PLOT: A school teacher (Ryan Gosling) with a doctorate in molecular biology wakes up on a spaceship light years away from home with no idea how he got there. Slowly, he begins to realize he’s been sent on an Earth-saving mission from which he will never be able to return.
REVIEW: Rarely has a studio had as much faith in a movie as Amazon/MGM seems to have with Project Hail Mary, the biggest film they’ve produced since the streamer started to ramp up its theatrical release calendar. Based on the novel by Andy Weir (The Martian) and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (the Spider-Verse films, 21 & 22 Jump Street), the film has not only been getting a lot of word-of-mouth screenings, but this weekend it’s set to play a limited 70mm engagement a week before it goes wide. Clearly the studio is convinced they have a winner, and having finally seen the film for myself, I’m inclined to agree.
While time will tell whether Project Hail Mary turns into the theatrical event it’s being positioned as, it’s a thoroughly entertaining space adventure which, like The Martian before it (also adapted by screenwriter Drew Goddard), aims to be an optimistic, feel-good story that should inspire a generation of would-be astronauts — or scientists for that matter.
Ryan Gosling is perfectly cast as the hero, Dr. Ryland Grace, who’d prefer to be teaching science in a middle school than floating in outer space, making him a less-than-stoic hero. Gosling excels in the part, imbuing him with a large dose of humor while never making him come off as anything other than the brilliant man he’s supposed to be. He’s goofy but never silly, and Gosling has the presence needed for the role, with it almost becoming a one-man show for a good chunk of its running time.
Well… that’s almost true. In fact, beyond Gosling, the movie has another star in his alien buddy Rocky, whom Grace encounters on his journey and who is also trying to save his own planet from the same phenomenon that threatens Earth — a star-destroying organism called Astrophage. Rocky becomes Gosling’s dominant co-star, being a visual-effects-enhanced puppet who was actually operated on set and becomes a true scene-stealer. The friendship that sparks between Grace and Rocky gives the movie its heart, and by using older methods to animate him, he feels real in the way classic sci-fi characters like E.T. or Yoda did, which is strikingly different than if he had just been CGI. He’s a true special effect.
In fact, Lord and Miller, who will likely become the two hottest directors in town after this, have made a deliberate attempt to adopt and adapt some older VFX techniques, with the film eschewing green screen for practical sets and using CGI to give everything a finished polish. It feels like a reaction to the overly CGI-driven Hollywood blockbusters that are becoming endangered by the growing use of AI. While many will compare it to The Martian, it also seems inspired by Peter Hyams’ underrated sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010, to which it shares a few visual similarities (plus they both open with the classic MGM logo).
It’s also innovatively photographed by Greig Fraser, with it showing in a variety of formats, including 2.35:1 70mm and IMAX screenings. In the IMAX screening I saw, the aspect ratio changes, with the Earthbound scenes in scope while the frame opens to the IMAX ratio for all the sequences in space. The Earth sequences only take up about 20% of the movie, but like the rest of Project Hail Mary they have a lot of warmth, with Grace becoming close to Sandra Hüller’s character — the cold head of the Hail Mary project. In a nod to her work in Toni Erdmann, in which she memorably sang Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest Love of All,” she gets another karaoke moment, singing a stirring version of Harry Styles’ “Sign of the Times.”
While it runs a hefty 156 minutes, the running time zips along, with Lord and Miller having a good handle on pace. It’s really an impeccably made movie, with everyone involved doing superlative work, including Daniel Pemberton, who contributes a strong score. It’s the kind of movie that deserves to become the next Sinners, so hopefully audiences will give it a shot. It’s upbeat and leaves you walking out of the theater feeling optimistic — which I think all of us could use in these rather somber times.
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