28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
Review: We’re only 16 days into the year and I’ve already gotten to experience one of my most anticipated films of the year. What a time to be alive. The film features the return of some characters we got to know in last year’s ‘28 Years Later’ including Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), Spike (Alfie Williams), & the infected known as Samson (Chi Lewis-Parry). Fiennes takes the lead role and, gosh, he just plays such an interesting character that is so easy to get invested in. They are also joined my a group of characters all named Jimmy, who we briefly saw at the end of the last film, led by Jack O’Connell’s Sir Lord Jimmy. Erin Kellyman’s Jimmy Ink also plays a bigger role and shows some real complexities. The film goes in an incredibly interesting direction when all of these factors meet head on and continue to send the franchise in a super intriguing direction. The film was decently scary. More creepy than scary, but there were a couple good jumps that got me pretty hard. And for as scary (& gory) as it was, it was equally as funny, earning several laughs from the theater I was in. The film was not helmed by director Danny Boyle, with Nia DeCosta taking over, as well as a new cinematographer in Sean Bobbitt. Many were skeptical of this, but I think the film still has the creative & divisive direction and camerawork the previous film had, just in a different way. There were some really cool shots letting us see the POV of the infected & other characters that really worked for me. I have a few more thoughts down at the bottom of this page that contain spoilers. Be warned.
High: All the performances in this movie are peak. Alfie Williams is really impressive in both of these films, Jack O’Connell is such an ominous villain, somehow the scariest part in a movie about a rage virus, and Chi Lewis-Parry is the unsung hero as Samson. His physicality and expressions are great, and his character had some surprising emotional depth in this movie. And Ralph Fiennes? Don’t even get me started. One of the best actors alive! And he throws his all into his performance here. Love it.
Low: The film was really good and I had a great time with it, but it is very much a segue film that serves as the middle point of a trilogy. The first film ended in a very similar inconclusive manner, setting up the next film. Unfortunately, the release of the next film is TBD (reports say summer ‘27 or ‘28, here’s hoping for '27). The open ending is understandable, but does leave some to be desired.
Rating: 8/10
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SPOILER THOUGHTS:
Okay, what the film did with Kelson & Samson’s relationship was brilliant. I really wish Kelson would’ve survived so we could continue to see this and he could get to see the fruits of his labor, but I am trusting the process.
I also am shocked they killed off O’Connell’s Jimmy. That dude was insane. His fixation on these few things he knew before the outbreak is a nice touch.
One thing I don’t get is how the Jimmys have never encountered Kelson or the bone temple before when they seem to be in decently close proximity and he has that huge smoke stack that Spike & his dad encountered. Just feels unlikely. But the Jimmys aren’t fully there so I guess you could just say that.
I think it’s funny the scariest looking scene from the trailer was in reality just Kelson being silly and having fun.
I was expecting Cillian Murphy to pop up at some point. And they way they had him appear at the very end to set up the next film, just like they did with the Jimmys in the last film, was great. Really good reintroduction to the character.
