On my bookshelf, alongside Terry Pratchett novels and movie-related tomes, sits Andrew Chaikin’s “A Man on the Moon.” His book is a history of the U.S. space program that digs into what it took for us to send human beings to the lunar surface and bring them safely home. It’s an outstanding piece of nonfiction writing* that I wholeheartedly recommend.

It’s ironic, considering that I, a goober who could barely pass high school science classes, am fascinated so deeply by space travel. Part of it is the unexpected practical applications that affect our daily lives. If you like memory foam pillows, a camera in your phone, glasses with scratch-resistant lenses, and easy water filtration systems, those aren’t in your life because of the free market; instead, they are a direct result of advances made from the space program.

The main reason I love this stuff? It’s inherently cinematic. I love the concept of a team of hundreds of competent professionals working together to execute a goal, and the sheer awesomeness of an immense rocket slipping the surly bonds of Earth. Alongside that is the mystery, the idea that our world is a small island in the midst of a celestial sea, one that sooner or later we’ll have to explore. Those ideas drew me to Project Hail Mary, and the outstanding filmmaking kept me there.

When Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) wakes up, he struggles with a fog of amnesia. Understandable, since memory loss is very common after both a traumatic event and a coma. While we’ll discover the reason for the trauma later, Grace quite quickly works out why he spent time in a coma. 

Grace first figures out he’s on a spacecraft, one that’s a long way from home. Several light years to be exact, and the ship is on course to the Tau Ceti system. Next, he learns he’s part of a three person crew, and Captain Lao Li-Jie (Ken Leung) and engineer Olesya Ilyukhina (Milana Vayntrub) are dead. But why, and why is Grace unharmed?

All alone on the ship, Grace pieces together the details. He recalls a former life as a middle-school science teacher, and a disaster involving the sun. He recalls a paper he wrote long ago, one that got the attention of Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller), the head of Project Hail Mary. Grace recalls a desperate plan to save humanity, but what the hell is he supposed to do?

While Grace may be scared out of his mind, he’s intelligent, resourceful, and buoyed by a persistent sense of humor. He’ll need all of it as the details of his mission come into focus, and his understanding of the many, many ways he can die deepens. But Grace also learns that he’s not the only one on a mission, and a new friendship might be the key to survival.

If you liked The Martian, as I did, you will love Project Hail Mary. Both films are adapted from the novels of Andy Weir, and both focus on problem solving and humor in the face of annihilation. While the former film is a sprawling epic from the mighty Ridley Scott, this one is directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, best known from the 21 Jump Street films and the Spider-Verse franchise. 

Lord and Miller have made a movie that’s a masterwork of smart, blockbuster filmmaking. Instead of relying on green screens, they utilized practical effects and sets as much as possible.** While that explains the mammoth $248 million budget, the decision was sound. It creates a sense of tactile reality, and seeing Ryan Gosling physically interacting with environments gives everything more literal and emotional weight. That’s not to say Lord and Miller didn’t use CGI.*** They did, quite a lot, yet it never looks cheap or distracting. For a film that’s a bit over two and a half hours long, it never feels it. It zips past, and at no point did I ever feel restless.

Drew Goddard, the screenwriter of The Martian, returned to work on this screenplay. That was a canny decision by the filmmakers, since Goddard is outstanding when it comes to weaving hard science with a healthy sense of wit. At times, I thought to myself, “This movie is like Arrival, but much funnier.” The big difference between the two is that, while The Martian had a massive cast across a couple of planets, this script spends as much time as possible in only the head of its lead. It drills down into who Ryland Grace is. Goddard does that by cleverly structuring the screenplay, and cuts back and forth between Grace’s mission in space and the preparations beforehand on Earth. That choice helps us learn what he wants, fears, and overcomes.

Back in the day when you saw a Ryan Gosling performance, you could almost guarantee he’d play a taciturn loner hiding a dark secret. That’s fine, and I’m a fan of Drive, The Place Beyond the Pines, and First Man. If I’m being honest with you, I prefer Gosling’s “I’m a laid back goofball who’s competent when it counts” era. As Grace, Gosling delivers a fun and charismatic performance that’s focused when necessary. Watch Gosling in the first act of this film, and you’ll see he’s not playing a bungling clown, but a smart guy who’s been thrown into the deep end very quickly. He’s got a terrific scene partner with Sandra Hüller as the dry as a bone Eva. I know, we’ve all heard the jokes that Germans have no sense of humor. Hüller has heard them too, and she turns in a performance that’s understated and very funny. 

Project Hail Mary has earned a place alongside top-tier astronaut movies like Apollo 13, Gravity, Ad Astra, Interstellar, and yes, The Martian. It’s one that’s powerful, awe inspiring, emotional, and frequently funny as hell. This is a film you need to see on the biggest screen possible.

*I also recommend Adam Higginbotham’s “Challenger,” which is both well-researched and heartbreaking. You have been warned.

**Which you can read more about here.

***It’s not like they shot the movie on location.

Tim Brennan Movie Critic

Tim has been alarmingly enthusiastic about movies ever since childhood. He grew up in Boulder and, foolishly, left Colorado to study Communications in Washington State. Making matters worse, he moved to Connecticut after meeting his too-good-for-him wife. Drawn by the Rockies and a mild climate, he triumphantly returned and settled down back in Boulder County. He's written numerous screenplays, loves hiking, and embarrassed himself in front of Samuel L. Jackson. True story.