Ryland Grace wakes up from a coma with two dead crewmates and no idea who or where he is. What he discovers is that he is currently on a ship traveling through space, light years away from Earth, on his way to the Tau Ceti star system. He does not know how to turn the ship around to go back to Earth, nor does he have enough fuel to even get there. Ryland Grace is stranded in space, trying to remember who he is without anyone to tell him.
“Project Hail Mary” was released in theaters on Mar. 20 and follows Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) as he attempts to figure out who he is and his purpose on this mission. The film was adapted by Drew Goddard from the 2021 novel of the same name by Andy Weir, who also wrote the critically acclaimed book “The Martian” (which has its own film adaptation). Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who most notably directed “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” and “The Lego Movie,” the space epic has received both a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an 8.4 out of 10 on IMDb.
What makes “Project Hail Mary” so special is its unwavering commitment to a hopeful and funny, yet devastatingly-sad and empathetic film. Where some book-to-movie adaptations stumble and change the core motive of the story, “Project Hail Mary,” despite having to cut a lot of information from the book (I read it when it came out in 2021, trust me) keeps the original message at heart. Additionally, “Project Hail Mary” is a cinematographically beautiful film, with mind-blowing space scenes that deserve to be seen in a theater on a big screen (if you can get to an IMAX theater, do it because the film was shot to be shown in those types of theaters specifically).
Throughout the film, we discover that Ryland Grace and his mission in space are a literal Hail Mary attempt at saving humanity. Earth’s sun appears to be dimming, which we learn is due to a host of microorganisms called astrophages that are eating the sun’s energy. Nearly all stars in our area of the galaxy have been infected by these astrophages, except for one – Tau Ceti. Grace’s mission is to find out why Tau Ceti is not infected, find a solution, and send the information back to Earth – but Grace will be left behind to die in space, unable to return home.
Once Grace reaches Tau Ceti, he discovers that he is not alone, but rather joined by an alien with the same mission he is on – to rescue his star from the astrophage. The alien (a rock-like, five-legged creature from the 40 Eridani system, who Grace names Rocky) and Grace are eventually able to make contact, and they together have to both learn to communicate and figure out how to save their respective planets (or as Rocky says in the film, “Grace Rocky Save Stars”).
The film, while about Rocky and Grace’s dying planets, centers on the relationship between the two characters. Their relationship is hilarious, heart-breaking, and demonstrative of a kind of cross-cultural connection that is rarely done as well as it is in this film. Without spoilers, Rocky and Grace save each other’s lives again and again, and are able to form a truly unbreakable bond over the course of the story. “Project Hail Mary” takes all the best parts of a dramatic science fiction film, and combines them with a character-driven story that is one for the ages.
As a science fiction lover, this film was obviously a slam dunk for me (or as Rocky would say, “Full Good”) – but I encourage everyone to go see this film because it is so incredibly character driven that I believe anyone is able to relate and empathize with the characters on screen. Go see “Project Hail Mary” on the big screen!
