Warning this review contains SPOILERS.
The sun is dying, and the fate of the world is in the hands of a middle school science teacher. This is the premise of the blockbuster space epic, Project Hail Mary, where an unlikely pair have the opportunity to save two worlds. This movie takes thes the audience on a rollercoaster of emotion, action, and an unexpected intergalactic connection
Project Hail Mary takes place in a time similar to ours, that is, slowly destined for doom. An infrared line connecting the sun to Saturn is progressively eating away at the sun, cooling the Earth. When middle school teacher, Ryland Grace, is approached by the head of a mission determined on saving Earth, he is thrown into a position he never thought he’d be in. After joining the mission, Grace learns that every star in the galaxy is facing the same problem as Earth. except one. They are planning on sending a spaceship with three astronauts on board.
Just days before the mission, one of the astronauts dies in an explosion, and Grace is drugged and forced to take their spot. When Grace awakes years later, he is the only astronaut still alive and must save the world all by himself, or so he thinks. Grace meets an alien named Rocky, who is also there to save his planet. The two work together to save each other’s planets while sparking a special connection at the same time.
The element that was most impressive from this movie was Ryan Gosling’s performance as Ryland Grace. Even though Grace was on a mission to save the Earth, Gosling made the character feel very human and relatable. For example, Gosling is able to highlight how his character is afraid just like anyone else would in his position. What blew me away about his performance the most from Gosling was the fact that he
Additionally, Sandra Hüller’s performance as Eva Stratt, the head of the mission, was also remarkable. Although at times her character was very business-focused and robotic, she was able to show great amounts of emotion in flashes throughout the movie. This was highlighted in an iconic scene in which she sang “Sign of the Times” by Harry Styles.
The most touching element of Project Hail Mary was the relationship between Grace and Rocky. The way this movie portrayed an alien was very unique. Throughout the movie, Rocky possesses very human-like emotions. Rocky cares for Grace like a human cares for a friend, and he shows this when he sacrifices himself to save Grace.
Project Hail Mary´s dazzling cinematography was hard to miss. Beautiful colors mixed with unique shots made Project Hail Mary feel more like an experience than a movie. The craziest part is that no green screens were used throughout the entire movie: Even Rocky whose look is something we’ve never seen before is a puppet who was controlled by several puppeteers throughout the movie. Not only this, but the spacecraft used throughout the movie was actually an extremely accurate replica of an actual spacecraft created solely for the film. Project Hail Mary Going to the next level to make everything look realistic without using greenscreens is a testament to the thought that was put in to making this movie spectacular
For a movie where so much is on the line, I felt that humor was integrated very tastefully into Project Hail Mary. Gosling did an outstanding job of keeping things lighthearted and comical, even in the depths of space.
Project Hail Mary was the perfect mix of suspense, humor, and mesmerizing visuals. The overall authenticity of the film makes it a very unique watching experience. This movie will make you cry and then make you laugh 5 minutes later. I was blown away by the film. 9.5/10.
