8. 28 Days Later (2002-2007)
Originally... Danny Boyle's
28 Days Later... was made on a relatively low-budget, but managed to encompass heaps of atmosphere and tons of scares. The story, set in a post-apocalyptic Britain after a deadly "rage" virus has turned most of the population into super-fast "zombies," it's taut, terrifying and surprisingly lacking in guns and weaponry.
So What Changed? Its sequel,
28 Weeks Later, emerged 7 years later, and made an
Alien/Aliens-like genre transition (more about that later), bringing more scope, explosions and fire-power to the franchise, transforming the quiet horror genre flick into something more action-orientated. There were also more characters with guns this time around, which meant that - although scary in places - the frightening edge was replaced with extensive helicopter sequences and machine guns going off.
Did It Pay Off? Yes and no. Considered by itself, 28 Weeks Later is an effective film, but fans of the original might be disappointed to find that much of the tension has vanished.