An even better film than Gravity. it’s worth going to see The Martian.
The Martian (Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kate Mara, Jeff Daniels) – With inevitable comparisons to the technologically incredible Gravity, The Martian is an even better film with an all-star cast and great special effects. This is a don’t-miss movie with enough flaws to divert some viewers but not enough to spoil this wonderful journey to the Red Planet.
Matt Damon, perhaps the most bankable actor in Hollywood, stars as Mark Watney, an astronaut/botanist on an American mission to Mars. When a serious storm strikes the surface, the crew is forced to abandon the mission and take off from their perch on the planet’s surface. Mark gets impaled by an antenna and blown hundreds of feet away, leaving the crew no choice but to abandon him and leave him for dead. As they head home, we find out Mark is not dead.
After he yanks the antenna out and attends to his medical needs (he is very resourceful), he sets about trying to figure out to how to survive. The habitat built for the astronauts is intact with food and water enough for six of them for a couple of months. So food and water are not the immediate problem … but it will be if he can’t get help. His survival for the long term is the big issue, and he is very resourceful (did I mention that?). All the while, he is providing a running commentary to record his story for history and to keep himself sane.
Meanwhile, on the ground, the NASA crew, once it realizes he is alive, works hard to save him. The weakest part of the film is back on Earth. Jeff Daniels plays the head of NASA and essentially plays him just like his Newsroom character (this is not his best performance). Kristen Wigg plays it straight as his PR person in a total waste of talent in a meaningless character. Chiti Ejioifor is very good as the head of the Mars program with Sean Bean completely lost as the head of the mission.
The space crew, led by Jessica Chastain and featuring Michael Pena and Kate Mara, is kept in the dark about Mark’s survival. When informed, they feel guilt first and then figure out how to help. As great as this cast is, they play second fiddle to Damon, who carries the movie in an homage to Tom Hanks in Cast Away rather than the brooding Sandra Bullock in Gravity.
The real star may be the computer graphics and special effects. Not only does the film boast what looks like more than 100 CG animators and compositors, the landscapes of Mars and the space scenes are phenomenal. So take a break from the terrible news around the world and travel into space with Damon and the crew of The Martian.