Illogical plot and flat characters plague this disappointing sequel

Rating: 3/10 (13 May 2007)

The movie begins in the dead center of the original outbreak of the epidemic in England. We are introduced to a handful of people hiding out from the rage-infected including Robert Carlyle's character and his wife. After a short time, the house is attacked and most of the group killed by the zombie-like masses. The husband and wife are separated and he flees to water, barely escaping with his life.
Here is my first of many complaints of this film. The separation of the couple is used as a cheap emotional ploy to discredit Carlyle. Standing across the room from his wife, whom he had desperately been pleading that she flee with him, he is outnumbered by rage-infected and weaponless. He makes the only choice he possibly can as a realistic character and takes the way out which is available to him. Only the invincible action-hero archetype could be expected any other course of action.
The opening scene itself is the high-point of the film. From here we jump to what the title promises as months later. NATO, led by, guess who.. the US, moves in to begin re-population of the country. Unfortunately the country is still littered with bodies of victims and is, in general, exceptionally unsafe. Still out military decides to set up a "safe zone" (glaringly pointing to our Iraq "green zone" folly), right outside of the city with ridiculously lousy security. Carlyle's 2 children, who had been in Spain during the outbreak, return home and are reunited with their father. In a hopelessly coincidental turn of events, Carlyle just happens to have complete access to everything about the compound.
Their first day back in Mother England, these 2 young characters easily escape the compound even though they are spotted by the military, and return home to get "some stuff". Even viewing the desolation first hand and discovering a decomposed corpse isn't enough to open these morons' eyes to the horror of events and stop them from trotting home for some clothes and misc. riff-raff.
Upon returning home, the children discover that their mother some how (which is never revealed) survived the attack and has been living in the house for the past few months. The military finally arrive and take the children and their mother back to the "green zone".
The mother, who is a carrier of the disease but shows no symptoms due to a genetic abnormality, is a precious commodity as she may contain the secrets to a cure. So since she is so very special, the military straps her to a table and leaves her by herself and unguarded in an area her husband can conveniently access. How we are supposed to believe the military would give SUCH complete access to a civilian is beyond me. The children, who are in trouble for sneaking out, are given a guard. I guess they didn't have another to spare for the woman that might save humanity.
Predictably, the mother infects Carlyle who flies into the usual "rage", kills her, and escapes into the compound starting the infection all over again.
The compound is insanely unprepared for this event and attempts to "lock down" civilians in a room with a back door...
Panic and mayhem ensue as the infection begins to spread and the military begins its indiscriminate slaughter of the citizens. Another thumb of the nose to military.
From here the film just spirals into your basic "zombie chase" movie losing red-shirts left and right. We are introduced to, then lose, a few characters, giving us no richness of character along the way. Carlyle occasionally pops up in the vain of a long-haired Japanese ghost. There is no logical reason for his appearances, but at this point, the movie is no longer at home to Mr. Logic.
Ultimately, we are given the beyond predictable "twist" setting up the inevitable 28 Months Later. Between the illogical plot and idiotic characters, the director burns vast amounts of film on sweeping shots of the abandoned countryside and close-up views of the characters faces as they "react".. or fail to react, to the horror around them.
Having hailed 28 Days Later as possibly my favorite modern horror film, I was disappointed.