Blast off with one of the best film's of the year with 'The Martian'
Rating: ★★★★★
Filmmaker Ridley Scott brings an entirely new space adventure to the big screen with "The Martian." Mostly known for his "Alien" franchise, Scott brings the story of "The Martian," from the bestselling novel of the same name penned by Andy Weir. With the screenplay adapted by Drew Goddard, the lengthy novel still retains all of the necessary components to make an exhilarating time at the movies.
In "The Martian," is the story of one NASA explorer Mark Watney (Matt Damon) that gets marooned on the planet of Mars. His small crew had to leave the planet quickly after a large storm threatened all of their lives - and his mission commander Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain) was under the impression that Mark had been killed by the storm.
Once the dust settles, Mark learns that he is injured and alone. After taking care of his injuries as best as he can, he takes inventory to see how much food and water he has to live on until the next scheduled mission. Of course, it's not enough. Thankfully to Mark, he is a botanist. And his mission is to grow food, where it would normally be deemed impossible.
The film takes a step by step approach to Mark's moments, some which are quite humorous. But it's always evident that Mark is an astronaut - and a very smart and clever one - as his life depends on it.
Eventually, NASA catches on that Mark is still alive and then come the challenges of trying to communicate with Mark and eventually bring him home.
"The Martian," is blast of a film that entertains from beginning to the end without fail. Matt Damon really shines as Mark Watney and his work as an actor looks easy and effortless - which is a mark that it is not and that he is a fine actor.
"The Martian," is also nice addition to Ridley Scott's science fiction lineage. With the "Alien," films being very intense, it's nice to see a bit of humor in a film of the same genre.
No doubt, "The Martian," will clean-up at the Oscars in the technical awards, just as "Gravity," did two years ago. It was a massive undertaking to make Mars look like a different planet. But more importantly, "The Martian," is just plain fun. It's a movie that goes well with a soda and popcorn - and yes, you will want the big sized popcorn.
"The Martian," just may be the most fun you have in the movies all year.
"The Martian" is rated PG-13 for some strong language, injury images, and brief nudity and has a run-time of 118 minutes.