‘Project Hail Mary’ Review: The Ryan Gosling Space Epic is an Instant Sci-Fi Classic

Project Hail Mary the latter Andy Weir assembled to make it to the big screen. The film, based on Weir’s 2022 novel of the same name, was written by Drew Goddard (Daredevil, The Martian) and directed by. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-VersePhil Lord and Chris Miller will also hit theaters everywhere on March 20. Ryan Gosling stars as a school teacher who is thrown into an impossible situation. He went into space to solve a mysterious anomaly that threatens the future of Earth’s existence.

If the idea of ​​humanity’s fate being in the hands of an unarmed underdog who must go into space to accomplish the impossible feels familiar, it should. You’ve seen the same story play out with a few sci-fi moviessuch as Armageddon, Deep Impact and Moonfall.

It’s a cinematic trope I’m tired of. However, to my delight Project Hail Mary is pulling it off.

Before I continue, please note: They exist Major news spoilers below.

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Project Hail Mary is a set of moving parts that, if misbalanced, can easily be sunk into the cheap space adventure space where the examples above reside. It all works, though, and it’s pretty cool. And the success of this very important, fun and heartfelt story depends, in large part, on Ryan Gosling’s performance as science teacher Ryland Grace.

Most of the work Gosling does in this movie is done by himself, reminiscent of Matt Damon in The Martian and Sam Rockwell in Moon. Gosling owns Project Hail Mary for the simple reason that he flies solo for the entire movie. That would be a daunting prospect for the actor, considering the confines of the set and the lack of a reliable scene partner, but Gosling is no slouch as Grace.

When he is alone, the emotional foundation of the film is set. Despite the fact that there’s a pending disaster involving a star-eating amoeba, it’s the endearing nature of Gosling’s Grace that makes Project Hail Mary feel completely reasonable. Is that so? Don’t ask me. That is not important.

Through flashbacks, we get a lot of the necessary backstory on why Grace is alone in space, her degree as a molecular biologist and the nature of her isolation outside of her job teaching Junior High students.

I should mention that Project Hail Mary is also a film about first contact. This was written as a major plot point in the book and was a point revealed in the trailer, which upset many readers. With that said, knowing that there will be an alien in the movie didn’t diminish my viewing experience at all. In fact, it increased it.

All you need to do is a short internet search to see critics comparing the movie to ET the Extra-Terrestrial. These comparisons are wrong. Project Hail Mary is fueled by an Amblin-esque brand of wonder that keeps the story moving forward.

It’s important to note that the part of the relationship that blossoms in space is the catalyst that pushes Grace to transform from an eccentric underdog to a focused hero.

It takes a while to get to the alien meet-cute and friendship story it turns into, and, in an effort to keep at least half of this story a surprise, I’ll just say that it takes real talent to imbue something seemingly inanimate with feelings of humanity and empathy.

In related news: Project Hail Mary succeeded in making me cry over a rock.

Gosling may be doing a lot of the heavy lifting in this movie, but the supporting cast gets to play in the backstory clips, adding color and context to the story. Sandra Hüller’s Eva Stratt, the polite scientist who enlists Grace in a top-secret project, is the perfect foil against Gosling’s inappropriate humor.

Lionel Boyce of the Bears is also happy. He gives Grace some kind of friend to associate herself with in the order of government. Let’s not forget James Ortiz, the ancestor and voice of the aforementioned stranger, who delivers perfectly as Grace’s super alien friend.

I’ve talked a lot about character and performance, which is necessary in this review, considering how important emotional impact is here. These two parts make for a galactic journey and a well-earned global disaster story. Considering this is a film set in space, I haven’t even mentioned the outstanding visual effects.

Meanwhile, Project Hail Mary launched an amazing sequel. I saw the movie on a big IMAX screen, which is probably why I found the scenes set outside the ship so interesting. Gosling doesn’t leave the ship very often, but when his character goes on a space voyage or tries to collect the star-eating creatures I mentioned earlier, the movie takes off to another level.

When it comes to space travel involving aliens, danger often sounds palpable and scary. Project Hail Mary doesn’t lean that way, which is kind of fun to take off. Yes, this is science fiction, but it goes against the grain by keeping the magic and wonders of science at the fore.

Above all, Project Hail Mary is about the power of love and friendship — and I don’t know about you, but that’s something I think we need more of right now.