Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) wakes up on a spacecraft with no memory of who he is, why he’s there, or how he got there in the first place. It’s a genuine surprise to him when he turns to see a huge window confirming that he is, in fact, in space. Grace slowly remembers that he is a middle school science teacher with a doctorate in molecular biology. Following two timelines, flashbacks reveal that an infrared light from Venus to the Sun—the Petrova Line—is slowly dimming the Sun. This phenomenon is caused by a microorganism called Astrophage which will result in the global cooling of Earth within 30 years. Grace recalls that he is on the Hail Mary on a suicide mission to Tau Ceti, the only unaffected nearby star, to figure out how it’s surviving so he can try and save Earth. To make matters worse, Grace is the sole survivor of three as the pilot and engineer (Milana Vayntrub and Ken Leung) never woke up from the comas they were placed in for space travel.
As Grace approaches Tau Ceti, he notices an alien spacecraft that grows pretty attached to him. Soon enough, he is introduced to Rocky, a faceless, five-legged, boulder-like alien from the star system 40 Eridani. Grace creates a translation system on his computer for Rocky’s song-like speech so they can communicate, and learns that Rocky is a mechanic who is also there to save his planet from the Petrova Line. As neither can survive in the other’s atmosphere, they find workarounds—such as Rocky entering the Hail Mary in a small, pressurised spacesuit-like ball—so they can work together. Rocky is an incredibly intelligent engineer with a sweet, if not a little judgmental, soul. When he arrives on the Hail Mary, he charges around with the anxious and excited energy of a 14-year-old boy, as puppeteer James Ortiz puts it.
Further flashbacks reveal more about Grace’s involvement in the mission, which began with government agent Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller) recruiting him based on an old paper he wrote—one that got him expelled from the academic community for a hypothesis he refused to back down from. Gosling excels with his usual movie star charm in what is a complex role. Grace is brilliant, quirky, and playful, but deeply insecure and thinks of himself negatively. He cannot understand why he of all people would be chosen for something of this calibre. Surely there are better and more intelligent minds out there. But Eva told Grace she needs people who piss others off; people who think they’re right even when everyone thinks they’re wrong. Gosling is able to capture an average guy who possesses deep empathy, courage, and problem-solving skills alongside being surprisingly highly adaptable. Something that separates Grace from the usually tough and resolute heroes in similar stories is that he is the true definition of brave: he is scared but he does it anyway. He was put in an impossibly difficult position, but he does the right thing. Hüller also gives a stellar performance as a pragmatic and ruthless authoritative figure. Her singing voice in one scene is incredibly moving, as is the choice of song, which is unexpected but works wonders.
Project Hail Mary is a visually gorgeous experience thanks to cinematographer Greig Fraser and production designer Charles Wood. Christopher Miller, who directed the film with Phil Lord, told ComicBook.com that there “is no green screen in the movie whatsoever.” The interior of the Hail Mary (and some of the exterior) was physically built at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, and Rocky was really on set thanks to the tremendous work from puppeteer Ortiz, who successfully brings to life the adorable and loveably bizarre alien. This helped to produce a more grounded and claustrophobic visual experience and moving performance from Gosling. It also allowed the direction and camerawork to be more creative and inventive, exploring different angles which can mimic the feel of zero gravity and, again, the claustrophobia of being in space despite the vast openness. It’s a refreshing feat considering today’s CGI advancements often leave major fantasy or science fiction films looking cold and detached. That isn’t to say there was no CGI in Project Hail Mary, because obviously there were plenty of digital effects, including shots of the galaxy and fleshing out Rocky. This combination of practical and digital effects is a match made in heaven and helps to create the film’s distinct and impressive visual style.
While Project Hail Mary explores a serious and scary subject matter, the film is humorous, silly, and lighthearted throughout—which is achieved massively thanks to Gosling’s endearing and comedic talents. It also succeeds in balancing huge emotional swings as Grace is faced with the impossibly tough high stakes of life versus death, with the fate of Planet Earth resting on his shoulders. The film is continuously engaging and makes you wonder where it’s going. We know the stakes and, many times, despite the positivity radiating on-screen, you’re left wondering if they will make it. Will Grace and Rocky succeed in their mission? Films are supposed to evoke emotion and Drew Goddard’s screenplay, adapted from Andy Weir’s hard sci-fi novel of the same name, does this expertly. When things go wrong, you may catch yourself holding your breath for minutes at a time.
There’s a big reveal later in the film that I won’t spoil, but it presents a large moral dilemma that many may get stuck on considering the film’s overarching positivity. But it’s not there to do that. It’s the Trolley Problem, an impossible situation that isn’t worth tying yourself in knots over, and that’s the point: What do we do when presented with an impossible situation? We do our best, even if it’s ugly and amoral in the name of protecting and fighting for the greater good. Project Hail Mary is an aspirational story of hope, sacrifice, and camaraderie, which is very much needed right now. The humour throughout is uplifting, as is the connection Grace develops with Rocky, which leads to many hilarious, deeply emotional, and tear-jerking scenes. Their relationship is the emotional heart of the story and it’s a special thing to behold. The film brings back sentimentality and earnestness in a time where such emotions often feel on the verge of being eradicated. Project Hail Mary is true movie magic, it’s the type of film that makes you remember what cinema is for.
Project Hail Mary is in cinemas now.
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