28 Years Later is a Coming-of-Age Story of a Boy Trying to Survive During the End of the World

 

Credit to 28 Years Later (2025) — IMDb

I’m thrilled that I finally got to watch 28 Years Later, that has officially completed the trilogy of 28 Days Later. I was so surprised to see the story we got, but I was so impressed by how great the third entry was. This horror trilogy is known for creating separate storylines, and this one was definitely another standout. 

It was so awesome to see the story expand on what is now happening in the world after 28 Years, and damn, it’s a hopeless world with barely any good in it left. The infected are like animals, going after anyone that would dare to cross their path…and even worse, some of the dead were able to evolve in some way, becoming a sort of ‘super zombie.’

And it 100% works, because after almost 3 decades, of course we might see some changes with the virus. 

The story begins with a child named Jimmy, who is experiencing the beginning of the end. 

Credit to 28 Years Later’s Bonkers Ending Is Going To Leave Audiences Divided

A child named Jimmy is introduced in the beginning of the film, who is about to experience a total traumatic moment of loss. He witnesses the infected invade his home, killing children, his mother, and other people in the house. He runs to his father for safety in the church, but his father has appeared to have lost his mind. 

He tells Jimmy to embrace the new world, (I think that was the message the father was going for with his kid here, but the dad was insane by this point), and Jimmy hides and listens in terror as during one of the best shots of the film, we see his father let the infected swarm him like ants, passing on the virus to him. 

It’s a great opening, and it sets up the future of 28 Years Later. 

We now cut to the main storyline, of a boy named Spike. 

Credit to 28 Years Later: What Does That Bizarre Ending Mean for the Franchise? — IGN

Spike is a child living in the new world that is set in the future of 28 years later. He lives on an island with a large group of people, and they are appearing to thrive pretty well. While Spike does seem happy in his home, he isn’t exactly living a happy home life. His mother is very sick, and while he has his father to look after him, it’s obvious that his mother’s condition is worrying him. 

His father then decides to take Spike to the mainland, that is considered to be the infected zone. People are allowed to leave the island, but they are not allowed to go save or look for them, in order to protect everyone else on the island. Also, they must beat the tide, because they literally cross a mini bridge that is located on water, that will become deadly or dangerous if they can’t avoid the tide. 

His father wants Spike to learn how to live and hunt on the mainland, so that he will be able to survive on his own. Spike and his father go on their own adventure, where they run into a super zombie and a group of the infected. They barely survive, and while they are hiding from the dead in a old house, Spike notices something burning in the distance. His father shrugs this realization off, and they head back to the mainland. 

But they are chased by a super zombie on the way back. The duo barely survive again, and they celebrate Spike’s first run on the mainland. Then when Spike leaves his party for a bit, he witnesses his father cheat on his mother. This upsets Spike, and he decides to head back to his home, where he learns a shocking truth about the fire on the mainland. 

The fire on the mainland was from a doctor who is considered to be insane, but Spike wonders if this stranger can help his sick mother. 

He decides to embark on his own journey to the mainland with his mother, to find the doctor. 

Credit to ’28 Years Later:’ Release Date, Cast, Plot, Trailer and News

Spike leaves the mainland with his mother, and during their journey, so much crazy shit goes down. 

They meet a soldier who is the last one standing after his whole group dies, and he saves the duo and aides them for a while. They come across a pregnant infected woman, who gives birth to a healthy baby. The soldier wants to kill the baby, because he is scared that the infected will continue to breed. He is killed by a super zombie, and the duo are on the run again. 

Yes, all of that happens, and yeah, it sounds pretty crazy, but it is directed so well. I liked the bonding moment we got with the soldier and the family duo, he seemed like kind of a cool dude, but once he wanted to murder a child, he sealed his fate. He did bring some comedy to the movie for a bit, and it was a nice escape from the bleakness of the film. 

Spike and his mother eventually run into the doctor, known as Dr. Kelson, after he saves them from the super zombie who killed the soldier. He brings them to his ‘bone temple,’ and he explains why he collects the dead. He is honoring them in some way, and it turned out that he was never insane. He is a pretty sweet guy with a huge heart, and he offers his aid to Spike’s mother. 

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the kind of help that Spike was hoping for. 

Spike’s mother is revealed to have cancer, and she decides to let the doctor end her life in a peaceful manner. 

Credit to ’28 Years Later’ review: This reboot is half-genius, half-monster — Los Angeles Times

This part was so freaking sad. I had a bad feeling that Spike’s mother was going to die, but it was still so tragic to watch. Spike is drugged by the doctor, so that he won’t interfere with his mother’s choice to end her life. The doctor gives the skull of his mother to Spike, and tells him that now he can honor her, like he does for the dead. 

Spike decides to put his mother’s skull on top of the bone temple, so that she can have the best view of the sunrise. 

Man, that is so sad, but bittersweet at the same time. 

After saving the doctor from the super zombie that tried to kill him and his mother before, he decides to leave with the baby they had saved. He leaves the baby at his island, but he never goes back. He makes the choice to continue his journey on the mainland, to see what else is out there. 

During his adventure, he meets a strange group. That leads to a sudden ending that left me confused. (At first).

We meet Jimmy from the beginning of the film, who is now all grown up. 

Credit to Why 28 Years Later’s Bizarre Ending Nearly Ruins It — YouTube

Jimmy introduces himself to Spike, after saving him from getting killed by a lot of infected. His group is just as wacky and strange as he is, and they appear to have fun killing the infected. Jimmy and Spike shake hands, ending the film. 

Yeah, that is how they end 28 Years Later. 

I got to be honest, I was so confused at first, because it felt way too abrupt. 

But then I realized that part 4 to this franchise is coming out in January next year, so it now makes a lot of sense. 

And there is some creepy behind the scenes shit with Jimmy’s character that is strongly implicating that he is pure evil. In two parts of the film while Spike is traveling with his father, we get two clues of his character, hinting that Jimmy is dangerous. They find a body that is hanging upside down, and a name that I couldn’t read was etched onto his body. 

It said Jimmy. 

His name is also found scrawled on the side of a building. 

I think this is enough clues for us to learn that Jimmy is going to be bad news. And I can’t wait to see what kind of horror is awaiting us for the next part of the franchise.