Midnight Sky, The (2020)

[bunniefuu]

Still time to change your mind.

Like a race to see who'd die first.

Terminal patient
outlives the rest of humanity.

Someone should
put you in a medical journal.

Nobody around to read it.

If you stop the transfusions,
you won't last a week.

If I was in a hurry to die,
I'd go with you.

- We all want to be home.
- Where is that?

Well, for you, I guess that's here.

As good a place as any.

Ana? Ana!

- Leave everything behind.
- Ana! Ana?

- Leave all belongings behind.
- Ana!

- My little girl is missing!
- What?

- I can't find my daughter. She isn't here.
- What's the problem?

I can't find her!

- Katherine!
- Ana?

- She already left.
- What?

They put her on another helicopter.
I saw her.

- What? She was alone?
- No, with Doctor Rogg.

He said to tell you
he will meet you on the ground.

- We have to go.
- Come on.

Are you checking off names?

Nobody gave me a list.
I just put people on the chopper.

What about him?

He's staying.

Let's go!

In our galaxy alone,
there are billions of stars,

each one a sun to its own solar system.

And most of those suns have planets,

so it stands to reason that

of these hundreds of billions
of exoplanets that exist in our galaxy,

at least one of them
has the potential to support life.

This is K-23,
Jupiter's previously undiscovered moon.

Not quite an exoplanet.

The moon's atmosphere
is governed not by the sun,

but by its thermal volcanic activity.

In simpler terms,
when studying K-23's lunar spectrum,

its biomarkers and water vapors,

it appears as though
it's being heated from the inside out.

While further probing will need to test
for atmospheric habitability,

we can confidently say

that based on its mass,
radial velocity, and orbit,

it could be just right.

I haven't met him personally,

but I gathered research for his partner
years ago, read his papers.

Was that at Oxford?

No, Michigan.

Oh, Michigan.

Very cold.

Yeah. Have you been?

What are you drinking?

Whiskey. What are you drinking?

Same as you.

There's a place called Portobello Beach.

- Have you heard of this?
- No.

It's so beautiful. You should go there.
Just off the coast near Edinburgh.

In the height of summer,
it's probably gonna be raining.

- It's a tourist trap.
- Yeah, I'm sure.

You should go to the beach.

- It's beautiful.
- I will.

But, um, while I have you,
can I ask you a very serious question

about your very serious book?

How much of
what you're searching for is reality,

and how much of your planet is just

bullshit?

List active missions.

Neowise, inactive.

Voyager 3, inactive.

International Space Station, evacuated.

Orion 2, inactive.

Aether, active.

Geofen 3, inactive.

- Jason 4...
- Show me Aether.

How long till Aether's
in range for direct contact?

Aether will be
in range in 11 hours and 54 minutes.

- Set an alarm for notification.
- Alarm is set.

On my way.

No! Wait!

Ade!

Wait! I'm here!

You awake, Maya?

I'm awake. How are you feeling?

Like a moose.

- Morning, Sully.
- I'm not speaking to you.

Why is that?

I had a dream you left me
on K-23, so I'm not talking to you.

- You started early.
- Champions never rest.

You still trying to b*at your boys' times?

- They pay you to distract me, don't they?
- Nah, I do it for free.

- You hear anything from home?
- I'm trying.

- Good morning, Sanchez.
- Morning, Sully.

Your decaf.

Whoa! Thank you, thank you.

- Anything yet?
- Nothing yet.

This is Aether Mission K-23,
open on all channels.

Does anyone copy?

Repeat.

Does anyone copy?

- What's she hearing?
- What frequency is this?

I'm running S, X, and Ka.

- That puts our last contact...
- Including the control blackout?

- Post-blackout.
- Three weeks.

If Mojave goes offline, then Spain
or Australia immediately grabs the signal.

No gaps. We're not receiving anything.

I've taken everything apart, rebooted
it a dozen times, and nothing works.

I also couldn't make contact
with the K-23 colony flight,

which should've been
in the air a week ago.

I mean, it could be atmospheric,

RF pollution,
or maybe a geomagnetic storm.

But none of that could last this long
or disrupt both hemispheres.

No.

Hello, this is Barbeau Observatory.
A family member has been left behind.

Somebody needs to come back for her.

Hello, this is Barbeau Observatory.
An outpost child has been left. Sh...

What's your name?

Your name... What's your name?

She's a...
She's an unidentified child.

She's seven or eight. She's alone.

Somebody has to come back. Sh...

Is anyone out there?

Hey.

Somebody's gotta be coming back for you,

because I can't help you.

You understand?

I'm the wrong person.

I'm the wrong person.

Are you hungry?

You have any brothers or sisters?

You're not deaf, right?
You can hear me talking?

Hey.

Well, that's clear.

You just can't talk?

Or you won't?

You just want to piss me off.

What is that? Is that an iris?

Is it...

Iris?

Okay.

Aether is within direct contact range.

There are no incoming messages.

Come in, Aether.
This is Barbeau Observatory.

Are you receiving this?

Come in, Aether.
This is Barbeau Observatory.

Are you receiving this?

Don't... Don't touch anything.

Come in, Aether.
This is Barbeau Observatory.

Are you receiving this?

No touching.

Come in, Aether.

This is Barbeau Observatory.
Are you receiving this?

That's Aether.

It's a spaceship, far away,

coming back from a planet that we...

We hoped would be our future, but…

Things didn't quite turn out that way.

That's why I have to contact them.

Now, before it's too late.

You understand?

No, no, no, no.

This is my room.

This is my room.

Here.

You sleep in here.

No.

Okay.

The antenna's our problem.
It's not strong enough.

Doesn't matter
what direction we put it in.

They're not answering us
because they can't hear us.

Well, that's something.

Given all the variables,
the fact that we can't contact

the K-23 colony flight

and can't raise Mojave on any frequency,

our obvious conclusion must be…

That the fault lies with us.

But we have exhausted
every possible trouble area on our side

and simply cannot find it.

If this were
a less experienced crew,

this ship would be in full-blown panic.

Slow down.

Mission Specialist Sullivan
is now breaking every protocol

as she attempts
to make any kind of contact,

including China, India…

And Russia.

This action is under my direction.

Mitchell is…

Simply the best flyer there is,

but he's anxious to get home.

Maya and Sanchez are on 12-hour shifts
as they boot and reboot the comms system,

again at my order.

Overall, the crew's spirit remains high
as we near the end of our journey.

Our two-year mission to K-23

has us returning
with more answers than questions.

Can it sustain life? Yes.
Can it expand? Yes.

Could it be home?

Yes, it could.

Every question
we set out to answer, we did…

Except the one that lingers in the air.

"Why is it so quiet?"

Your breakfast
has timed out. Would you like another?

No. Almost done.

I know.

Doesn't make much sense to me either.

You know, there's no rule that says
you have to touch everything.

Polaris.

You see it?

It's the most important star in the sky.

If you ever get lost,
it'll help you find your way.

I called you. You didn't answer.

Sorry, I was working.

Can't answer your phone
when you're working?

I can. I just didn't.

I called to tell you I'm not pregnant.

You're safe.

It was just a…

Possible sighting of a life-form
that ultimately proved false.

You want to be an explorer, Augustine.

To discover new worlds,
to… give life some hope.

But while you're doing all that,
your own life is just

slipping away.

And that breaks my heart.

But, you know…

I'm sure it's for the best.

It shouldn't be up this far.

Not yet.

There is an antenna
that's stronger than ours.

It's up north.

There.

Lake Hazen.

It's a weather station.

It's protected by this mountain range.

So the air might still be good.

At least for a while.

We get to that antenna,
somebody'll hear us.

It's a long way.

It's okay.

It's all right. You have to.

So do I.

Just take a deep breath.

That's not so bad, right?

Hmm? Okay.

Never take it off, no matter what.

- Right?
- And I hear this, like…

- Sniffing.
- What?

Then I heard this voice
that was like, "Oh, damn, you smell good."

- What?
- And it was the guy!

- No way, you're lying.
- Why would I lie?

- He did that?
- No, he didn't.

- Oh my God. He did that?
- Yeah, he did.

- But why?
- 'Cause I smell good!

So, what? He was behind you?

He was right behind me.
He came down onto my neck.

It's okay. You can come in.

No.

Come in!

Is he hot?

Okay.

- If you're late, you're not hot.
- Yeah, but… Okay.

So you don't mind if someone's...

No, I wanted
to know if he was hot.

So, this is my sister.

And that is my very,
very best friend from high school.

- So he turns up.
- Oh.

- He turns up.
- Wait for it.

Here it comes.

The world's smartest cat, Einstein.

- Hey, baby!
- Hey, honeybun.

He still likes me best.

I need to hear what happened.

- I don't know.
- I told you, the guy with…

Is it the sniffer?

Oh, no! What?

I'm so frightened.

I'm so sorry for so many things.

I love you, Margaret.

I love you.

I love you.

Do you want to change games?

- I'm on about a two-month winning streak.
- I'm pacing myself.

I got into NASA
'cause I was damn good at mathematics.

Now, I don't like to
use the word "prodigy," but...

Yeah, I read your bio.

You also broke the family dog's leg
when you strapped it to a wooden rocket.

- That's irrelevant.
- Not to the dog.

Did you know there are
over 60 billion possible combinations

of rummy hands at the start of the game?

So this little streak you're on…

A streak that's lasted from
one side of the universe to the other.

…Is nothing more than
a minuscule blip of luck

among 60 billion possible combinations.

But when you apply…

Genius-level math skills to the equation,

you can shift

those combinations to your favor.

Hmm. And that is what you're doing now?

Overpowering me with math?

You, my friend,

are what my fellow mathematicians
refer to as… a simpleton.

Oh! A simpleton!

- We've deviated off course.
- How far?

Can't tell yet.
Auto-deactivated at some point.

Shut us down. k*ll the engines
before we get completely sideways.

- Problem with navigation.
- So we're off course. How far?

No idea.

Okay, we'll need to figure that out.

What is the variance for the alarm?

- 0.4 degrees.
- And it sounded for what? 80 seconds?

- At 30,000 miles per hour.
- Plus coast speed after engine k*ll.

Guidance and telemetry are...

- Non-existent without comms.
- Sanchez, shut off the alarm.

Sully? What do you hear?

Jupiter probes,
the beacon we left behind at K-23,

the supply probe on its way
there now, some dying satellites...

We can use that.

We can reference
the K-23 beacon as our starting point.

It's behind us.

We can still build a course
from there to the satellite.

Start building.

Sully, get him exact numbers
on the beacon and pulse.

Maya,
help Sanchez with the course design.

And move fast.
We're drifting while we work.

And the hits keep coming.

Ten models, ten matching results.

You sure about the numbers?

Yes.

Yeah, but it puts us in zones
that haven't been cleared for passage.

Any risks you're aware of?

Well, we know
there was meteor activity here,

and we can avoid that, but…

This area…

We haven't mapped.

Nobody's mapped it.

Anyone else have
a better idea of how to get home?

Okay, then. That's our course.

Okay, boss, but I sure don't like passing
through zones that haven't been cleared.

I sure don't either.

We're okay for now.

No need to keep checking it.
The air is safe here.

We're safe.

Yeah.

We gotta get some sleep.

You need to sleep.

I need to sleep.

Stay here.

You… gotta help me, please.

What?

Please…

Get out of here. Go!

Okay.

Let's go.

Take care of yourself
Goodbye!

Come on, then.
Let's get you in the car. Come on.

In you go.

Okay, sweetheart, buckle up.

We were on the island.

My, uh…

My father had a stroke,
so we wanted to spend time with him.

Mmm. I'm sorry.

Well, you know, life.

Did you tell her about me?

If you want her to know about you,
you can introduce yourself.

Take care of yourself, Augustine.

You know,
this machine was actually designed

to detect alien life-forms
that might inv*de our system.

That sounds about right.

You wanna know if it's a girl or a boy?

Absolutely not.

We're having a girl.

A girl?

Nervous?

Are you?

I just didn't see this coming.

Well, you're only human.

Are you saying I couldn't help myself?

- No, you said that, not me.
- Did I say that?

I didn't see it coming either.

So, what are we gonna name her?

Trudy?

Roxy?

Penelope?

Margot?

Maggie?

Henrietta?

This'll do.

For now.

Is that your mom?

I knew a face like that once.

Yeah. Her hair was
a little different shade, but…

She was as loud as you are quiet.

When she'd laugh,
everybody would turn and look.

I think she'd laugh so much

because she was that much smarter
than everybody else, and she knew it.

I wish you'd tell me
something about your life, Iris.

Anything would do.

Hey, Iris.

Ask me a question.

Did you love her?

Run!

We shouldn't have stopped.

It's all we have.

No, thank you.

I like these better.

When we get to Lake Hazen,

there's gonna be every kind of food there.

There's gonna be

pizza…

And cheeseburgers.

Anything you want.

No peas.

We keep going in that direction.

Come on.

It's all right.

We're gonna be fine.

We'll be fine.

I see you!

I see you!

Iris?

Iris? I'm here!

Come to my voice!

I'm here.

There's no tracks.

Iris!

I'm here.

I'm here!

I'm here.

Iris?

I thought I'd lost you.

I thought I'd lost you.

Look what you did.

All good?

Just going where Sanchez tells me to go.

Anything from Sully?

Nothing yet. It's just a glitch.

You really believe that?

Until someone tells me different, Tom.

I understand it's a girl.

- Yeah.
- Hmm.

Hyacinth.

What?

It was my mother's name.

It's a flower.

- Hyacinth?
- Hmm.

Some kind of flower.

81-40 North.

72-58 West.

Are you there?

This is the spaceship Aether
returning from Jupiter Mission.

- Can you hear me?
- Yes.

Yes. I'm receiving.

This is Lake Hazen Weather Station.

Lake Hazen, I can't tell you
how happy I am to hear your voice.

For some reason, you're the only person
who wants to talk to me.

We've lost contact with NASA
and everyone else.

Do you have information
on our transmission blackout?

Lake Hazen, are you there?

How much have you picked up
about the conditions on Earth?

We've received nothing.

I wish I...

I'm sorry, Lake Hazen,
I missed that last transmission.

Is that Mission Control?

Lake Hazen, are you receiving this?

I don't know all the details.
I know it was a mistake.

It started with...

…also...

Lake Hazen, do you copy?

- What is it?
- I can't pull it up on radar.

- Can you rotate on this axis?
- Trying now.

What the hell is that?

It's what happens
when you fly in the g*dd*mn dark.

Aether? Mission Specialist Sullivan,
do you copy? Hello?

Lake Hazen, can you hear me?

Lake Hazen, do you copy?

Stay on current
to assess any damage beyond the comms.

It's over.

For now.

Sully, bridge status.

Contained. There's damage to a lab wall.

What's the status on
secondary and tertiary communications?

Lost communications.

And lost radar.

Son of a bitch.

Full reports on all systems,
and let's at least get the radar fixed.

On it.

Let's see what we got.

There's the lab wall.

The printer can fix that.

That's the radar.

Okay.

And there's the comms.

And there's the comms.

It can be rebuilt.

But it's gonna take a walk outside.

Where did you get this?

Stole it from the LM platform support.

NASA can worry about how to unload
their supply canisters when we get back.

That should do the trick.

- Hey, Maya?
- Hmm?

What do you think of the name Caroline?

Uh, it's okay.

Better than Hyacinth?

- Yeah.
- Yup.

How are we doing?

Should come in under the deadline.

I've been thinking.
It's gotta be me and Maya going out.

Okay, I'll probably tag along,
help carry that thing.

There's no gravity out there. It's not
gonna be too heavy for us girls to handle.

I don't like to miss a chance
to stroll around the block.

Is he going because he's worried about you
or because I've never walked before?

You've trained for this.

He wouldn't send you out
if he wasn't sure you could do it.

Good. As long as one of us is.

That's her fourth.

I mean, she's so small.
Where does it all keep coming from?

How you feeling?

I could throw up again.

Now you know how I feel.

Do it now
before you secure the helmet.

It's a bitch to get off.

- You need help?
- Uh-huh.

Thanks.

Now that's just wrong.

You good, Maya?

We can go as fast or slow
as you're comfortable out here.

That goes for you too, Sully.

No rush, understood?

Oh my God.

No view quite like it.

- There's your radar.
- Yep.

The installation site
should be coming up.

I see it.

Twenty-five meters.

Twenty meters.

Got eyes on the antenna site.

Hey, Sully.
What do you think of the name Florence?

The kids would call her "Flo."

Yeah, good point.

How's the radar look?

Might just be knocked loose.

We've got some detached wires,
but the nose is intact.

I'm sorry? Did you say "the nose"?

Everybody's a critic.

- Hey, Sanchez.
- Yep?

How about a little inspiration?

Ooh.

Yeah, I think I might have
the song for you.

Uh, right here. Here you go. Enjoy, kids.

Oh, yeah.

I don't know this song.

Nope, don't know it.

Okay, Mitchell,
let's see if we've got any radar.

Copy that. Give me a second.

All right, fantastic.
Rebooting now.

Woo-hoo!

I am in the wrong profession.

I've been saying that for two years.

Maya, are we secure?

Yeah, just let me
finish this last connection.

Let's get back
and see who wants to talk to us.

- Sully, you take the lead.
- Okay.

Okay, everybody, good job. Sanchez?

Can't tell about comms,
but radar looks like...

What do we got?

Maya, move!

Ade, you need to move fast.
You need to go.

- Get out of there.
- Go now, Ade!

- Maya! Get out of there now!
- I'm stuck!

Maya! Move!

Sully!

I'm here, Ade!

That's it.

It's over.

Is everybody all right? Everybody safe?

- You okay?
- Son of a bitch!

What the f*ck?

Okay, okay.

Let's get inside
before Maya breaks something else.

Me?

Status report?

Radar is still up, and…

Comms is still up.

Punching in now. Fingers crossed on comms.

Ugh, I need a drink.

I am gonna celebrate
the first and last time I walk in space.

No, no, I'm gonna have two drinks.

We could all use a drink.

Who said that?

Sully.

Help me.

Help... Help me.

Maya?

Maya?

I'm bleeding.

Penetration wound.

Sanchez, have med-pack ready
to meet us in the airlock.

Sanchez is on it.

Ade, her oxygen levels are falling fast.

Let's get her tied down.

- What did I do wrong?
- You didn't do anything wrong.

Okay.

You're gonna be fine.

Is it bad?

Let's get this backpack off.

- Just breathe, Maya.
- Sanchez, get that med-pack in here!

Come on, come on.

Just breathe.

That's it.

Thirty seconds!

I'm with you. Look at me. I'm with you.

- I'm gonna take your helmet off.
- Okay.

- Okay? You're gonna be fine.
- Okay.

Twenty seconds.

Just breathe.

How long have we got? That's it.

Ten seconds! Come on!

Now! Go! Clear!

- That's too much blood.
- It's okay.

- There's too much blood.
- You're okay.

- We don't have time. Put pressure.
- Here? Hang on.

- I got it.
- You got her?

There's too much blood.
Too much blood.

- I got it.
- You're gonna be fine. Okay?

- Maya? Maya, breathe.
- Hmm?

Maya, please breathe. Okay?

Puncture wound to the lower back.

Maya?

Maya?

- Maya?
- Yes?

You're gonna be fine.

- You're gonna be fine. Yes.
- No.

- Maya.
- Why won't the blood stop?

Keep looking at me.

- Maya.
- I have to stay here.

- Okay, hold on.
- Mitchell, get us ready.

Maya. Keep looking at me.
Maya. Maya. Breathe.

- Please.
- I'm trying. I'm trying.

Maya.

Just breathe. Breathe.

Maya. Maya.

Lake Hazen, this is Aether.
Are you receiving?

Captain,
we just got our first view of Earth.

I tied into the signals
of the old Astron satellite telescope.

What do we do?

Lake Hazen,
this is Aether. Are you receiving?

I repeat,

Lake Hazen, this is Aether.
Are you receiving this transmission?

Lake Hazen, do you copy?

Yes, Aether.

Our comm system went offline.

We're operational now
and just got a visual on Earth.

I'm afraid we didn't do a good job

of looking after the place
while you were away.

Do you see any new data

that suggests possible
safe entry points for us?

No.

All survivable areas are underground.

And those are temporary.

I'd like to suggest something.

Does this make sense to you?

If we want to get back to K-23, yes.

It's actually a pretty good plan.

Deviate our approach to Earth,

then make gravity our friend
to save fuel on the turnaround.

- Why would we do that?
- There's nothing left for us down there.

- We're not slingshotting back into space.
- We'll die if we go back.

- He's still alive.
- Poles will be the last areas hit.

- Air contamination is rising.
- We don't know anything.

We all saw what it looked like.

Our mission was to go to K-23,
turn around, and come home.

We're going home.

Lake Hazen,
are you still picking this up?

I'm here, Aether.

Lake Hazen, this is
Aether Flight Commander Gordon Adewole.

Your numbers are intriguing,

but they have me curious
as to how you came up with them,

and how you know
so much about our flight plan.

Who exactly are you?

Augustine Lofthouse.

Dr. Lofthouse.

I had hoped to meet you upon our return.

Unfortunately, that seems
less likely as of the last few days.

Yes.

Given your location,
are you certain there are no safe regions

in the southern hemisphere?

Antarctica?

No, there's nowhere.

I'm sorry.

We'll discuss our options up here
and hopefully, speak again.

There is a message for you.

It's downloading.

When was it sent?

Ten days ago.

My love, I…

Um, I don't know if you know
what's going on down here,

but, um, we're being asked to evacuate.

Uh… the boys are sick.

I…

I want you to know where we're going,

because I won't be able
to contact you anymore.

I love you… so much.

Captain, you got a minute?

Of course.

It's funny when I think about
how long I've been doing this.

You know, 20 years ago, Kath and I,

we used to talk about the risks.

A certain amount
of danger is involved, and…

We took that into account.

I was the one
that was supposed to be at risk.

And they were supposed to be safe.

Home…

And safe.

You have two reentry pods on this ship,
and I'd like to take one of them.

And you were right.

It's your job to turn the ship around,
start a new life.

Do better this time.

But it's my job…

To keep a promise
that I made to my family.

I understand.

I'd feel the same way.

I know you would.

- It takes two to fly that.
- I'll manage.

I'm going to go with you.

- Why would you wanna do that?
- I've been thinking.

That's your first mistake.

Been thinking a lot about time…

And how it gets used and why.

Why one person lives a lifetime

and another only gets a few years.

My daughter, Maria,
she d*ed when she was four.

She would have been the same age as Maya.

Sometimes at night, when I couldn't sleep,

I would pretend that they were friends.

They'd talk about school together.

Or boys.

I want to take Maya home.

It seems like the best use of my time.

So I was thinking I'll take
a ride home with my buddy, if that's okay.

Okay.

Bye, Sully.

Take care of yourself, okay?
And our little Caroline.

I hope you find your family.

Wish us luck.

Good luck.

This is Aether. Are you receiving?

Dr. Lofthouse, can you hear me?

I hear you.

We're headed into
an ionization blackout,

so I'm gonna lose you soon.

But I wanted to
contact you first to thank you.

Commander Adewole and I are turning back.

That's good.

Captain Mitchell
and Specialist Sanchez decided on reentry.

They have family down here?

Yes.

I understand.

Flight Engineer Maya Lawrence,

she suffered
an accident during the flight.

I'm sorry.

What you did…

You discovered so much up here.

I just point.

Well, you pointed
to an incredible world.

I wish you could have seen it.

Lake Hazen will have to do.

How did you end up there?

I thought maybe I could help someone.

Well, you've definitely done that.

You know, you're one of the reasons
I joined the space program.

You had done some work
with my mother, Jean Sullivan.

She brought home a moon rock you gave her.

I thought it was
the most amazing thing ever.

It made me want to go up and find more.

I wish I could have thanked you
for it in person, Dr. Lofthouse.

Augustine.

Augustine.

And I'm Iris.

I know.

It's very nice to finally meet you.

What's it like there, Iris?

Tell me about it.

It's amazing.

The colony site, it feels like Colorado.

Have you ever been there,
to the mountains?

Yes.

The air is so crisp, and…

And the planet has that smell.

It's like pine trees
are hidden somewhere underground,

waiting to burst through.

First weeks we were there,

I kept looking up,
expecting to see a blue sky,

but it was orange

from the light reflecting off Jupiter.

When the orbit is just right,

Jupiter feels so close that…

You're sure you could almost touch it.

And that light, it makes
all the colors explode, everything.

Water…

Flowers…

It's like landing in Oz
and seeing real color for the first time.

I've never seen anything so beautiful.

Dr. Lofthouse?

Augustine?

Think I lost him.

I guess it's just us now.

Just us?