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 http://filmmadnessmovies.blogspot.com/

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     28 Days Later might be one of the last non-sequel zombie movies, excluding George A. Romero. Oh, and it does take the zombie film mighty serious, not only using the plot line for flesh-eating chaos but for the depths of human depravity. And are those zombies fast. They do not come at a slowly labored trudge a la' Shaun of the Dead, but go sprinting- not running, sprinting(1)- toward the victim, roaring and vomiting blood. Sound unpleasant? You don't know the half of it.

     During the beginning of the movie, two members of my family started pointed out all they deemed inaccurate in the film. "Yeah, like those corpses wouldn't stink over a few days." "I love it how there are so few cars in a crammed city." Blah, blah, blah. I was stupefied. It's a zombie movie, people. And unless, like my brother, you seriously consider the possibility of the zombie apocalypse in our lifetimes, complete and utter realism isn't really what you're looking for in a film like this.

     So, anyway. The film begins in an laboratory, where animal rights activists who accidentally unleash a virus, called rage, freeing a caged chimpanzee. The peciluair primate proceeds to dispatch one, who immediately turns zombie. Sooner or later, they all die. The prologue is somewhat corny, with shrieking monkeys and dark corners, and the viewer shouldn't pay much mind to it if they want to maintain a serious view of the movie.

     The next scene shows Jim (Cillian Murphy,) the protagonist, lying in a hospital room in a dissipated room. He leaves puzzled and unsure if he is dreaming, and, to his astonishment, discovers that all of London is  in the same condition. He has several high-speed encounters with the walking dead a is thrown into the care of Mark and Selena (Naomie Harris,) two survivors. An unfortunate fate befalls Mark (poor guy doesn't have a lot of screen time,) they pick up a father and daughter (Brendan Gleesan and Megan Burns) and head toward a army base, where they were promised safety via radio and where their 'saviors' may not have the purest intentions.

    The movie is a steady mix of good, bad, and sometimes inane. One of the plot lines that fall into the latter varieties is the relationship between Jim, and Selena. In the first twenty-five minutes, Selena tells Jim that 'she will kill him if she has to.' Now, quick, guess... (a She will kill him, (b They will remain platonic friends, or (c they will hook up. Possible? Uh, yes. Predictable? Hell yeah. Selena is kind of a lame character who screams forced female empowerment. My favorite was  the teenage girl, Hannah (Megan Burns,) who was vulnerable but strong, and kept herself together despite tremendous losses without being 'tough.' The scene where she plays mind games with one of her human aggressors and watches him turn to butter is a joy to watch.

   The strongest assets are the cinematography, which is flashy, tense, and reminescent of Rennt Lola Rennt, the performances, and the undercurrent of philosophy running throughout the film. The gang mentality of the soldiers is shown in their bullying of Private Jones (Leo Bill,) and their taunts against one another. Are these he kind of guys the jerks you avoid at the coffee shop, or are the people you like and admire, who become something darker under stress? After all, many people respect the military, but who knows what crimes some of them are committing over in Afghanistan or Iraq?

     But I honestly think zombies have hokey overtones and work better as comedy, and Zombieland and Shaun of the Dead work better as movies. And yes, it is  a efficent piece of work, not really as frightening as interesting, and as a social commentary. But "Scary as Hell"? I don't believe so (Rated  R.) *1) Reference to Zombieland*

 rating- **  

   Shortly into El Bola, the twelve-year-old protagonist overhears a woman at his family's shop tell his father that 'if we were Pablo's age, we wouldn't have any problems.' If only that were true. Not only is that false on general terms (cartoonist Bill Watterson on said that "People who get nostalgic about childhood were obviously never children,") but Pablo is living with an unbearable load for anyone, in a household where breathing could get one beaten.

 El Bolais a full-blooded film about child abuse, yet lacking cheap shock value (Joan Crawford smudged with face cream, screaming "NO WIRE HANGERS!" while her little daughter cowers, comes to mind.) Instead of a larger than life (not to say over the top) performance as the crazy parent that wins a Razzle, this movie concentrates on the children affected, nay, not only that, but directs them well, which is hard to do.

     Sad-eyed Juan José Ballesta, as Pablo, is the emotional center of the film. Pablo calls himself 'pellet,' named after a little ball he keeps for luck, which doesn't seem to do him much good.  He harbors an almost doglike desire for a close friend, not the group of kids he plays a dangerous game on the train tracks with, further jeopardizing his safety, This security is found with Alfredo, the rough-around-the-edges son of a tattooist, who doesn't take to him at first when he finds his pleas for friendship desperate-bordering-on-the-creepy. They bond a little quickly at an amusement park, but it takes us to the main conflict in the film, which is when Pablo's sadistic pop Mariano finds his aloneness threatened, and tries to drive other people out of his life

     Alfredo's family's a wonder, to a kid who has never known a homelife without violence and painful punishment. A Liberal, playful bunch, they talk about just about anything and joke and laugh at the dinner table, a far cry from Pablo's family, with his mother yelling at his incontinent grandmother and his father constantly comparing Pablo to their other son who died in a car crash. But Alfredo's life is far from perfect. His father has a temper as well. His gay godfather is dying from AIDS, and he isn't allowed to see him due to the state he's in.

   The amazing thing about this film, which won the Spanish Academy Awards, and the child actors who have chosen to work in it, is the naturalness. The kids are not dumbed down, nor made into pretentious little douches who must read the dictionary every night before bed.  They're living, breathing, thinkinghumans (I'll leave the thinking part in underline, for future filmmakers to pay close attention to. They talk about death, about sickness, about food and phallic tattoos (can you get one? I don't know, and i suspect they don't either.) The dialogue seemed rarely scripted, and very natural.

   So what?  I won't give a four-star rating, because, well, the character development isn't quite strong enough, but it's certainly a impressive debut with kids, who, now that they're grown, are on the way to becoming great actors. It's very much worth watching. The question is, are you up for it? (Rated NR. Although it is rather perversely catagorized as a 'father-son children & family movie' on Netflix, it is definitely not for kids.)