28 Days Later
As you might have detected from the title of my blog, I am a big fan of the movie 12 Monkeys. Well, when I first heard about 28 Days Later I just got the feeling that I needed to see it. It was about a future (or present?) where there was a cataclysmic virus outbreak that involved monkeys. Of course it had a number in the title which was another similarity, but that’s basically where the similarities to 12 Monkeys ends. It also was directed by Danny Boyle of Trainspotting fame, another favorite of mine.
Reactions to this movie that I’ve seen have been all over the board. I liked it. I thought it was well done, well-acted, and keeps you entertained throughout. It is essentially a slightly different take on your standard zombie movie, but with more modern twist involving a virus and a morality play about rage and violence. It is that morality play that some people may find a bit preachy and simplistic, but luckily we are not banged over the head by it. Lots of good action and nail-biting suspense pervade the flick but at the same time what appears to be a somewhat hopeless situation really weighs you down. In this way I found myself pretty well immersed into the movie.
One other odd item in the movie is the alternate ending, which is no secret – it’s advertised along with the rest of the film. Although I like alternate endings on DVD’s, somehow seeing one in a movie theater was unsettling. I wanted to see the vision the director had. When the alternate ending was shown, it kind of muddled the whole story. Did X happen or did Y? I’m now of the opinion that one should have a chance to at least have a decent amount of time to reflect on one ending, not get presented with a bunch of different possibilities at the same time. Maybe this was done with an effect in mind – give one the impression that we as viewers and members of the human race have a choice in how we want things to come out. But that may be just silly overreaching on my own part…
I would go see that, but I hate scary movies. They keep me up at night. I
know it sounds sad... but that's just how I am. =)
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The alternate ending was not part of the film upon its initial release, so
as far as I'm concerned, you can disregard it in terms of making sense of
the whole. Fox Searchlight saw a good opportunity to generate publicity
and improve upon an already successful run by tacking on the alternate
ending after the film had been in release for a month.
I think it's a terrific film that drops the characters to the lowest level on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and examines how they fare as they move upward. Thoughtful and intense, it's the best horror film I've seen in quite some time.
Zeitgeist
If you research the alternate ending you'll find the alternate is the
original ending filmed by the director. Yes it was a ploy by the
distributer to bring more folks [back] into the theatre, but if you see it
with the alternate presented, view the movie as if it only had the
alternate ending.
The distributer found this ending too dark and commissioned the filming of the ending seen with the first release. That means the "happy" ending is, in fact, the alternate ending.!
researcher