Student Film Reviews

Film reviews from theaters, couches, and film festivals

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1. Rafael Shiffman-Cardona 01.28.09 / 4pm

   I like that you were paying attention to some of the technical aspects of the film. I am not a film student so I envy that knowledge. My only real suggestion would be to remember to rewrite and check for grammar to keep it smooth.
2. Jesse Solomon 01.29.09 / 5pm

   Personally my favorite zombie movie is Shaun of the Dead and i would have to agree with you that this films plot is not by any means original but i still think it was a great film. Boyle never disapoints in my opinion there is just something about his films that embodies that reel you in for life.
3. Jason Sanders 01.30.09 / 10am

   The one thing you have to realize about this film, is that those are not zombies. It is a disease that engulfs the victim with pure rage, and then makes them feel the need to kill any way possible. In this case, a primal instinct and natural way to kill. Up to the point of where they meet the military men, the movie takes a natural progress towards the story I felt.
4. Aleksandra Mraovic 01.30.09 / 10am

   I saw 28 days a couple of days ago and I agree about the quality of the movie. I felt like the movie was recorded 20 years ago and not in 2002. In the end, that is all you remember about the film. I didn’t like how you could tell when the infected people were coming, that’s the reason the movie wasn’t scary.
5. Joel Pedersen 02.02.09 / 1am

   Not going to lie i typically look into th ewhole scary movie types. So i’m sad to say that i found myself on edge when in the movie theater. So i couldnt help but stare down my parents when they picked me up. Just to make sure they where not planing to kill me
6. Kevin Tran 02.02.09 / 2am

   The fact that this film was shot PURPOSEFULLY using DV camera and was still able to achieve it’s magnetic beauty is an impressive feat. The extreme wide shots of Jim wandering around an empty London are breathtaking. Although this film is NOT a zombie film (they’re infected humans), it borrows the same kind of conventions Romero created, however it also attempts to do it in a new way. The third act of the film, with the army troops who have lost their sense of humanity is something that Romero is still in fact exploring till this day. I think Boyle’s direction with 28 Days Later totally raises the bar in the genre and would recommend it above all other contemporary horror films.
7. Marcus Perfjell 02.02.09 / 6pm

   Well Kevin, I knew that it was shot in DV on purpose. But it still looks like crap to me and I think they should’ve shot it in 35mm.
   I know they are not zombies, due to other comments, I still put it in the zombie category.

   One thing I didn’t mention in the review is that I think this movie was very predictable. They could have chosen not to have so many POVs from the “infected humans” as they were watching their victims, to bring this unwanted effect down.

   Marcus
8. Kyle Calbreath 03.20.09 / 9pm

   “28 Days Later” is filmed in such a way for effect. The film has an apocalypse, an ‘end of the world’ story line, and so perhaps why the film looks so grainy is to illustrate the grisly situation that the characters are in. It’s an outbreak. This could even possibly be a social commentary, like most, “undead”/ “zombie” films where people push themselves to the brink, and on that brink act out in a way that causes them to survive. While the diseased are running to feed, the uninfected run to live. This film puts a problem within a developed land. The method of using the Dutch angle is to heighten the chaos that is happening. It’s a confusing and all together crazy situation.
   Also the idea of a blood thirsty, diseased human chasing me down is terrifying.
9. beaubrigham 05.15.09 / 1pm

   Personally, 28 days later is one of my favorite horror movies because of its style. When I was younger, I use to play a video game called Resident Evil. The first Resident Evil was a violent zombie game that was surprisingly a little creepy to play (when your 10 years old). 28 days later reminded me of the same type of mood that Resident Evil gave at the time. 28 days later is different from your typical zombie, horror film. 28 days later is a much darker film that portrays raged zombies on a different level. This film contains much more gore and violence than other zombie films. The excessive use of handheld shots adds to the intensity of the zombie scenes. I also really like the soundtrack of this film because it features an edited track called “East Hastings” played by an interesting instrumental band called Godspeed you! Black Emperor. This track is played in the beginning of the film when Jim wakes up from a coma in a deserted hospital. I found it interesting how the film crew captured some of their important shots. When shooting for this scene in London, on the Westminister bridge, the film crew used a mobile police block to delay traffic so they could get shots of the open streets. I actually was just in London, on the Westminister bridge and while I was there I was thinking how difficult it must have been to capture such a highly busy area as empty. What also made this possible was the film crews use of dv cameras. Dv cameras are much smaller and convenient to use compared to traditional cameras. This films soundtrack is perfect because the music and the action of the film build together which makes its dark mood more effective. Furthermore, the use of a hand held camera and quick cuts also contribute to this. If you are a horror fan, 28 days later is a must see.

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