14 Most Divisive Movies Since 2000

7. Sunshine

Following the crew of Icarus II, a last-stand mission attempting to reignite a dying Sun, Sunshine has all the hallmarks of a sci-fi classic. The ideas are as big as the events and some scenes are of jaw-dropping beauty. So what's the problem? Danny Boyle's sci-fi has drawn comparisons to 2001: A Space Odyssey, but fails to reach that level of praise on an audience-wide level thanks to a mixed reaction to one certain element. A final act divergence into slasher, with Mark Strong's deranged sole survivor of a previous mission picking off the crew, really gets its critics foaming. It's a stark tonal shift and few people would deny that it is all a little more closed in focus than the rest of the film. For a movie that has, up to that point, been a perfect fit for the "modern classic" title, it's a turn into the conventional that sees Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland taking their ideas a little too literally. Sunshine was written from a starkly atheist perspective, a sci-fi that posited a totally scientific viewpoint. So it is kinda refreshing that the main argument around the film stems from its objective quality, rather than something rather arbitrary.
Contributor
Contributor

Film Editor (2014-2016). Loves The Usual Suspects. Hates Transformers 2. Everything else lies somewhere in the middle. Once met the Chuckle Brothers.