the people that you love?

I had been dreaming of making this film for nearly a decade, so seeing the actors finally bring the characters to life was incredibly moving. For me, there isn’t a false note in the entire cast. They were all easy-going, passionate, and deeply committed.

Having Carrie-Anne lead our film as Mae was wonderful. Mae is a complex character, and Carrie-Anne brought such soul and wit to the role. Douglas Smith was the perfect Ethan, nailing a challenging role, while Kimberly-Sue was a surprising gift, bringing a burst of energy to her portrayal of Emma, Ethan’s long-lost love.

Frank Grillo is intimidating as Kai, but I also love the tenderness he brings to the role. Working with Jonathan Cherry and Amy Matysio was a pleasure, as always—two actors I’ve cast in almost every film I make; they are my ringers. Harlan Blayne Kytwayhat and Steven Roy also played key roles and were a delight to work with. What can I say, the entire cast was fantastic!

For me, this film is inspired by the experience of being human—struggling to survive, do my best, and show kindness in tumultuous times. I wrote it before the Covid pandemic, back when I almost romanticized the idea of discarding my phone and leaving society behind. After living through the last few years, my perspective on the idea of a post-apocalyptic world has changed dramatically. Now, the film and its story are about holding on tightly to your family and loved ones, even when times are tough and the world around you feels cold. I also know a lot of tough women, so the character of Mae is inspired by the tough women in my life who keep things moving and endure my endless daydreaming!

I like films that are a blend of different genres and hard to define. I think life itself is weird and messy; one minute you are laughing and the next you are crying, so I love making films that reflect that. One of my favorite aspects of DIE ALONE is that it’s hard to pin down in terms of genre. People will likely assume it’s a horror film because of my previous work, but it’s far more a love story and a character study with moments of comedy, horror, and suspense. It’s a weird one!

FROM BOBBY:

I have watched so many movies lately I have hit a point where I have been having a hard time finding something new to watch. The new release movies are just starting to come to streaming and I’m watching them as soon as they hit streaming. So last night I was on the hunt and having a difficult time when I saw Die Alone. Well that’s new I thought, might as well give it a go. I hadn’t heard of it so I was going in blind not really knowing what it was about. Other than it was post-apocalyptic and this guy was wandering around looking for his girlfriend.

From the very first scene when Ethan (Douglas Smith) is narrating and we see him at the top of a hill overlooking an old house down in the valley, you get an eerie sense of foreboding. And that stays with you as events unfold. I found myself drawn in pretty quick as the mystery of the story unfolds itself. When Mae ( Carrie-Anne Moss) enters the scene you get the sense that she is an experienced survivor pretty quickly. A real Bad-ass not afraid to take out any threat at the drop of a hat. Ethan seems so innocent and vulnerable Mae saves him from a couple of bad guys and takes him in and shelters him.

As the story progresses there are a lot of flashbacks of Ethan and his girlfriend Emma before she got “lost”. It reminded me of the movie Strange Darling where the flashbacks told a different story and changed the perception as you went along. It keeps you guessing as to what the story really is and there is a twist at the end that is a pretty good one. It feels like one of those movies where you need to watch it a second time and you will see it in an entirely different perspective, like The Others and The Sixth Sense.

I really liked the movie, I enjoyed the ride and will watch it again to see if it has a different perspective to it now that I know the outcome. I thought Carrie-Ann Moss was really good in this. Tough, conniving and yet vulnerable and full of love. Douglas Smith seemed in the beginning like a little lost puppy dog you felt sorry for and I liked Kimberly-Sue Murray as Emma. It’s definitely worth a watch, at 91 minutes it is a quick ride, a good bit of fun.