Genre: Sci-Fi / Drama
Director: Jeff Nichols
Writer: Jimmy Ellis
Cast: Josh Brolin, Dakota Johnson, Ed Harris, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Zachary Levi, Jaeden Martell, Donald Glover, Marin Ireland, Hugo Weaving, Michelle Monaghan, Anna Gunn, Giancarlo Esposito
Plot: Years ago, a small space station full of astronauts, technicians and scientists were sent on an expedition, to explore an anomaly around the planet Mars. A strange vortex had formed, warping around planets and stars. Scientists dubbed it “The Void”, and all spaceships and shuttles that headed out to search within the Void disappeared. When the station reached, they were nearly sucked into the Void. Their equipment began to fail, shutting down. A rescue mission was attempted by the US space program, but it failed. The rescue ship’s equipment also shut down, resulting in a collision. The space station split into pieces, hurling into the void. The government shut down the operation, studying the void from Earth and hoping to find a way to travel within it.
Tom Edwards (Josh Brolin) has been living inside the Void for the past 12 years. Once an astronaut, he is now the sole survivor and inhabitant of a separated piece of the space station. Tom lives a quiet life, especially since there is no sound outside of the ship. He wakes up and looks outside, seeing nothing but darkness, like a black screen enveloping the world. Tom exercises a little bit, and heads to the control centre. The ship’s computer has no more room for any more daily logs, upsetting Tom. He tries contacting ground control and isn’t surprised when there’s no response. Tom sets up his small desk, with a faded picture of his wife and son, a cup of coffee and his sketchbook. He begins sketching out his wife and son while listening to his old daily logs in the background. Tom speaks in the background, explaining how the crew learned about the Void around it, noting that it has a strange electromagnetic aura...
He notes how, inside the void, he feels that this aura has affected him as well. No longer does he require as much food or water, and his motor skills have slowed down significantly. Tom later talks about how silent it has grown, and how tired he has become. He doesn’t know the difference between day and night, allowing time to just become one continuous blur. Tom finishes his drawing and smiles, taking it out of his sketchbook. He walks into a room, filled with his sketches and drawings. He pins it onto a wall, which contains a large variety of portraits.
Tom suddenly hears the all too familiar sound of static. He rushes to his communications desk, where he hears a woman’s voice. Tom breaks down in tears, happily rummaging through old documents to explain who he is. He reveals his name, and how he was a part of the “void operation”. The voice reveals herself to be Megan Slough (Dakota Johnson), from NASA’s ground control. She explains that the world thought Tom was killed in the incident. Tom asks what’s happening right now, and Megan states that a rescue mission has been planned. A nearby shuttle exploring has been informed, and in a couple of days, will arrive to pick Tom up. She also explains to Tom that things have changed, with their technology now advanced enough to venture into the Void. Tom wonders how much time has passed, and upon learning that it’s been 12 years, he breaks down and panics. He worries about how much he’s missed, and if his family is alright or not. Megan calms him down, explaining how his family is fine, and how he’ll be back soon.
For the next few days, Tom communicates with Megan, asking her about the world. She tells him stories about normal life, about the green grass and blue skies. She talks about cracks in the pavement, the feeling of wind in your face, the heat in a campfire, the sand trickling through your fingers. Tom draws the details, trying to remember his life, his home. He remembers how he would take his wife and son to the beach on weekends, how he would go on drives with his son or long walks with his wife. Tom guiltily explains how he’s forgotten how his wife and child sound now, how they feel. He even has forgotten his son’s name. He nearly breaks until Megan comforts him.
The day of his saving arrives, and Tom packs a bag full of his sketches, hoping to take it. After a long and risky procedure, Tom is saved by the shuttle, escaping the darkness of the void and entering the bright world of space.
As they arrive on Earth, Tom breaks down happily, excited to see his family. Instead, he is taken into a NASA facility. For the next few days, Tom is used as a guinea pig, experimented and tested to see if he has retained any strange side effects. Seeing that he’s safe, Tom is greeted by analysts, who spend the next few days learning from Tom about the void. Tom grows restless to leave, and finally meets General Bennington (Ed Harris), the man who was in charge of his operation and led the rescue operation that saved Tom. After a heartwarming reunion, Bennington tells Tom that he is a celebrity, and prepares him for a press statement. An awkward Tom stumbles through the press’s questions, and is thoroughly bothered by the cameras and flashing lights. Before he leaves, he insists on meeting Megan, believing she saved him. Megan welcomes Tom, who hugs and thanks her. As he is leaving, Tom is given a new phone by Bennington. Bennington reminds him that Tom will frequently be called back for checkups and meetings.
Tom heads outside and is stunned by the lights. He can’t seem to deal with the loud noises of traffic and cameras and buildings. He doesn’t remember how to drive either, though he desperately hopes to return to his family home. Bennington decides to drive Tom to his wife’s home, but sadly reveals that his wife has remarried. A heartbroken Tom arrives at the new home of his wife, Deborah Ann (Maggie Gyllenhaal). An amazed and teary Deborah grabs Tom in a hug and breaks down, who also breaks down as he hugs her. Tom meets Deborah’s new husband, Shane Warren (Zachary Levi), and their newborn daughter. Tom is brought in for a family dinner, where he grows upset with Shane’s presence. Suddenly, a young boy (Jaeden Martell) enters the room, and hugs Tom, in tears. Tom realizes that it’s his son, but is unable to remember his name. His son is ravaged by fury and sadness, reminding Tom that his name is Daniel, and he named him. Tom tries to redeem himself but Daniel leaves, though Shane sets up the guest room for Tom so he can stay with them.
That night, Deborah talks to Tom, explaining how she thought Tom was dead. Tom grows infuriated, proclaiming that he still loves her, but can’t seem to blame her for this. Tom spends the next few days in Deborah and Shane’s home, but can’t seem to fit in. He starts struggling with dreams, waking up in the night thinking it’s day, and overall feeling unhappy. Tom decides to leave, and live in a hotel. Before he can leave, Daniel stops him, and apologizes. He hopes that he can go on a drive with his father again, and Tom happily complies. After a near silent drive, the duo arrive at a pier, where they watch the sunset. Tom is awestruck. He remembers that when Daniel was younger, he used to draw alongside him. Tom shows Daniel his new sketchbook, and the two begin to bond over the drawings.
Tom spends the next few days in a hotel, and goes on walks daily to learn about the world. Though he falls in love with the sights of the environment, animals and people, he can’t deal with the large amounts of noise, and how fast everything seems to be around him. He is also often recognized by people passing by and members of the media.
Tom is called one day by Megan, who explains that he is needed for a meeting with Bennington and some other analysts. She picks Tom up and brings him into the meeting, where they discuss the void’s original disaster. Tom seems haunted by the incident and doesn’t feel like talking about it, but analysts begin to pressure him.
Tom reveals in a flashback that things seemed to be going well despite the lack communications. Backup power was finally restored and brought back heat, water and power. A young, confident Tom speaks with his fellow astronauts, Isaiah Starr (Donald Glover) and Alison Day (Marin Ireland), having lunch with the duo. Dr Stephen Paul (Hugo Weaving), a medic, quickly called them over for a meeting with the captain. The captain and leader of the station, Captain Jennifer Hart (Michelle Monaghan), reminded the crew that today, a shuttle will be arriving to pick them up. Everyone prepared for leaving today, and Tom happily spoke to Hart, who herself was excited to meet her husband. As the shuttle began to head towards them, Starr noticed that the shuttle lost control, and was heading towards them at an extremely dangerous speed.
Though everyone prepared for impact, the collision was too strong, causing an explosion that killed a large sum of people, including Isaiah. People fell into panic as explosions riddled the ship, which hurtled towards the Void. Selfless Captain Hart devises a plan to get everyone to the eastern quadrant, which can detach and get away. Dr Paul saves Alison, and is instead crushed by rubble and killed. Alison is terrified, but snaps out of it after Tom grabs her and tells her to move. Their efforts to save people is in vain as most of the crew is dead or dying. As Tom realizes it’s too late to save everyone, Hart shoves him into the western quadrant and pulls the switch. Tom screams in terror as she sacrifices herself, saving Tom and sending the rest hurtling away while the rest of the station implodes. Tom notes that everyone is nearly dead, except for him, and Alison, who finally reveals a piece of rebar trapped in her stomach. Tom holds her in terror, as Alison succumbs to her injury, and they fall into the void.
Tom reveals to the analysts that soon, everyone in the western section died, except for him. He spent the next few days cleaning away the blood, and cremating the bodies in the power room. Realizing his friends got no funeral and weren’t even buried, Tom begins to weep, forcing Megan to stop the meeting. Bennington reveals that there is one more job for Tom; since he is the sole survivor, he must speak to the families of the dead. Though Megan feels that this is near inhumane, Tom agrees to do it. Bennington also confirms that he has brought in a therapist for Tom.
Megan drives Tom to each house one by one, where Tom meets grieving families. Some welcome him in, remembering Tom and thankful that he’s at least alive, such as Isaiah’s father, Jimmy. Others are saddened but at peace, such as Jennifer’s husband and Dr Paul’s daughter. Some are a bit more volatile, such as Alison’s sister, Maxine (Anna Gunn). Maxine grows furious in her grief, wondering why Tom managed to survive and not her sister. Tom quietly wonders the same thing as he leaves. Racked by guilt after the day of mourning, Tom feels numb and drained, and Megan treats him to dinner. Tom confesses that for the first few months or years, maybe even days, Tom thought that he would go mad in the void. But as days went on, he nearly fell in love with the tranquility in space. He wonders if he sounds mad right now, but Megan reassures him that he doesn’t. As she drops him back to his hotel, Tom immediately goes to bed, tired of speaking. He begins to have dreams about the void, being trapped in the darkness. As he escapes, everyone around him seems to ignore him, including his family. Tom wakes up in terror.
Tom spends the next few days with his therapist, Dr Joseph Gordon (Giancarlo Esposito). He explains his fears to Joseph, wondering what his purpose even is. He doesn’t understand how or why he survived. Joseph believes that everyone creates their purpose, maybe Tom’s is still something he must find and form on his own; maybe that’s why Tom returned. To deal with the stress of the sounds and dreams, Joseph advises Tom dabble in new mediums of art, since he’s seen in his sketches.
Tom heads back to his hotel, and is met by Deborah, who wants to take him for a walk. Deborah reveals that for the first year, she genuinely believed Tom was alive and still out there. It wasn’t until NASA confirmed his “death” that Deborah finally understood. She explains how she distanced herself from the world, but fell in love with Shane, a kindhearted man who helped her and Daniel. Deborah reveals she still feels guilty about this but Tom stops her with a hug, knowing it wasn’t either of their faults. The duo head back to Deborah’s home, where he has dinner with Daniel and Shane as well. Tom later thanks Shane for taking care of his family.
Days go by and Tom takes whatever money he has in his accounts to buy an art studio as a new home. However, he can’t seem to work properly as he lives across a highway, and resents the amount of noise. Tom starts to dabble in new art forms, such as sculptures and paintings. He starts to balance his life, hanging out with his family, meeting Megan, adventuring on his own, and working on his craft. One day, he is followed by members of the press. His once safe and private home now becomes hounded by the media, breaking his peace. An enraged Tom lashes out against the press, nearly striking a reporter. Tom checks the tv later, seeing news reports of people calling him a crazy hermit. Tom lashes out and destroys some of his work, and gets a call from Daniel, hoping he’s okay. Tom heads outside, unsatisfied and tired. He finally calls Bennington, looking for a job opportunity. Tom spends the next weeks training in NASA for another mission, to explore the Void. As he prepares for the mission and packs his sketchbook into his bag, Megan confronts him. She knows his plan, and asks if he truly wants to do this. Tom smiles, promising that nothing in the world would make him happier. After one final hug, Tom heads off, and enters his spaceship.
As he blasts off into space, Deborah, Shane and Daniel watch from the television. Knowing what’s going to happen, Megan is unable to watch, and quietly leaves ground control. Tom smiles as he enters the void of space. He quietly turns off all the communications equipment, while ground control scrambles to get him online. Tom smiles and pulls out his bag, setting a new, updated picture of Deborah and Daniel on his desk. He pulls out his sketchbook and smiles while sketching.
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