The Infected are back!

Rating: 7/10 (13 May 2007)

With a slow opening that lulls you in to a false sense of security its not long before we are reintroduced to the infected, the super fast zombies we first met in 28 days later, and all chaos breaks loose. With a pumping soundtrack hordes of the infected attack a cottage where survivors were hiding. Later we are introduced to the only person not to be killed during that opening frenzy, Don (played by Robert Carlyle) who is now a caretaker in an American controlled area of London. It's at this point in the story that we are told that the virus is under control, wiped out and gone for good. As with any horror film worth its weight that is not the case and the infected are back and in the quarantine zone and it's down to the army to try and regain control. One part of that army is their doctor convinced that Don's children may hold a cure to the virus and along with a rogue soldier and some general public they have the task of getting the kids to safety in the face of not only the infected but also an army who believe they have lost control and declare code red, destroy everything. With a keener sense of where it is going compared to the first film the pacing is brilliant, the zombie action is upped and the effects are pretty top notch. There is a great scene in the underground done with night vision which is part 'Blair Witch' and part 'Most Haunted'. There are some not so obvious metaphors for the war on terror and even a thinly veiled 9/11 reference hidden amongst the violence and mayhem. Just like in the first film there are all the familiar sights of London all empty and abandoned adding to the bleakness of the overall feel. The only thing wrong with the film as a whole is the kids who can't act for toffee, I'm not sure why the boy was chosen but I'm guessing his on screen sister was chosen because if you squinted she looked a bit like a young Denise Richards. With a ending in a traditional style leaving it open if anyone wants to pick up the mantle and make another, its over and what you have seen is a good horror film. Not the best but much better than its predecessor.