Sunshine is a visually stunning piece of science-fiction, convincingly dramatized and bursting with the majesty and belittling terror of the cosmos. Cillian Murphy plays Robert Capa, the physicist among the crew of Icarus II on a mission to deliver the ultimate bomb into the Sun, which is inexplicably dying.
The first sections of the film deal with the discovery that the first ship sent on this mission--Icarus, which disappeared--is still in orbit around the sun and a series of mind-bendingly difficult dilemmas the crew faces when they decide to rendezvous with the first ship to obtain its unused payload. Needless to say, things do not go well, and decisions are difficult and fraught with brutal consequences that must be weighed against the future of humanity, which hangs on the success of this mission.
This part of Sunsine is absolutely riveting, drawing together philosophical threads on the worship of the Sun as an entity and the humbling vastness of space and cosmic indifference, and mixing these introspective subtleties into an absorbing tech-space drama. The interplay of the characters is convincing, the design of the sets and technology utterly realistic, with the result that the focus is on the human drama rather than whiz-bang effects. Murphy leads a stellar cast, with even Chis Evans redeeming himself for the dreadful Fantastic Four movies.
Director Danny Boyle brings some beautifully filmed sequences to life, with the highlight being a nail-biting space walk as two of the crew attempt to manually lower two malfunctioning shield panels, garbed in thick, confining protective sunsuits. Boyle shows us the claustrophobic view of the astronauts, peering out through a narrow helmet slit, movements severely limited, perched precariously on the outside of the ship, less than mere motes in the eye of the galaxy. Writer Alex Garland layers on conflict and tension, pushing the characters in extraordinary circumstances, and requiring them to make critical sacrifices and ethical choices. How they react and what happens as a result is carefully built into the fabric of the story. A SF film that is a philosophical drama instead of an over-the-top action film is both a rarity and a breath of fresh air.
The film switches gears for its last third, in a manner that I will not describe. The change of direction is unexpected, but if you run with it, the concluding sections of the film are satisfying. If the end of Sunshine lacks the philosopical and dramatic edge of the earlier passages, it makes up for it with horrific suspense.
Sunshine is a frequently stunning and emotionally and viscerally exciting vision.
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Directed by Danny Boyle
Written by Alex Garland
Starring:
Cliff Curtis...Dr. Searle
Chipo Chung...Voice of Icarus
Cillian Murphy...Robert Capa
Michelle Yeoh...Corazon
Hiroyuki Sanada...Capt. Kaneda
Rose Byrne...Cassie
Benedict Wong...Trey
Chris Evans...Mace
Troy Garity...Harvey
Mark Strong...Capt. Pinbacker
Sunshine is a visually stunning piece of science-fiction, convincingly dramatized and bursting with the majesty and belittling terror of the cosmos. Cillian Murphy plays Robert Capa, the physicist among the crew of Icarus II on a mission to deliver the ultimate bomb into the Sun, which is inexplicably dying. 
Director Danny Boyle brings some beautifully filmed sequences to life, with the highlight being a nail-biting space walk as two of the crew attempt to manually lower two malfunctioning shield panels, garbed in thick, confining protective sunsuits. Boyle shows us the claustrophobic view of the astronauts, peering out through a narrow helmet slit, movements severely limited, perched precariously on the outside of the ship, less than mere motes in the eye of the galaxy. Writer Alex Garland layers on conflict and tension, pushing the characters in extraordinary circumstances, and requiring them to make critical sacrifices and ethical choices. How they react and what happens as a result is carefully built into the fabric of the story. A SF film that is a philosophical drama instead of an over-the-top action film is both a rarity and a breath of fresh air.
