“Project Hail Mary” was the cinematic surprise I needed, and I’m sure that’s not an unpopular opinion, according to CBS News, citing a 500-million-dollar four-week run.” Project Hail Mary” definitely scratched the space itch that I had, falling right next to classics like “The Martian” and “Interstellar.” The mix of incredible acting, an interesting plot, heart wrenching emotion, refreshing humor and stunning cinematography truly provided the March-April movie I needed.
“Project Hail Mary” is Ryan Gosling’s highest rated movie, according to Rotten Tomatoes, for a reason. Every single emotion was littered throughout his facial and bodily expressions during this movie, allowing the audience to truly connect with his character. Ryan Gosling’s acting was supported even more by the writing for “Project Hail Mary.” After the initial rocket blew up during testing, the scene where he refuses to save the Earth for his own selfish reasons and fear of death was completely unexpected and braver than the content of a normal movie. Another aspect I enjoyed was the somewhat complicated theme of the movie, even though it might be a roadblock for younger audiences. For me, it greatly increased my interest in the movie, even though it didn’t explain or contradict itself sometimes. Now, for one of my favorite parts, Rocky: The introduction of an alien was very cool, especially when it didn’t appear in the typical way, but instead tried to create a different view of aliens. The amount of bond between Grace and Rocky made every moment more memorable, during the self-sacrifice scene of Rocky and the effects, including Grace’s realization of the genetically modified samples and the rescue mission jeopardizing his journey home. Finally, for good notes highlighting the cinematography is needed, the number of camera angles explored was interesting, including the spectacular lighting in the space walk infrared test.
Even though “Project Hail Mary” was very good, there were definitely some points where I questioned it. I felt like some of the characters, excluding the main ones, weren’t expanded on enough, like Eva Strat, the head government official running Project Hail Mary. The relationship between Grace and her was only really expanded in one scene, even though it was packed with hidden emotion. I wanted to see more out of it. Another point that confused me was that the issues were not explained; for instance, Astrophage, the core fuel source for the rocket, could be easily bred on Earth, while it could not be done in space. Or why does the rocket need more fuel for the trip back when the first law of physics: An object in motion stays in motion unless another object stops it, while space is empty and there is nothing to stop it, one would also think that if the rocket was affected by the strain of gravity, the stain of going close to light speed would be much worse. Astrophage was a fantasy idea, not fully explained or integrated well into a very realistic setting.
“Project Hail Mary” did a ton right in ways I’ve missed. Even though it did have moments where I questioned it, it will definitely go into one of the best movies of 2026 or even the past few years. I had a lot of fun with it, and I would recommend it to anyone on the fence about watching it. In total, I would give “Project Hail Mary” an 8.5/10.
