Film Reviews

Sunshine review
By GMG Member: Oli Crook

Director: Danny Boyle

Starring: Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Michelle Yeoh, Rose Byrne

Synopsis: Set fifty years in the future, the Sun is beginning to burn out, causing the earth to begin to freeze and threatening the lives of everyone on the planet. To combat this a crew of eight men and women are sent out on the Spacecraft Icarus II to launch a bomb into the heart of the dying star in an attempt to reignite it. However tension begins to build within the crew as they near the sun, and tempers begin to flare; this is not helped when the crew encounter the Icarus I, the ship which had previously attempted this mission seven years beforehand and long since thought destroyed, and set out to investigate.

Running Time: 107 Mins (Approx.)

Rating: 15

Review: Five years ago Danny Boyle (director of films such as Shallow Grave and Trainspotting) re-invented a genre with 28 Days Later, his modern take on the Zombie film; now, with the release of Sunshine he’s attempting to tackle a new niche-genre and make it his own, the science fiction film. Whilst Boyle perhaps doesn’t re-invent the Sci-Fi genre (much of the film is clearly inspired by other, more-established films in the genre, 2001 and Alien are clearly big influences); he certainly manages to deliver a strong film which definitely deserves a viewing.

There’s no holding back with Sunshine, aside from a brief narrative voice-over setting up the events of the film, we’re launched straight into the action; there’s no pre-launch sequence, no teary goodbyes from family members and friends; the film starts and we’re already 16 months into the mission, and the crew are about to lose their contact with the surface. This sets up nicely the atmosphere of tension and claustrophobia which permeates the whole film, five minutes in and the crew are completely alone, it’s just them and the rapidly approaching surface of the sun, an ever-present reminder of their mission and its importance.

This tension building in the first half of the film then gives way to a truly spectacular pay-off in the second half of the film as events rapidly spiral out of control for the crew of the Icarus II; and Boyle deftly balances the white-knuckle action sequences with the more tense, emotional moments, ensuring that the audience are kept constantly on the edges of their seats, whilst never straining the audience’s belief in the characters.

There are some truly spectacular sequences in this second half; one of the more memorable, and particularly unsettling of these involving a very clever use of subliminal imagery (to say much more would spoil it); however it’s let down slightly by one of the latter plot twists, which, whilst it doesn’t detract from the tension, is a bit of a leap in reality for the film, and undermines what has gone before slightly. That said the film is still very solid despite this, and provides a fantastic thrill ride whilst (mostly) never straying too far from the real of the possible.

The crew are fantastic and very solid, providing a range of familiar, but not too famous, faces; Cillian Murphy is as fantastic and as engaging as always, but it’s Chris Evans (no, not that one) who really shines, proving he’s able to handle roles with some depth rather than the two-dimensional characters he’s been playing previously. The standard of acting and character development is high, so that, by the time things start happening to the crew of the Icarus II, you will find yourself genuinely invested in these characters and concerned for their wellbeing.

In Short: A solid, well-paced, thriller; a slower tension-building starts gives way to an action-filled, white-knuckle second half, which will have you on the edge of your seat. With a fantastic cast, and characters you can genuinely believe in/care about, the film is only let down by the slightly ludicrous ending, however this shouldn’t deter you from enjoying what is essentially a thoroughly enjoyable film.

Marks Out Of 10: 8