From the moment I first caught wind of Project Hail Mary, I could tell it had the potential to be something truly special. Not only was it based on a book by Andy Weir of The Martian fame, but it was also being helmed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, with Ryan Goslings in the lead role serving as the cherry on top. I mean, all the necessary ingredients for a rollicking space adventure were certainly there. But do those ingredients come together to create a finedining experience, or is the resultant meal too spicy or even tasteless?
The movie centers upon a scientist named Grace, who awakens from an induced coma to discover he was in the middle of a deep-space mission. With little to no recollection of how he got there, and the rest of his three-man crew already dead, he begins to piece together, with the help of their onboard AI assistant, the nature of their mission, which involved travelling to another solar system with hopes of learning how to stop the Earth's sun from rapidly dimming. But things take an unexpected turn when he runs into another spaceship and it's unusual occupant.
As anyone who knows me could attest, I have a deep-rooted affinity for science fiction movies like Interstellar and Gravity. And coming out of Project Hail Mary, those are the very two that came to mind. This is not to say that I found the movie derivative, but rather, to merely acknowledge that I recognize the strands of inspiration with which it is crafting its own tale. But what really sets this one apart from those other movies is its humor and characterization.
Much like The Martian before it, Project Hail Mary features a lot of Andy Weir's familiar wit, which has been translated onto the big screen by screenwriter Drew Goddard. I broke from tradition and opted not to read the book the film is based upon before going in to see it, mainly because I wanted to be able to judge it as its own thing. And I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the movie despite my lack of familiarity with the source material, and I imagine others would too.
Ryan Gosling is no stranger to movies about space travel, after his stoic turn as real-life astronaut, Neil Amstrong, in First Man. Except here, he gets to channel his more comedic side. But the true star of the show, in my opinion, was Rocky, the alien with which he spends most of his screentime. Some people might consider this a spoiler but to that I say take it up with the studio, or whoever cuts their trailers, because the entire film was sold on the back of the growing camaraderie between the two.
Their bromance was the emotional core that kept the film going, and I quickly forgot one of them was not in fact human as I laughed at the various gags poking fun at the alien's larger-than-life personality and how it both complimented and clashed with that of Grace. It helps that Rocky was brought to life with a mixture or practical and digital effects, and that he always felt grounded with the other props on the various set and shooting spaces.
Speaking of visual effects, the visuals in Project Hail Mary were uniformly stunning from start to finish. I caught myself gaping at several shots throughout the movie, as the cinematography really helped sell the sense of scale and vastness of space. Equally deserving of praise is the excellent sound mixing. This is the kind of thing I don't typically pay attention to during a movie, but when it is this good, then it demands all the attention it deserves.
Then there's the score by Daniel Pemberton which build with the tension and slowly dissipates when needed, creating this ebb and flow that helped guide and propel the narrative, much like the titular spaceship, Mary, as it navigated the further reaches of space. There were also several needle drop moments during the film, so fans of classic rock and pop shouldn't be surprised to find themselves bopping along with those tunes.
About the only remotely negative thing I can think to say about Project Hail Mary is that the story left me wanting more. Some details felt glossed over, like how the two other crew members of the Mary died. Or perhaps that was addressed and I was simply too distracted by the gags and gorgeous visuals to notice. Either way, this has only further spiked my interest in reading the source material, where I'll hopefully be able to get some of those answers, and more Rocky hijinx.
Project Hail Mary is like a well-fueled rocket ship, firing on all cylinders. It's narrative can be both heartwarming and gut-wrenching, and the fact that it is able to deftly swing between those two extremes without missing a beat is why it is one of my favorites movies of 2026 thus far. And while the year is still young with many more potentially great movies to come, something tells me this one will stand the test of time and serve as one of the finer cinematic offerings on this year's menu.
No comments:
Post a Comment