[Professor S]

The best zombie films aren't about zombies, and thats been true since Romero invented the genre with Night of the Living Dead (or was it "The Last man on Earth"? that invented it?). Danny Boyle didn't revolutionize the zombie film, he just made a very good one. They have always been about how flawed people will survive this manageable disaster. I actually thought 28 Days Later was more about the zombies, just because their running zombies were more of a threat than the traditional dimwitted, plodding ones.

28 Days Later had to grow on me. I am a zombie flick fanatic, and find the whole genre to be enthralling if done correctly (read: not House of the Dead). Initially I hated the idea of running zombies, as it ruined the whole feeling of slow, crushing inevitability... and not at the hands of zombies, but because humans cannot deal with the situation without turning on one another. What always terrified me about Romero's films was the idea that this was a creeping, unavoidable destruction of society. 28 Days Later held the same themes as most of Romero's films, but it seemed to add the running zombies simply to add cheap scares. But over time, I've grown to enjoy the movie for its own qualities and I have to say I really like it.

As for the alternate ending, there are 3, and the best is the one that is only shown in storyboard. If that ending had been used, 28 Days Later would have not been just a good movie, but instead would have entered legendary status, IMO.

FYI, if you love zombie films, check out The Walking Dead comic series by Robert Kirkman. It is the best zombie story I've ever read or seen... EVER. Its absolutely fantastic, and I can;t recommend it enough. Its avalable in graphic novel form, so its easy to catch up with the story. Also, watch the afforementioned "The Last Man on Earth" starring Vincent Price. True, it centers on a form of viral vampirism rather than zombies, but all the same themes are present and it captures the desolate feeling of 28 Days Later, or should I say, 28 Days Later captures the desolate feeling of The Last Man on Earth. IMO, it is the first modern (not voodoo based) zombie film ever made.