The greatest Danny Boyle films

The best of the Boyle

A new Danny Boyle film is always cause for celebration, and his latest - 28 Years Later - is even more exciting because it’s a return to the world of one of his best movies. Also it’s really good!

To mark the return of the Mancunian master, we’ve put together our top 5 favourite entries in his filmography.

5. Shallow Grave (1994)


Credit: Shallow Grave (1995) | Film4 Trailer (Film4, YouTube)

Boyle’s first film, Shallow Grave is a taut psychological thriller about a group of young professionals who decide to let out their spare room… with disastrous results.

When their new flatmate winds up dead, they decide to bury the body (in the shallow grave of the title) and keep the suitcase full of cash that he left behind for themselves. Of course, all three are quickly consumed by greed and jealousy, and things inevitably turn to violence.

This has all the hallmarks of a classic film noir - murder, greed, shady characters, a femme fatale - only set in Scotland in the modern day. Well… the early ‘90s, but close enough. Plus, a pair of early stand-out roles for Ewan McGregor and Christopher Eccleston.

It’s well worth a watch. Danny Boyle managed to hit it out of the park on his first try.

4. Yesterday (2019)


Credit: Yesterday – Trailer 1 (Universal Pictures) HD (Universal Pictures UK, YouTube)

Yesterday marked a bit of a tonal shift from Boyle’s usual stuff. There are no rageful zombies or anarchic heroin addicts here, just a sweet, fantastical, musical romantic comedy written by rom-com legend Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a FuneralLove, Actually).

Jack (Himesh Patel) is a down-on-his-luck musician who gets hit by a car and wakes up in a world where the Beatles never existed. But Jack still remembers the band, and - crucially - their catalogue of legendary songs.

What follows is a fun, peppy exploration of love, fame and the enduring popularity of some of the greatest pop songs ever written. You can hardly tell it’s a Danny Boyle movie, but it’s still a great watch.

3. Sunshine (2007)


Credit: Sunshine (2007) Trailer #1 (Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers, YouTube)

Sort of Danny Boyle’s slanted take on Alien, this heady sci-fi thriller is the product of another partnership with regular collaborator Alex Garland - probably one of the best writers working in Hollywood today.

The concept is brilliantly simple: the sun is dying, and a team of scientists are sent on a last-ditch mission through space to restart it with a nuke. But as the pressures of space travel - not to mention the impending apocalypse - begin to mount, the team starts to crack.

This is a tense, claustrophobic thriller that pivots into full-on slasher territory towards the end. There’s also a little bit of cosmic horror sprinkled on top, just to add flavour. And the cast is absolutely phenomenal - Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Rose Byrne, Benedict Wong, Michelle Yeoh, to name but a few.

An absolute banger, and one of the all-time great space horrors.

2. 28 Days Later (2002)


Credit: 28 DAYS LATER – Official Trailer (Sony Pictures Entertainment, YouTube)

A lean, mean, stripped-back zombie horror, 28 Days Later is big on scares, small on budget.

The story’s pretty straightforward - bike messenger Jim wakes from a coma to find that the UK has been decimated by a virus that turns people into rageful, blood-spewing monsters. The rest of the film is a breathless fight for survival against the infected and uninfected alike.

It’s a terrifying movie, made more so because it all feels so real. Boyle filmed it all on relatively cheap - but extremely mobile - digital cameras, which may look a little fuzzy these days but only add to the gritty, lo-fi aesthetic and the intensity of the action scenes.

And those now-iconic opening scenes of a desolate, empty London have taken on chilling new relevance after the Covid-19 pandemic.

The movie’s cultural impact also can’t be understated. After a massive lull in the ‘80s and ‘90s, 28 Days Later managed to resurrect the zombie genre for a whole new generation, and helped kick off a zombie boom that we’re still seeing the tail-end of now.

And, most importantly, it made zombies actually scary again.

1. Trainspotting (1996)


Credit: Trainspotting (1996) Official Trailer - Ewan McGregor Movie HD (Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers, YouTube)

Could the number one spot have been taken by anything else? Trainspotting is undeniably Boyle’s masterpiece, and one of the defining films of the ‘90s.

Following the exploits of a group of heroin addicts in Edinburgh, the film - based on the novel by Irvine Welsh - is a grungy, hilarious, harrowing snapshot of lives affected by drug abuse. The whole thing is infused with a kind of awful charisma, which you can’t help but get drawn into.

You might not agree with their exploits, but you’ll quickly come to love these characters. They’re just too fun to hate. Well, for the most part.

Trainspotting was a genuine cultural moment, and it remains one of the most popular and critically acclaimed British films of all time. Plus, it pretty much launched the career of Ewan McGregor.

Choose a big TV. Choose Trainspotting. Choose life.

 

Danny Boyle’s latest, 28 Years Later, is now in cinemas. Fancy checking it out for free? Get two free cinema tickets every month with Sky Cinema.

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