All I can say is, thank God the Queen's been in America. She'd be shocked and saddened to see what's become of London.

	The rage virus is back "28 Weeks Later." Click photo for larger image. '28 Weeks Later' Starring: Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne. Director: Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. Rating: R for strong violence and gore, language and some sexuality/nudity. Web site: http://www.foxinternational.com/

As if things weren't enough of a mess there in "28 Days Later" (2003), they get worse in "28 Weeks Later." You recall, I'm sure, that bleeding-heart animal-rights liberals liberated a bunch of monkeys carrying a deadly virus that ravaged the U.K. Humans who get infected become zombies "in a permanent state of murderous rage."

I'm there, without being infected. But never mind. Six months later, the U.S. Army has restored order, secured a small area of London for survivors to repopulate, and declared: Mission Accomplished!

Yeah, well ... There seem to be plenty of "the infected" around the village where Don (Robert Carlyle) and his wife, Alice (Catherine McCormack) are hiding out. When they raid his Rage refuge, not-so-brave Don abandons wife and unchivalrously escapes with his own hide.

Soon enough, though, his children, Andy (the wonderfully named Mackintosh Muggleton)and Tammy (Imogen Poots!) are reunited with their father, in the first wave of returning refugees. But how did their presumably murdered mom somehow survive to be de-toxed, hosed-down and blow-dried?

Don't ask, don't tell. This is weird, post-Apocalyptic London, where "Lord of the Flies" chaos reigns until the GIs kick into gear again, rescuing those needing to be rescued, executing those needing to be executed, not necessarily in that order.

Suffice to say, everybody's very nervous.

"What if it comes back?" asks military doctor Scarlet (Rose Byrne).

"It won't," says the macho general.

"What if it does?"

"If it does, we kill it."

Bring 'em on!

Turns out that Alice and the kids just might have a rare genetic immunity to the virus that makes them invaluable for vaccine purposes -- assuming they escape the ravenous zombies and stampede of evacuees running mindlessly in all directions.

"Target everybody!" orders the general.

If it sounds harsh, keep in mind that these aren't your garden-variety zombies. These are Rage zombies -- irate on and off the road.

But what about all the collateral damage and innocent bystanders -- byrunners, actually? Fortunately, there's one good GI among the dedicated snipers (Jeremy Renner), who refuses to shoot the kids and helps them escape the military's epidemic cleansing as well as the Rage zombies. You might call him The Lone Rager.

Director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo ("Intacto") provides ferocious set pieces and nihilistic excitement, especially in the amazing firebombing of London back to the Stonehenge Age. It cooks everybody and everything -- an astonishing F/X feat of pointless destruction. There's also a nifty helicopter-blades sequence involving the slicing and dicing of zombies.

But at heart it's just George Romero Redux. The original "28" was more logically suspenseful, its characters at least semi-sympathetic. This "28" substitutes decibels -- pounding, thundering music and explosions -- and frantically fragmented close-ups for suspense. Carlyle ("The Full Monty," "Trainspotting") seems, and should be, embarrassed.

It's the noisiest and cheapest of thrills. Rowan Joffe's screenplay lacks a moment of sense. At the preview, people were bailing by the dozens. There were 50 walk-outs before I stopped counting -- and giggles and groans from the ones who remained. Never saw anything like it in my life. Hope not to again.