Project Hail Mary (2026)
Directed by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller
Screenplay by Drew Goddard
Based on Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller, Lionel Boyce, Ken Leung, Milana Vayntrub, Priya Kansara
Plot Synopsis: (via Wikipedia)
The film follows the story of Ryland Grace, a man who awakens on an interstellar spacecraft with no memory of how he came to be there.
My Opinion:
This was perfection. This is the type of film that keeps my love of movies alive. The type of movie I took for granted while growing up in the ‘80s, when we’d get something like this multiple times a year. I now have to try to not sound all cheesy & dorky as I get a little overexcited when I love a film. But, man, why can’t they all be like this? Movies that just make your heart happy? You know?!
Okay, I’ll try to calm down now & be rational. I’ll start by saying that I know this movie is very “me”. I always love sci-fi (heavy, lightweight, doesn’t matter – I love it all). And I love a good story, which this definitely has. But probably more than anything, characters are extremely important to me. I think Andy Weir does an amazing job writing insanely likeable characters who have a fantastic sense of humor (same goes for The Martian). Plus, even more so, I love nothing more than a great non-human character. I’m an absolute sucker for that. If you ask me my favorite movie characters, I’ll probably start with R2-D2, Yoda, Grogu (movie soon!), Totoro, WALL-E, etc. Nothing makes me happier than some lovable creature or robot so, yeah, I already adored Rocky from the book. It was already likely that I was going to like this movie no matter what.
I thought it looked extremely promising from the trailers but, wow, it even surpassed my high expectations. I’d even go so far as to say that, in my opinion based on the many times I’ve read a book & then watched the movie, this is the most perfect adaption of a novel that I’ve ever seen. Perfect & faithful. I’d say the only thing missing was more explanation of the science involved but that’s totally understandable due to time restraints. It didn’t hurt the film at all. I think I probably bore my daughter to tears after every film like this when I fill her in on all the ways the movie differed from the book. I happily didn’t have to have that conversation at all this time.
After reading the book, I couldn’t wait to see a movie version but thought it would be very hard to adapt. I mainly just didn’t see how they could get the design of Rocky quite right. I’m in awe of how amazing Rocky looks as well as the design of his ship, etc. And his little ball he rolls around in! I want a little “rock with legs” to be my best friend now. Rocky is precious. Another non-human character now added high onto my list of favorites.
I hate to keep using the word “perfect” in this review but it’s really difficult when Lord, Miller & Goddard (and, well, everyone behind the scenes) did everything so right. Ryan Gosling was the most perfect choice to star in this & there is absolutely no one else I can even imagine in this role (so, I guess I have to thank the casting director too). Gosling is who I wanted. He can do any type of role & he can easily carry a big blockbuster like this, which is obviously important when you’re the only human for such a big chunk of the film. We all know he can do humor, which he did brilliantly here as expected. But he can do the heavy & emotional stuff too and, wow, he was so great doing quite a wide range of emotions here. I hate that movies like this don’t get recognised by award shows. So, for next year’s Oscars when I’m assuming this (at most) might be nominated for some behind-the-scenes awards, Gosling has already won Best Actor in my heart. Rocky, too! An Oscar for Rocky too! They totally deserve it. Statement.
Oh, I better add that Sandra Hüller was great too! Sorry, I’m so focused on the Grace/Rocky thing. Loved her as well. And the film was gorgeous. Again, I can’t fault this adaptation in any way whatsoever. I’ve given it an instant 5 stars on Letterboxd & put it directly into my list of all-time favorites. And #1 of the 2020s. So I feel that I should point out that I’m not someone who gives 5 stars very often, especially these days. I was curious so I looked up what I’ve given 5 stars since the year 2000. Only five others, and the last one was a decade ago (2001 Spirited Away & Monsters Inc, 2008 WALL-E, 2015 Inside Out, 2016 Arrival, 2026 Project Hail Mary).
So, yeah, I liked this. So much. My heart is happy. Amaze amaze amaze.
My Rating: 10/10
Cinema Parrot Disco 
