The movie is about a crew flying a starship to our Sun, which is rapidly dying because of a Q-Ball – some thing that I’m sure was proven to exist but that strips away protons from atoms. They’re on a mission to detonate an essentially experimental bomb there hoping it would be enough to get rid of the Q-Ball and essentially restart the nuclear fusion process, saving humanity.
As the mission is getting closer to the star, we see Searle in the observation room, toning down the filter to see the sun like he would never be able to on Earth. The safeguard protocols only allow him to see 3.1% of its true power given the distance, and not for long. His experience is almost ecstatic, spiritual. Next scene is him talking to his crewmates about the experience, recommending it.
The quote is what he asks his captain during an emergency repair, his skin showing signs of too much exposure to the sun, even through the filter.
He asks his captain, who had to stay behind during an EVA emergency repair, what does he see, as the ship is slowly turning to face the sun again, about to burn the captain to death.
This such a “call of the void” moment, although about something so clearly opposite of a void. A man slowly getting more and more obsessed with something so incomprehensible, getting so close to it, so far away from anything familiar. So obsessed that it’s what he’s pulled to ask from another man about to get properly obliterated.
– Searle, Sunshine (2007)
spoiler
The movie is about a crew flying a starship to our Sun, which is rapidly dying because of a Q-Ball – some thing that I’m sure was proven to exist but that strips away protons from atoms. They’re on a mission to detonate an essentially experimental bomb there hoping it would be enough to get rid of the Q-Ball and essentially restart the nuclear fusion process, saving humanity.
As the mission is getting closer to the star, we see Searle in the observation room, toning down the filter to see the sun like he would never be able to on Earth. The safeguard protocols only allow him to see 3.1% of its true power given the distance, and not for long. His experience is almost ecstatic, spiritual. Next scene is him talking to his crewmates about the experience, recommending it.
The quote is what he asks his captain during an emergency repair, his skin showing signs of too much exposure to the sun, even through the filter.
He asks his captain, who had to stay behind during an EVA emergency repair, what does he see, as the ship is slowly turning to face the sun again, about to burn the captain to death.
This such a “call of the void” moment, although about something so clearly opposite of a void. A man slowly getting more and more obsessed with something so incomprehensible, getting so close to it, so far away from anything familiar. So obsessed that it’s what he’s pulled to ask from another man about to get properly obliterated.