Sunshine

by Ernie Stanley

I recently saw Sunshine a movie written by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 days Later). Having seen 28 Days Later, I was pleasantly surprised by the philsophical depth of the movie. The movie is sci-fi psychological thriller which takes place in the year 2057, a time where the sun has begun dying. The plot follows an international crew of astronauts whose mission is to orbit the sun and launch a nuclear missile into a pinpoint area to reenergize the sun. This mission, having mined every fissile material from the earth, is the last hope for human survival. However, saving the sun is only the underlying theme of the movie. The major theme of the movie is the god-like power of the our sun.

The movie displays the sun as the end-all and be-all of our physical existence. It has immense destructive power we do not normally realize. We cannot touch it, we cannot even look at it with unfiltered eyes. Imagine what we would see if we could look at it up close. The movie displays those who look at it as enlightened, but also shows how looking at it destroys the observer. Every character dies in this movie, but those who die looking at the sun appear to reach a nirvana like state prior to death. I cannot fathom how it would to be able to look into what allowed me to exist. Though I have no doubt it would consume and irrevocably alter me.

The sun brings forth life, controls it and can destroy it. And yet it is incredibly similar to us in one very simple way: it is constantly in the process of dying. In the end, it will turn to stardust, just like us. Yet, it is the most powerful thing we know. It is no wonder that primal cultures revere it.

What is wonder-full is the notion that literate societies disregard it or even fight it. Why do we have sunscreen? To stop the sun. What is a major problem? Ozone layers deteriorating. Global Warming is another sun-caused problem. Literate societies fail to embrace the sun, especially in religious context. Were I christian, muslim or jew who worshipped the sun, or even revered its near-divine power, I would be a heretic. I am at a loss of words as to why we fail to revere or even continually remind ourselves of the sun's power other than perhaps the antiquated notion that we are the center of the universe.