Sunshine (2007)

Sunshine; one of the most underrated science fiction films of all time. It's 2057, the sun is dying and humanity's last hope of salvation is 'restarting' the sun with a gigantic nuclear bomb attached to a spaceship, this thermonuclear device was constructed with the last of humanity's resources so it really is all or nothing for the small crew of the Icarus II. As you can probably tell already this plot is unique, I've seen a lot of apocalypse films and this is the freshest I've seen for a long time, instead of gratuitous explosions and alien invasions Danny Boyle chose to focus on something more 'real', something which seems feasible to us. It's partly this eerie sense of 'what if' that really makes this film; what if the fate of our planet really was up to a single crew of a few scientists? How far would we go to save ourselves? But what really sets this apart from your average Sci-fi/apocalypse film is the sense of isolation that Boyle manages to make you feel. In your average end-of-the-worlder there's always some kind of salvation in the distance, an ally of some kind who helps the characters, but not in Sunshine. The crew of the Icarus II are out of radio range of Earth and have no one but each other to help them finish this mission, and because of this you feel the impact of every decision the crew make, because you know one mistake could end it all. There is no second chance. This unforgiving atmosphere combined with the cast of relatively unknown actors makes everything feel so real that it's almost unnerving. Also worth mentioning is Boyle's use of music throughout the film because of the amazing effect it has on the atmosphere. Boyle's predominant choices of music for Sunshine were classical orchestral pieces with massive crescendo like finishes, and the way these pieces are integrated into the film is simply something else. In the penultimate scene John Murphy's 'Adagio In D Minor' is played along side the dramatic conclusion and the finished effect is nothing short of incredible, the action on screen and the music feel 'tied' together, a true master stroke by Boyle. To summarize I would say that Sunshine is the most sophisticated apocalypse film that I have ever seen; with believable characters, an original, semi-realistic plot, fantastic effects and a director who ticked all the boxes this is a film you simply must watch, it WILL change your opinion of Sci-fi forever.