Starring: Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng, Hiroyuki Sanada
Director: Danny Boyle
Category: IIB
The central premise of Sunshine is hardly original. The Alien films are probably the best known examples of astronauts meeting their demise one by one while on a perilous mission.
Sunshine's most obvious homage is to 2001: A Space Odyssey. Like Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece, its sumptuous special effects and eerie ambience make for a majestic visual feast. However, Sunshine is more than just a homage. It can only be done justice in light of the filmography of director Danny Boyle. Whereas most space thrillers rely on man's fear of machines, Sunshine has its roots in Boyle's obsession with the spiritual strengths and weaknesses of mortals - as seen in various of his earlier films such as Shallow Grave, Trainspotting and his apocalyptic 28 Days Later.
Most of Sunshine is set aboard Icarus II, a vast spaceship carrying a team of eight whose mission is to reinvigorate the dying Sun by launching a nuclear bomb at it.