Details from IMDB:
Project Hail Mary
Science teacher Ryland Grace wakes up alone on a spaceship light-years from Earth. As his memory returns, he uncovers a mission to stop a mysterious substance killing the sun, and save Earth. An unexpected friendship may be the key.
- Directors
- Writers
- Stars
I’ve always been a lover of sci-fi, and I believe aliens exist in the universe. I also quite enjoyed “The Martian,” which was co-written by the same guy, Andy Weir. Since this movie also received glowing reviews and has Canadian superstar Ryan Gosling, there was never any doubt I was going to see it.
Main Points:
If you can, you need to see this movie in IMAX. The space scenes, especially when they skimmed the atmosphere of planet Adrian (yeah, I’m doing spoilers, deal with it!), looked amazing and made me feel like we are wasting our potential as a human race; we need to explore space! I try to be positive, but I think the longer we stay on Earth and do not make an effort to colonize space, the worse it could get for us. Ok, I’m off my soapbox. Ryan Gosling is amazing here; I think he gives an Oscar-worthy performance and carries the movie himself for most of it. I think a reluctant hero is one of the best kinds to show in a movie, and he certainly is that. Kudos to James Ortiz as well, who is amazing as Rocky, so wonderful to see practical special effects/puppetry still being used.
While there is lots of science here (and some science fiction), it’s primarily a movie about heroism, friendship, the will to live, and the ability to overcome near-impossible odds when you’re put to the test. I’ll admit that while I enjoyed the beginning, for me the movie really gets going when Rocky shows up. The buddy comedy/adventure is wonderful, and what we all need in these troubling times. I can only hope that when we do make first contact, it’s a wonderful person like Ryan Gosling who does it, I’d be proud for him to represent me as a Canadian and the whole human race (and yes, I know he’s an actor, but I stand by it!). My friend said that the movie only works with the switching back and forth between the present and the past, but I would have preferred it to be just chronological; that said, it’s a minor issue. This movie will hit you hard in the feels. I was really moved several times, and while Rocky had some touching moments, most of them were Ryan; he just absolutely crushed the emotional beats.
Final Thoughts:
I loved this movie, and while I probably won’t see it again in the theatres, partially because it’s such a hassle, but also because I just would rather see one of the thousands of movies I haven’t seen, I urge you to see this in theatres. I give this a rare rating for me, a solid 9 out of 10 and one of the strongest recommendations I’ve given in a long time. This is some coarse language and a little bit of blood (also dead bodies), so I would say ages 13+. To give you an idea of how much I loved this, even though it is over 2.5 hours, I never felt bored for a second and was a little sad when it ended. The music is perfect, as is the casting, amazing performances, great special effects, lots of humour, what else can you ask for? Give yourself a lift (and a good cry) and feel hopeful about the world for a few hours; it’s one of the things movies do best.