28 Days Later is hugely significant for many reasons: it was a key film in the 2000s zombie revival, it was a British production that competed with the best American horror films of the decade, and it was proof that future Oscar winner Cillian Murphy and screenwriter Alex Garland had long careers ahead of them. But in 2002, a digital revolution was brewing in mainstream filmmaking, and 28 Days Later’s scuzzy visual design — courtesy of Canon MiniDV camcorders and Anthony Dod Mantle’s cinematography wizardry — set it apart from every other horror movie in multiplexes.
But although a new 4K remaster of 28 Days Later—now available on a Blu-ray Steelbook—sounds like it contradicts this intentionally low-res spirit, the contradiction between clean and ugly textures is a perfect match for Boyle’s seminal zombie film.
