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More ways of interpreting Sunshine

posted 8 years ago by PrivateBozz
2 replies | jump to latest

There's an official interpretation of 'Sunshine' that Alex Garland explains in his introduction to the script. According to him it's about a group of atheists meeting a god-like entity. What happens in Capa's final scene is interpreted differently by Alex Garland and Danny Boyle. While Danny Boyle feels Capa really does meet god in the end, Alex Garland believes they make an error by thinking it's god. But he also says: I didn't see this as a major problem, because the difference in our approach wasn't in conflict with the way in which the story would be told. The two interpretation that could be made from the narrative were the same two interpretations that could be made from the world around us. In that respect, perhaps the difference was even appropriate. (You can find his whole introduction here: http://twilightvisions.com/sunshine/introduction.htm)

Besides that 'science meets nature' interpretation I want to add two more ways of looking at this movie, that came to me yesterday (this movie has made me think a LOT these last days)

The sun saves itself
If we see the sun as the creative force, and keep the fact in mind that we are made of star dust, then everything we do has been ignited by the sun. Everything we discover has already been there, we didn't create anything, we're just finding, learning and using it. So everything the crew does is a chain reaction so to speak. The spark isn't only created when Capa activates the bomb, in fact it started in the sun, was sent to earth, developed farther and farther and comes back to the sun where it practically ignites itself. Of course this interpretation dismisses everything spiritual, and I do feel that 'Sunshine is a highly spiritual movie.

It's a parable of individuation and the creative process
We have a vision (like Capa) and the sun is our true creative potential. In order to get there we have to overcome a lot of obstacles, most importantly step into our subconscious (space) and confront our own shadow (Pinbacker). When the things we learned (science/bomb) meet our creativity/divinity (sun) we become creators, represented by Capa's fulfilled self in the end.

According to Dr. Brian Cox, the scientist who made the second commentary, there are countless ways of interpreting the movie, and I see he's right. Do you have some of your own?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If I upset you, don't stress
Never forget, that God isn't finished with me yet

[–] nocakeforyou 8 years ago

I think that you can't escape the fact that this film makes a comment about religion. But there are different ways to interpret the message. I think Pinbacker symbolizes the fundamentalist - the Christian who bases their beliefs about the rules and logistics of life, the things that matter right now while we live on this earth. This is the kind of Christian that would be vocal about opposing gay marriage, for example, or in the case of the movie, the belief that man cannot play got and stop the end of the world, which Pinbacker believes is God's will. Capa represents the agnostic. He is unsure what to believe and takes a strictly neutral moral standpoint. In the end, however, when he meets the sun face to face, he sees the core of true spirituality and religious ultimacy, and the beauty and hope that comes from that, which Pinbacker was missing or had forgotten. It's a metaphor for Christians and other religious followers who are so vocal and defensive about the stipulations of their sect that they will even fight wars and revolutions over it - Sunshine recognizes that the heart of it all, the true spirituality and hope of believing in something bigger than yourself, is vastly more important.

[–] PrivateBozz 8 years ago

The core of your interpretation is very similar to Danny Boyle's, but I especially love your additional thoughts on religion and how fundamentalism can make people blind for their real spirituality. Imo religion should encourage people to explore spirituality instead of teaching them what their believes should be and how they should behave. But of course, even though religion is not bad in itself, it is used to control people instead of helping them grow and fulfill their true selves.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If I upset you, don't stress
Never forget, that God isn't finished with me yet