Project Hail Mary


 

Space, the final frontier. Its vast beauty and mystery have fascinated us since civilization began. It's also one of my favorite places to visit in film, as it is the creme de la creme of science and almost always in tandem with fiction storytelling. As we look up to the sky and beyond, we tend to ask ourselves some more philosophical questions, like what it means to be human within the vastness of the universe. Project Hail Mary (2026) is based on a book of the same name by Andy Weir from 2021. Though I have not read it, after seeing the film, it has been added to my backlog, and from what I hear from the fans, it is quite a faithful adaptation. Thus, I will judge the film based solely on the screening, and what a screening it was. 

​

First and foremost, let me just say it straight away. Beautiful, fun, and individually humanly introspective film. The great emotional narrative was clearly already there in the book, but to bring it to the screen in a compelling and touching way is a task that requires a multitude of different elements to click. For one, the film is 2h 26m, yet it feels like it flew by in an hour. That is quite a statement for a film based on a hard science fiction (concern for scientific accuracy and logic) novel. Science in this film is the overarching main protagonist that steals the show, for me. Typically, science fiction films that deal with space usually tend to try to win the viewers over with the spectacle rather than with the accuracy of their science. Hail Mary, of course, has spectacle, yet it's the beauty of non-exaggerated science that really does the wonder. For most of the film, we are stuck with Grace inside a small spacecraft, dealing with some hard part fictional, yet mostly real science, and it gets you interested and involved because Weir's narrative earns it by being so close to home in terms of the authentic grounding of science, which in turn works so well within the verisimilitude of the film's world. There is a perfect balance between explaining (but not too overly simply) the molecular biology, physics, and even xenology, which lets the viewer be part of Grace's problem-solving and expertise, making the scientific background feel authentic. 

​

​

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The journey that we are taken along from the first to the last shot is greatly planned out in terms of scene sequencing. Well-utilized flashbacks that reveal core elements of the back story come at us just like they come back to Grace as his amnesia wears off and his mission progresses. Amazing structure for the narrative. This is only further aided by a stellar performance by Ryan Gosling. The quirks, comedy, human vulnerability, and general presence that Gosling brings every time he is on screen are, in big part, the glue that holds the film together. ​​Yet there is one other character whose execution helps Gosling's performance work so well by creating amazing chemistry. Rocky. The rock alien, who shares the same mission as Grace. He serves as a major character development companion to Grace and, on quite a big amount of times, even steals the show from Gosling. I must also tip my hat once again to Greig Fraser, outstanding cinematography, and his by now perfected and curated style is a perfect addition to produce some stunning visuals.

​

During the screening, Interstellar kept popping into my head. Not to compare the films, as they each serve a different artistic expression and purpose in their storytelling. Yet the fact that I had an itch to compare Hail Mary to Nolan's masterpiece is a testament to the film being on a level of artistic expression for me that touches and moves me in a way only the best works can. I used a quote that Gosling said when the film came out in another article: that it is not up to us to keep the film industry alive, it's up to the studios to make good works that we, the customers, are willing to pay for. Project Hail Mary is amongst some of the recent projects that prove that the industry may be healing, and good quality may be returning to the norm. Overall, Rocky thumbs down, if you know you know...

​​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​​