‘Project Hail Mary’ is a grand, gorgeous, galactic good time – 828reviewsNOW

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Ryan Gosling may be the most charming astronaut who has ever befriended a rocky alien spider-crab in the fun and fantastic-looking “Project Hail Mary.” Read our review for more.

“PROJECT HAIL MARY” (2026, 156 min., directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller)

There’s really nothing quite like a big, beautiful, handmade space movie. As far as tactility goes, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s “Project Hail Mary” is cut from the cloth of the original “Star Wars” and “2001: A Space Odyssey.” The brilliant production design makes every inch of this film’s outer space feel real, from the interior of the space ship to the starry expanse of the final frontier. Heck, the alien of the piece is even brought to life through some arcane combination of puppetry and magic. Yoda, Hoth and HAL, meet Grace, Rocky and astrophage. “Project Hail Mary” has immediately joined the pantheon of great space cinema.

Its influences aren’t confined to the classics, either. The film was adapted by screenwriter Drew Goddard from novelist Andy Weir’s book of the same name, the same combo that produced “The Martian” in 2015. Naturally, the two films have a lot in common, in tone and in content. If you enjoyed “The Martian” a decade ago, I guarantee you’ll be over the moon for “Project Hail Mary.”

Ryan Gosling stars as Ryland Grace, a middle school science teacher and brilliant biologist brought onboard a multinational mission to save the Sun, which is being “eaten” by microscopic space bacteria known as “astrophage.” The group of scientists and government officials, led by a charmingly humorless Sandra Hüller, need Grace to embark on a one-way mission to a nearby star unaffected by the microorganisms, where they hope he will learn how to replicate its immunity. The film begins with Grace at the end of his journey, waking from his space travel coma with amnesia. Forced to determine his mission without remembering his past, he quickly encounters a friendly, five-legged alien with a body resembling a pile of rocks. It turns out the alien, whom Grace dubs Rocky, is a scientist himself, and the two forge a close friendship as they attempt to solve the astrophage problem for both their worlds.

That’s a lot of information at the jump, but “Project Hail Mary” is light on its feet, bouncing between an amnesiac Grace’s adventures with Rocky and Grace’s time on Earth before the mission. Lord and Miller do a terrific job balancing the two stories, which revolve on the same ideological axis: Science is fun! That’s Weir’s modus operandi. His stories are inherently cinematic, but their character is very different from the operatics of “Interstellar” or the old school procedural of “Apollo 13.” Weir’s novels are about making complex scientific ideas exciting, accessible and entertaining through practical application. Duct tape, bad puns and rock music play as big of a role in his sci-fi stories as relativity or calculus. It’s fitting that the main character of “Project Hail Mary” is a cool science teacher. The movie is virtually one itself.

Speaking of the main character: Gosling. “The Martian” was also about one man marooned in outer space, but it featured a massive ensemble of movie stars in its earthbound plot. I’m a big fan of Hüller, but “The Zone of Interest” and “Anatomy of a Fall” haven’t exactly made her a household name. “Project Hail Mary” rests on the shoulders of Gosling to carry, and like the sun his character must save, he’s a shining star. As Grace, Gosling is all charisma, comedy and charm. He’s great in this part.

I guess it would be misleading to say that “Project Hail Mary” is powered entirely by Gosling. Shortly after meeting him, Grace engineers a way to give Rocky a voice, and the two settle on the amusing tones of James Ortiz. Ortiz, who is also the lead puppeteer for the alien, should be showered with praise for bringing Rocky to life. The film would not be half as funny as it is without his comic timing, nor near as emotional without how real he makes the alien feel. Many of his line readings are instantly quotable. Gosling is still the primary reason for the film’s success, but the equation would be incomplete with their relationship. When we look back at all the great human-alien friendships in film history, we’ll remember E.T. and Elliott. Han Solo and Chewbacca. Rocky and Grace.

There can be too much of a good thing. Lord and Miller must have realized the greatness they had on their hands, because they did not want their movie to end. “Project Hail Mary” is about 20 minutes too long, with a third act that suffers from redundancy. The finale features enough repetitive, saccharine self-indulgence to power an entire soap opera. (Or should I say space opera?) I think there was a natural climax for the story that showed off some positively thrilling blockbuster filmmaking, followed by a very affecting denouement. Lord and Miller almost nailed it. You’ll feel it when you see it. But then the movie keeps going, just like the infinite vacuum of space. It certainly threatened to suck my patience dry.

Still, it’s hard to be too annoyed when “Project Hail Mary” is otherwise so joyfully, beautifully made. This is a stellar flick. See it on the biggest screen you can. As cinematic sci-fi spectacle goes, I think future space movies will orbit “Project Hail Mary” for years to come.

Rating: 4/5

“Project Hail Mary” is now playing in theaters nationwide.