28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – Film Review

Director – Nia DaCosta
Writer – Alex Garland
Stars – Jack O’Connell, Ralph Fiennes, Emma Laird

The film picks up where the previous one left off, and if you can’t remember where that was, we recommend watching it before seeing this outing. Our fresh-faced main protagonist, Spike (Alfie Williams), is about to be inducted into Sir Jimmy Crystal’s (Jack O’Connell) gang. This induction takes the form of a fight to the death with one of the existing members! The other strand of the story is that of Dr Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), who has survived many years on his own and is a touch eccentric to say the least. We see Kelson’s interactions/ experiments and, dare I say, friendship(?) with the Alpha Zombie named Samson (Chi Lewis-Parry).

This film is the second part of the new trilogy of films, and the fourth film overall. The first part of the 28 Years Later trilogy was released in June of last year and was directed by Danny Boyle. This time out, we have Nia DaCosta taking over the mantle. DaCosta is known for her reboot of Candyman in 2021 and also her less successful superhero outing, The Marvels, from 2023. DaCosta seems on more familiar ground with this horror epic.

Writer Alex Garland seems to be enjoying himself with this return to the world of zombies. It is not a traditional zombie film in any sense, and while the beasts do lurk in the forest, it explores a variety of other themes. We see the pseudo-religious utterings of Sir Jimmy Crystal and his gang of thieves and villains, along with Dr Kelson’s more cerebral existence as he builds his temple to those who have fallen from the plague. The film is not what I was expecting, and that can only be applauded as it refuses to go down the usual storylines. The performances of Jack O’Connell and Ralph Fiennes also elevate this work. O’Connell is a nicely demented product of his society, with a loose grip on reality. Fiennes plays Dr Kelson as a thoughtful man, using his intellect to survive in this changed world. This film will no doubt annoy many who go to the cinema expecting to see a blood and thunder zombie onslaught. While there are moments of gore and extremes of violence, it can also be cerebral and even intentionally funny. As the middle film of a trilogy, it is often seen as a precursor for the final instalment, and as we’ve already been promised the return of Cillian Murphy, this release will do well to whet the appetite.