The Martian Review

Starring: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Kate Mara, Chiwetel Ejiofor

There's been an attempt at a space movie every fall since 2013. Gravity succeeded immensely, winning the most Oscars, and garnering the most critical acclaim out of any movie released that year. It also made a ridiculous amount of money and held up well for many weeks. Last year's Interstellar tried to copy that success and flopped. It was still financially successful (and not terrible, in my opinion) but came nowhere close. This year, The Martian, starring Matt Damon as an astronaut left by his crew on Mars, attempts the same feat. I saw it three weeks into its run, so I can tell you it has succeeded. It opened with about the same amount of money as Gravity, and has a 93% average on RottenTomatoes. It doesn't quite have the same awards traction, but it is very deserving. The Martian is one of my favorite movies of the year so far, and there are a number of reasons why.

First, viewers be warned: this is a horribly long movie. It seems to go on forever, and it's at times very slow. But never once, is it ever boring. It's incredibly hard to pull this off when your subject is one guy talking to himself alone on a deserted planet. Somehow, the movie does pull it off. I found myself more fascinated with the scenes without Mark Watney (Damon), instead focusing on what was happening at NASA's mission control, and with the rest of his crew. Watney, a botanist growing potatoes with his own feces is an incredibly interesting storyline, but the inner workings of NASA interested me more. There is a huge ensemble cast, and they all give really good work. Chiwetel Ejiofor, who you might remember from 2013's Best Picture-winning 12 Years a Slave is very good in a key supporting role. And Kristen Wiig gives a performance that surprisingly lacks any sort of comedy. Jeff Daniels is also a standout. The real kudos go to Jessica Chastain and Matt Damon. Damon gives one of his best performances I've seen, and most of the movie falls on his shoulders. He does great. Jessica Chastain proves she can hold her own, and probably is the strongest character in the movie. She's the Commander living with the guilt that she left one of her men behind, and she expertly displays these emotions. It's not as showy as her nominated roles in The Help and Zero Dark Thirty, but in a movie that could go in a number of directions, she grounds it.

Besides the acting, the movie also has some great technical features, and a really amazing script. The script is probably the strongest part about the movie. Matt Damon has some really amazing lines, that mix a lot of comedy into the movie. You'll laugh a loud more than you expect. I've never read the book upon which this film is based, but I've heard it's a very faithful adaptation. It blends just the right amount of science with action. It's neither too reliant on science nobody understands (which Interstellar suffered from), or too reliant on explosions. There is both, and they blend pretty well. For the most part, I understood the science, which means that it is pretty simple to understand. I saw The Martian in 3D, and it definitely elevated the experience, but I wouldn't say it's necessary. It didn't do anything new with the technology, it just made some of the scenery really stand out. The directing is also strong. If you know the director Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Thelma & Louise, Alien, Black Hawk Down), you might also know he's having a bit of a dry spell after his early success. This movie definitely puts him back on the map, and proves he's still got it.

I recommend The Martian because it has something for everybody. If you like action, there is a good amount of action. If you like great acting, you get a lot of solid performances. If you like science and science fiction there is a little of both. But most of all, The Martian is just a movie that tries a lot, and all of it works. Throughout the movie's long duration, I was always on the edge of my seat. It's just a fascinating story about the will to survive, and one that is executed perfectly. I haven't given five stars to a movie I can really get behind in a long while. This movie deserves it.

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