Project Hail Mary

"Words of encouragement."

"You can't just say "words of encouragement!"

"Words of great encouragement!"

Ryland Grace (Gosling) wakes on a spaceship with no memories.  Exploring the ship, he discovers that he is light-years away from Earth and the only survivor of the crew.  As his memories slowly return, he focuses on the mission: save Earth.

Years prior, scientists discovered a mysterious substance destroying the Sun which they call astrophage.  They predict that within 30 years the Sun will dim to a catastrophic level.  Ryland Grace is a high school science teacher who is recruited by Eva Stratt (Hüller) to study astrophage.  With an unlimited budget, collaborators around the world, and unconventional ideas, Grace becomes the leading expert on astrophage.  Scientists discover a star light-years away called Tau Ceti that is not impacted by astrophage.  The "Project Hail Mary" mission is planned to send a team of 3 (an astronaut, an engineer, and a scientist) to Tau Ceti to find a solution.

In the present, Grace reaches Tau Ceti and encounters another ship.  Can Grace use his scientific knowledge to communicate with the other ship and find a way to save the day?

Based on Andy Weir's 2021 novel "Project Hail Mary".

The Good:

Ryan Gosling is a great lead.  As Ryland Grace he appears in almost every scene and has long sequences alone on screen.  And his relationship with Rocky is very moving.  Speaking of Rocky (the Eridian alien), he is the best character - funny, moving, smart, heroic.

In addition to Gosling's strong performance, the cinematography is really well done.  The spaceships are interesting and detailed and change over the course of the film. 

The Bad:

The story drags in a few places, as they try to explain the science and the stakes (which the book does really well).

Other Comments:

-I loved the novel and the film did not disappoint!

-Rocky is a puppet, not CGI.  His main puppeteer, James Ortiz, voices the character and is billed in the main cast.

-I suggest reading the novel before watching the film - you can watch the film without the book, but the book includes more details.

Project Hail Mary (2026) 157 minutes

Rating: PG-13 for some thematic material and suggestive references.

Director: Phil Lord & Christopher Miller

Starring: Ryan Gosling as Ryland Grace

Sandra Hüller as Eva Stratt

James Ortiz as Rocky

Lionel Boyce as Carl

Ken Leung as Yao Li-Jie

Milana Vayntrub as Olesya Ilyukhina

Priya Kansara as the voice of Mary