"The Martian" Review

Title: The Martian

Directed by: Ridley Scott

Screenplay by: Drew Goddard

Year: 2015


The trailer for The Martian had me simultaneously hyped to see the movie and disappointed at the thought of it. On the one hand, the trailer boasted quite a tremendous film with an excellent premise based on the novel by the same name. On the other, I was among the majority that felt the trailer gave away too much of the plot. And just like the majority, I was dead wrong. The Martian contains many surprises that you will not see coming. But is the film out of this world, or too far out to work?

During an expedition to Mars, a team of astronauts encounter a furious storm that forces them to leave. However, Mark Watney is presumed dead and left behind during the escape. Having lived, Watney must use his intellect and resourcefulness to survive on the distant planet and find a way to contact NASA if he has any hopes of coming home.

Ridley Scott has not been quite in the best of shape in terms of his filmography in recent years. With the exception of Prometheus, he has not really delivered anything memorable or great. But The Martian sees this seasoned director back on top form and might just be one of his greatest films.

Matt Damon is a showstopper as Mark Watney. He imbues the character with such a likability and is so relatable that it is hard not to fall in love with this character. He is incredibly charming and instantly grabs the audience with his personality. Jessica Chastain, Michael Pena, and Kate Mara all do a fine job as the crew that left Watney behind. We truly get the feeling that they were good friends with Watney. Kristen Wiig is a nice inclusion, as is Sean Bean for his very small role. Donald Glover's hilarious addition to the cast is minor but very welcomed. And Jeff Daniels is also excellent but Chiwetel Ejiofor is a real standout, well, apart from Damon that is. He gives a grounded performance and most of what happens on Earth is shown to us through his eyes.

The premise behind this movie is brilliant. Simply and utterly brilliant. Imagine if Cast Away took place on Mars, and you would have The Martian. Except that, The Martian is an even better movie. The story moves along at a perfect pace. The intercutting between Watney on Mars and NASA on Earth was done near flawlessly. The way it unfolds as NASA tries to find a way to bring Watney while he is trying to survive on another planet is breathtakingly done. On a side note, The Martian does what Interstellar should have done. The Martian lacks any sort of villain or antagonist. Why? Because the story does not call for one. It makes the story much better because it is not devoting time to something that is unnecessary.

Is it strange to say that The Martian is one of the funniest movies of 2015? Because it is. It contains more laughs than most comedies released this past year and every, single joke lands. And these are not simple chuckles, no. You will be laughing hard during this movie. Most of the comedy comes from Damon giving some awesome lines. "I have to science the shit out of this." "That makes me a pirate. A space pirate!" However, the characters back on Earth also deliver some good comedy. This movie is hilarious with clever jokes and quotable one liners.

And that is something to admire about this film. It could have easily gone the serious, dark, and bleak route. But instead, it goes for a more light hearted approach. There are serious moments, for sure, but there is so much levity that makes the film easier to watch and more enjoyable. Whereas other survival films are hard to watch because of the content, The Martian is a fun ride because of how it is written.

And this brings me to the screenplay. The writers did a phenomenal job with the astro-jargon. Nothing is too difficult to understand or goes over the viewers' heads. It is not dumbed down either. This is achieved through clear and well spoken dialogue, with careful attention given to the vocabulary chosen. The effort shows and should be appreciated because it adds to the film's watchability.

Ridley Scott proves he is at his best when directing science fiction. He makes the plain and droll Mars come to life and look absolutely gorgeous. The use of log entries to give exposition as well as fill in time gaps was a clever choice as it serves two purposes: it provides an engaging method through which to give expository dialogue, and it allows the audience to get a bit more intimate with Watney. Scott has always had a visual flair that is hard to match and it is very prominent throughout this picture.

My only gripe with this movie comes in the third act. There is a portion of the film where we cut back to Earth for quite a while and though it is engaging to watch, when the movie cuts back to Damon, you realize how long you spent without him and thus makes this sequence feel a little disjointed. A few incredibly minor pacing issues follow but that is it. The Martian is a nearly perfect movie.

Ridley Scott has produced some of the best science fiction movies of all time and The Martian might quickly rise the ranks to join them. The humor is perfectly executed, the performances are extraordinary, the direction and screenplay are expertly handled, and it is a blast from start to finish. The third act is a nail biting experience and might even get some tears out of you. The Martian is a wonderful picture and one of 2015's finest entries.

Grade: A