sunshine

THE FLICK: For a guy who has been pretty outspoken about his indifference to “genre” filmmaking, Danny Boyle is exceptionally good at it. Even in my personal run-ins with the director (during a lull in production of his misguided screwball comedy A Life Less Ordinary) he was quick to point out his preference for the stage, where actors act and directors are more than just glorified special effects technicians. So his success with screenwriter Alex Garland on the groundbreaking 28 Days Later and its sequel must be a particularly agonizing sort of irony. The one thing Boyle would find unbearable I’m sure is a career trapped in formula filmmaking hell, pigeonholed as a one-trick horror director making endless zombie sequels. Luckily, Sunshine, another experiment in genre reinvention, bombed in theaters stateside. From a Hollywood perspective, Boyle’s streak was over. But for fans of literate science-fiction, 3/4ths of Sunshine proves that there’s no better director working in the field of “disrespected” cinema today. Although its central idea is the ultimate in sci-fi high-concept - a group of scientists journey to the sun with a bomb the size of Manhattan to kickstart Earth’s dying star – Sunshine is still an actor’s showcase. Boyle is reunited with Cillian Murphy, whose eerie blue eyes and unwashed mop are the perfect vessel for a slacker physicist with spiritual issues. Chris Evans, the charmingly vain Human Torch from the dismal Fantastic Four films, is almost unrecognizable. And Boyle makes sure the rest of the supporting cast each gets a moment to shine, even if the script paints them as just another casualty. Alex Garland’s screenplay in another tribute piece. Just as 28 Days Later referenced everything that was wonderful about Romero’s zombie mythos, Sunshine steals bits and pieces from Alien, Solaris and that B-grade guilty pleasure Event Horizon to create something greater than the sum of its parts. As an outer space survival story, it’s top notch; throwing obstacle after obstacle in the crew’s way of achieving their near-impossible goal. And Boyle matches this intensity with a neo-psychedelic visual style, blending the space-based CGI work of a modern day Kubrick with his own off-the-cuff approach. For 3/4ths of the movie, it’s a dazzling display of cinematic virtuosity. Then the script hits a third-act wall that no manner of directorial tricks can overcome. The fact that this near-fatal flaw is a surprise twist (one that the early trailers maliciously gave away) means that to discuss it further would venture into spoiler territory. Suffice to say that Garland’s script simply turns into a slasher film, forgoing the previous hour-and-half of intelligent plotting to rely on cheap scares and a ridiculous indestructible villain. Had that final act gone differently, Sunshine might have approached true greatness. As it stands, it’s beautiful genre swansong from a director who didn’t know how close he really came. THE FEATURES: As the very first profile 1.1 Blu-ray to be released, Sunshine is a bit of a groundbreaker. This new technology allows the format to go toe-to-toe with the PIP extras included on rival HD DVD discs. But after all that arguing back and forth about advanced extras and in-film experiences, it really adds up to just a fancy way of presenting the same ‘ol featurettes we’ve seen before. Good thing the main feature itself is simply stunning in hi-def. Like a window-view of our solar system, Sunshine is blindingly beautiful to watch with lossless audio to boot. The only thing different from watching this in theaters is the size of your screen. As for the Enhanced Viewing Mode, it’s exclusive to Blu-ray and allows for pop-up featurettes that accompany select scenes (about 13 of them) focusing on props, special effects, etc. Nothing too revolutionary, but you can definitely see the potential for a more interactive video experience. Each featurette is also accessible separately from the main menu. Also exclusive to the format are number of deleted scenes including an alternate ending. The other extras are identical to the standard-def counterpart, including two commentaries (one by Boyle, another with the film’s science advisor), a variety of deleted scenes and web diaries, along with 2 short films of Boyle’s own choosing that have nothing to do with the main feature.