28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026)

Film Details

Director: Nia DaCosta

Run Time: 1hr 50m

Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, Chi Lewis-Parry, Erin Kellyman, Maura Bird, Emma Laird

Synopsis 

Dr Kelson finds himself in a relationship with consequences that could change the entire world forever.

My Review

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple certainly dives into the absurdity of its characters, relying upon the creepiness of Jack O’Connell’s Jimmy Crystal to deliver moments that will have the squeamish trembling. DaCosta’s direction and Garland’s script emphasises the contradictions found in a post-apocalyptic world, finding humanity in the infected and evil in the living but if I’m being totally honest, that felt extremely underwhelming and it lacked the same potency of the emotional core and coming of age backdrop its predecessor explored so wonderfully. I could justify the zombies taking a backseat in the last film because of how well those themes were executed, but the infected were an afterthought here, barely utilised and replaced with lacklustre storylines that focused on comedy and gore shock value. Don’t get me wrong, Ralph Fiennes and Jack O’Connell are excellent and it’s clear they were having a lot of fun with their roles, but such a large shift in tone between films just wasn’t for me.

I would also be lying if I said I didn’t miss the artistic flare that Danny Boyle delivered in his 28 Years Later, the inventive cinematography that felt perfect for this universe. Da Costa creates a wonderful faux-ritualistic scene set in the Bone Temple but that’s about it, the rest felt dull and uninspired. I adore the zombie genre and although I understand we need to elevate it beyond just simple zombie action, I don’t like seeing them sidelined completely. Despite the criticisms I have, I still enjoyed the film, the cast performed well with super intriguing characters and the final scene sets up plenty of excitement for the third instalment in this trilogy. From the incredibly high ratings I’m seeing, perhaps the creative decisions worked for many people and I hope I am the outlier and that many of you will enjoy it too, but for me, underwhelmed would be how I sum up my experience! 

My Rating: 6 out of 10

Thanks for reading.

Film Review Club