Sequels. Prequels. Reboots. Re-imaginings. Spinoffs. Shared universes.
And, of course, the rise of A.I. slop.
We’ve grown numb to film that look and feel all too familiar, and we often flock to see them anyway. It’s almost like comfort food – safe, reassuring and bland. Along comes “Project Hail Mary,” and it’s a course correction of the first order.
The story, based on the novel by Andy Weir of “The Martian” fame, packs so much humor, heart and humanity into its two-plus hour running time that it feels dizzying. That’s above and beyond the superlative turn by star Ryan Gosling.
There’s enough originality from directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (“The LEGO Movie”) to fill a dozen movie theaters. And here we are, eager to savor it in one, admittedly overlong bite.
Gosling stars as Ryland Grace, an aw shucks biology teacher pressed into the most unusual service. Ominous reports are tracking an outer space substance infiltrating the sun.
And, slowly but surely, extinguishing it.
Ryland’s unorthodox thinking got him kicked out of the Science, Inc. community, but a determined international task force leader named Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller) thinks he might be the one to save the world.
The film’s smart story structure follows Ryland as he tries to crack the crisis from the confines of space. And, along the way, we get rigorously structured flashbacks to show how he got here in the first place.
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The storytelling is relentlessly smart, from the strong performances to the way that intricate theories are presented as both bright and accessible. Gosling may be movie-star handsome, but his vulnerability is what sells the character.
He’s a puzzle solver of the highest order, but he isn’t sure he has the heroism side of the equation nailed down. Nor do we, which makes “Project Hail Mary” all the more exhilarating.
The film’s first act is darn near flawless, and we’re absorbed by the quest and its sticky obstacles. Midway through, Ryland learns he’s not alone. That part of the film takes a quirkier path, opening the story up in ways that are fascinating and, to be fair, often trite.
It feels cynical to frame it as such, especially when we’re witnessing a crowd-pleasing film brimming with wit and ingenuity. The film may lose some older viewers here, potentially, as well as those who still haven’t forgiven George Lucas for those blasted Ewoks.
The film’s sturdy structure never fades. In ways, it only grows richer.
FAST FACT: Author Andy Weir landed work as a lab assistant at Sandia National Labs, a Department of Energy installation, when he was just 15.
The special effects are as stunning as we’ve come to expect from mainstream Hollywood, but there’s something grounded about the presentation. The FX crew isn’t trying to dazzle or distract us. The ship in question feels as grounded as the Nostromo from “Alien,” a very high compliment.
The rest hangs on Gosling’s shoulders, and in a wild way his adventures are similar to that of Tom Hanks and his unusual pal in “Cast Away.”
Yes, “Project Hail Mary” goes on too long, and the third act packs more than a few, “wait, this isn’t the final conflict” moments? It ends on a note that’s graceful and satisfactory, sticking the landing after already achieving so much more than most films ever think of attempting.
Take that, Tilly Norwood!
HiT or Miss: “Project Hail Mary” is messy but moving, a marvel of science fiction storytelling that never leaves the human element behind.
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