The Telegraph by Robbie Collin

This follow-up doesn’t re-take the temperature of British society one generation on so much as vivisect its twitching remains.

Original-Cin by Jim Slotek

The Scottish green hills and forests make for an intriguing change of scenery for the series, with nighttime given that added edge of dread that comes with unseen menace and glowing eyes.

The Seattle Times by Katie Walsh

Not that it was ever in question, but 28 Years Later is an invigorating reminder that Boyle, as a technician of dizzying, daring cinematic style, has never lost his fastball, and he employs it to great effect emphasizing Spike’s visceral emotional experience.

NME by Jordan Bassett

If it sounds like Boyle and Garland have been smoking some super-strength Cali weed in the writers’ room, you’ve heard nothing yet.

Variety by Peter Debruge

Typically, we look to adrenaline-fueled entertainment for catharsis. Boyle’s thrilling reboot offers enlightenment as well.

The Times by Ed Potton

The sense of hallucinogenic sweatiness won’t be to everyone’s taste but [Garland] and Boyle should be applauded for taking such big swings and having the flair and confidence to pull them off. It’s an astonishing piece of work.

Entertainment Weekly by Jordan Hoffman

Prepare for more gruesome kills, more gross-outs, more insight into how a society might actually look a generation after an unfathomable event. These movies are clearly infectious.

Arizona Republic by Bill Goodykoontz

It’s a horror-movie coming-of-age story, absolutely bonkers and gory and at its heart an art film about finding your own way in a world that has never made any sense since you’ve been in it, which is probably what the world feels like to any kid growing up, only most kids don’t have to protect themselves from zombies who want to devour them.

IGN by Tom Jorgensen

28 Years Later is as potent and timely an exploration of cultural strife as the original, and Danny Boyle and Alex Garland tug at the heartstrings with bloody, deadly skill.

Collider by Emma Kiely

An exciting and terrifying horror movie, a fresh and nuanced entry into the zombie catalog, a mesmerizing philosophical tale, all packed into a coming-of-age structure, 28 Years Later is one of the best zombie horror movies we’ve been given in years.

The Daily Beast by Nick Schager

A gripping, unnerving, and altogether thrilling saga that both continues its predecessors’ illustrious legacy and initiates what’s shaping up to be a promising new horror trilogy.

IndieWire by David Ehrlich

28 Years Later effectively uses the tropes of its genre to insist that the line between a tragedy and a statistic is thinner than we think, and more permeable than we realize.

The Irish Times by Donald Clarke

What most sticks in the brain is the film’s incidental meditation on the mythology of England from distant past to speculated future.

Consequence by Liz Shannon Miller

Boyle and Garland’s return to the franchise seems deliberately set on reinventing as many cliches as it can, while also exploding our assumptions about what a zombie movie might be. Make it to the end, and you’ll either be annoyed at its more over-the-top touches or delighted by the final bizarre moments. No matter what, you won’t be bored.

Screen Rant by Mary Kassel

Though it's more of a reboot than a sequel, 28 Years Later pays homage to the original film without sacrificing its originality & fresh spirit.

Time Out by Phil de Semlyen

Splicing in montage footage of marching soldiers, shots from Lawrence Olivier’s Henry V, and even archers in action, and layering in discordant sound design, Boyle reinvents the zombie movie as a bloody pop-art installation.