SUNSHINE NOT TOO BRIGHT"Here comes the sun".... whoops, not here. This is the year 2057 and the sun is dying. A handful of scientists take on the mission to save the sun by giving it an injection or sorts of the nuclear kind. But as usual, it is a much more simple and complicated story than that. The simple is the theme of science against nature, the power of science versus the power of God. The Commander of the first shuttle, the Icarus, (Note: From Greek mythology: Overcome by the sublime feeling that flying gave him, Icarus soared through the sky joyfully, but in the process he came too close to the sun which melted his wings.) has left a voice transmission that leads us further into the subtle plot theme; "I am Pinbacker, Commander of the Icarus One. We have abandoned our mission. Our star is dying. All our science. All our hopes, our... our dreams, are foolish! In the face of this, we are dust, nothing more. Unto this dust, we return. When he chooses for us to die, it is not our place to challenge God." At the time, the crew on the Icarus II, being scientists, has no idea what that means; not for long anyway. The more complicated story is that of the crew. There are hints of past personal issues, romance, hate, instability. It is there that the character sub-stories get in the way of the action sub-stories. It gets hard to track and when things are blowing up all around, it gets harder. It is hard to define which is Icarus One and which is the other. The cast is not all-star and that's okay, they do a fine job. Capa (Cillian Murphy) is the best known for his villainous roles. Here he plays a begrudging hero and does so well, all wide-eyed and bushy tailed. It is the big ending where he finds the answers to what he has been looking for; neither in science or in God, but in a bit of both. With man standing in the shadow of the sun, even actors pale.
Rating: Not one of my favorites, but certainly exciting and entertaining.
