Some films are best enjoyed in a theater. The collective rushes of adrenaline and emotion. The singular moments and lines that continue to echo through time like a beacon.
“On your left.”
One line from a movie from years ago and we’re transported back to the first time we heard it. Those films are moments, not movies. A time when we know exactly where we were when we heard it.
‘Project Hail Mary’ is THAT movie.
Everything you’ve heard is true. See it on the biggest screen possible.
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Teachers are charged with saving the world figuratively everyday. Ryland Grace is a teacher who gets to do it literally. Grace is quickly elevated to the on board science officer on a mission to save the world from extinction known as Project Hail Mary. ‘Project Hail Mary’ is a cavalcade of light and sound, bliss and sadness. The film controls the narrative masterfully, bouncing from present to past seemlessly relying on the charm and charisma of lead, Ryan Gosling, who, in turn, gives the performance of his career. ‘Project Hail Mary’ is an absolute masterpiece. Watching this film on your TV screen will not be enough.
Why We Go To The Movies
‘Project Hail Mary’ is why movie theaters exist.
The film is the blurs the line between art and entertainment, indeed preseting entertainment AS art in a way that can reach even the most cynical of moviegoers. Without using ANY green screens being used, directors, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, were able to create some of the most beautiful visuals put on film in the past decade. Truly, I could watch this film in the silent vaccum of space and still have get as much joy out of it. The “fishing” scene is some of the most stunning visual work I’ve ever seen. Locking up the Academy Award for Visual Effects in March is wild work, but is arguably likely in the case of ‘Project Hail Mary.’
Adaptating a beloved book that has the advantage of, well, being a book and playing with a narrative that bounces from present to past frequently is a large task that is often attempted, but rarely achieved. ‘Project Hail Mary’ does so with Grace. Dual meanings aside ‘Project Hail Mary’ is able to do what many films can’t when it comes to telling a story in two time periods. There is zero confusion as to what is happening even when the science borders on the far too advanced. Moviegoers are still able to be drawn in, some may even go do outside science research.
A Lesson In Chemistry
There are few charming enough to handle monopolizing three fourth’s of the screen time in a film. Ryan Gosling is. ‘Project Hail Mary’ calls for an immense amount of heavy lifting from Gosling due to how much solo screen time he has. At this task, he is no liability. Gosling is charming and captivating, heartbreaking, yet funny. It is a complete performance that is arguably his best in a resume of iconic performances. I found myself watching ‘La La Land’ just for a hit of that sweet sweet Gosling charisma because I couldn’t get back into a theater quick enough. It’s that type of performance.
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Where ‘Project Hail Mary’ and Gosling truly shine is in it’s chemistry. Rocky and Grace are an iconic duo that will become pop culture main stays. James Ortiz and Ryan Gosling work so seemlessly together in creating the relationship that audiences found themselves worred about the well being of a puppet on more than one occassion. The relationship is just so pure and genuine. Two seemingly small beings charged with a gargantuan task that’s brought them together in the vast reaches of space. The simplicity is endearing in it’s magnitude.
Final Thought:
Movies like ‘Project Hail Mary’ come along once every few decades. A film so special that it moves populations of people that can’t miss out on the hype. This movie is special. It is what people are saying it is. ‘Project Hail Mary’ is a masterpiece. Plain and simple. Amaze. Amaze. Amaze.
