Robert (Cillian Murphy) and a crew of ten or so are on the way to the Sun in the ship Icarus II. Its the 24th century and the Sun has lost some of its power. This has made a permanent and dangerous winter on Earth. Awhile ago, Icarus I was sent to the same destination with a nuclear bomb, very large, that would jump start the Sun's power again. Yet, Earth lost contact with Icarus I and the Sun didn't change. The assumption was made that Icarus I never made it to its destination. Now, II is the Earth's last hope. Needless to say, it is a dangerous mission. This is from the harsh realities of outer space, where perils abound. The closer any object gets to the Sun, the hotter things get. Yes, II is designed to withstand this temperature change but accidents can happen. Also, humankind needs oxygen and there is none in the atmosphere beyond the heavens. If someone gets loose on a spacewalk, they will die, and so forth. Strangely, the crew finds out that near the planet Mercury, signals are coming from the lost Icarus I. The II crew wonders if it were possible for the I astronauts to still be alive, given food supplies and other factors. An argument ensues. Some want to try and rescue their fellow humans, others say its too risky. One of the navigators has to recalculate the path of II if they choose this. Alas, an error is made and it sets off a chain of horrific events for some of the crew. Will there be anyone left to complete the mission? This film, made by Danny Boyle, the wonderful director of Slumdog millionaire, will be too dark for some, myself included. It is a true horror-science fiction flick, as is Alien, for example, but the horrors come from the nature of the Universe, not from some toothy monster. Space is a hazardous place to go when the conditions are frightful for human life adapted to the earth. Accidents can and do happen, no matter what the planning. As such, it is definitely NOT FUN to watch someone die from heat, lack of oxygen, or whatever comes along. Therefore, be warned. The cast is quite wonderful, especially Murphy who was the reason this viewer chose to watch it. But, even the most intriguing thespians would take a back seat to the special effects and wonderful sets of an outer space movie. How impressive to see the Sun so "close" to view! But, again, even though the concept is brilliant, the violence precludes it from being "universally" recommended.
