In trying to achieve manned interstellar travel with some way of broadcasting back to Earth as it goes, scientists tasked with inventing a supercomputer capable of memory and transmission, realize that the device already exists in the form of the human brain. As a result a human brain is wired within a light and efficient shell to power its way forever into space, essentially dreaming as it goes.
There is a fascinating idea in here which is not only fully of potential but also full of questions – indeed the plot summary for the film puts these questions front and centre as it talks about the ethics of the achievement, not just the achievement itself. Within the film though I don't think this really comes off, although this is not to say that there aren't things it does well, because there are. The manner of delivery is the all and here we have a series of talking heads surrounded by effects shots merged with real footage to present the mission and the results. The scientists are not all particularly good actors but the ideas and material unfold in an engaging way and it quickly gets you to a place that you understand what we have and where we are so that really the film could have done whatever with you at that point.
Unfortunately what it chooses to do is end. The conclusion leaves a lot of questions unanswered, which is a problem, but for me the bigger issue is that the film leaves even more questions unasked. This could have been great food for thought and the documentary style made me expect that would be the conclusion – a "what if" that would rattle round in your head for a few days after watching, but instead we get an open ended mission that doesn't seem too different from the one we started with – all potential but no delivery. It is a shame because it is very well made and the documentary approach works with good support from visual effects and good ideas in the material, it is just a real shame that we get no actual delivery when we get to the end.
