Relevance, blood-gorging zombies make ’28 Weeks Later’ the movie to see now In theaters

28 WEEKS LATER directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, written by Rowan Joffe, E.L. Lavigne, Jesus Olmo and Fresnadillo, 91 minutes, rated R.

For horror buffs, the new Juan Carlos Fresnadillo film, “28 Weeks Later,” is the movie to see now. This tense sequel to Danny Boyle’s 2003 film, “28 Days Later,” opens with a shock of promise and, for the most part, sustains it.

Somewhere outside London, in a farmhouse sealed against the legions of virulent, blood-hungry zombies carousing for flesh not far beyond its doors, is a gathering of men and women living in near darkness.

They survived the scourge that collapsed much of mainland Britain in the first film and now are awaiting some sign that the rage virus, as it’s known, has passed so they can move among the living.

That is, of course, assuming anyone is alive in London and the surrounding area, which this group of frightened folks doesn’t know. But when a young boy comes hammering on the farmhouse door, they quickly realize they aren’t alone and let him in. Trouble is, the boy was being chased by legions of the undead, and by letting him in, they now join him in being a target.

Let the feasting and the fight for survival begin, with one of the characters, Don (Robert Carlyle), leaving his wife (Catherine McCormack) to fend for herself in the brutal rush of violence that ensues. He flees to a river, nearly is taken down by the tribe, and then, months later, finds himself in London, which is being repopulated with the help of U.S. troops, though presumably Don’s wife won’t be part of it. He believes she’s dead.

For Don, the question now is how to break that news to his children, Tammy (Imogen Poots) and Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton), who have been living in Spain since the outbreak. For this coward, the easiest way out is to lie, which backfires on him in ways that won’t be revealed here, but which gives this movie its satisfying emotional undercurrent.

Driven by Chris Gill’s frenetic, quick-cut editing and John Murphy’s thrumming score, “28 Weeks Later” is a zombie thriller first, but with a twist – it draws direct parallels to our involvement in Iraq.

Writers Rowan Joffe, E.L. Lavigne, Jesus Olmo and Fresnadillo have, after all, put Americans in charge of another country, with several mistakes made along the way that leave London and its inhabitants in worse shape than before. Not exactly subtle, though the movie isn’t out to fully demonize the U.S. It uses the American solider Doyle (Jeremy Renner) as one of the film’s heroes – he breaks ranks from slaughtering uninfected civilians by ushering Tammy, Andy and a group of others to safety.

Joining him in that task is Scarlet (Rose Byrne), an American doctor who watches the unrelenting carnage with a weariness that suggests she can’t stop what’s already been put into motion. Her response is to withdraw into silent acceptance, and what that does to the movie is chilling. It amplifies the screams of the dying and the undead in ways that fill the theater beyond reason.

Grade: B

On DVD

The BBC’s “Planet Earth” isn’t just the best of the recently released television series on DVD. So far, it’s the year’s best.

Richard Attenborough narrates with his typical reservoirs of controlled wonderment, weaving us through the earth’s evolution in a series that was five years in the making. Seamlessly, the show digs into the earth’s fantastic nooks and crannies in ways that raise questions (and awe) about how the filmmakers captured certain shots and also which reveal just how little we still know about our planet and its inhabitants.

The rich visuals are crisp and stunning, particularly in the HD DVD and Blu-ray versions, which are reason enough to champion the high-definition movement. You watch this show in admiration for the effort, sometimes reminded of the excellent French documentary “Microcosmos,” other times of “Life in the Undergrowth,” “Blue Planet” and “Winged Migration.” And yet “Planet Earth” is its own masterpiece. It’s the finest nature documentary yet.

Grade: A

Also on DVD is a television series that seemed to exist in its own universe. It’s the sixth season of “Will & Grace,” and what comes through this time out is just how much the series depended on the combined chemistry of its cast in order for it to work.

This is this season in which Debra Messing took weeks off for maternity leave, and what her absence underscores is the delicate balance at the heart of a show that could be so heartlessly funny. Co-stars Eric McCormack, Megan Mullally and Sean Hayes have a go of it without Messing, but in spite of the distracting number of celebrity cameos (J.Lo anyone?), you always sense her loss.

Grade: B-

Greed nearly got the best of “WKRP in Cincinnati: Complete First Season,” with the show’s producers failing to pony up enough money to get the music rights to many of the songs featured in the series. Since this sitcom took place at a rock radio station, the idea that this DVD set alters the original music isn’t as insignificant as it sounds.

The cast of misfit characters – Jennifer Marlowe (Loni Anderson), Dr. Johnny Fever (Howard Hesseman), Less Nessman (Richard Sanders), Venus Flytrap (Tim Reid), Bailey (Jan Smithers), Andy Travis (Gary Sandy) and Mr. Carlson (Gordon Jump) – remain a highlight, as does the writing.

But with the show’s music as critical to its success as its storylines, tampering with that can’t help but tamper with the outcome.

Grade: B

Visit www.weekinrewind.com, the archive of Bangor Daily News film critic Christopher Smith’s reviews, which appear Mondays and Fridays in Lifestyle, weekends in Television as well as on bangordailynews.com. He may be reached at Christopher@weekinrewind.com.