Project Hail Mary

★★★ out of ★★★★

Project Hail Mary (2026)

Runtime: 156 minutes

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

Two-thirds of the way into Project Hail Mary, the latest effort from duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, Dr. Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling), alongside his alien buddy (voiced by James Ortiz), attempts to collect a substance from a planet orbiting Tau Ceti, after discovering that it has the ability to kill an extraterrestrial organism called "astrophage". It's a legitimately tense moment. Despite repeated struggles, including dangerous orbital altitudes, compartment punctures and relentless piloting, the ship still ends up spiralling uncontrollably, knocking Grace out. What follows next is a moment of silence. It's refreshing, a break from the usually overbearing score that plays in every other scene, dictating how we should feel instead of trusting the (sorry) gravity of the scene. Space is a silent abyss. Let us live with it.

Fortunately, this is a minor distraction in what basically is a one-man show, for the most part. Project Hail Mary strangely works better as a buddy comedy than an intriguing piece of science fiction. The comedy is well-timed, the bond between Grace and Rocky (the alien friend) is sweet, and the journey is largely enjoyable. The unlerlying core may ultimately reveal itself to be familiar and somewhat simple, yet the direction and execution make it sufficiently engaging, with efficient narrative progression and a somehow balanced rhythm that alternates between the past and present. Striking renderings of planets and organisms in outer space intermittenly punctuate the moment, a wonderous visceral spectacle, but one also wishes it was embedded in a script that possessed a little more ambition.

Based on the novel of the same by Andy Weir, adapted to the screen by Drew Goddard, the film starts with Grace waking up aboard the Hail Mary spacecraft, without any recollection of how he got there. Through photos of deceased crewmates, armed with a marker and a whiteboard, he slowly pieces together details through flashbacks, arising to a consistent rhythm that balances life in the past and now effectively, although the cuts become less grounded in evidentiary transitions later on. The astrophage are alien microbes that consume light and are drawn to carbon dioxide. In migrating across star systems, the abundance of them causes the energy of stars to be diminished, leading to catastrophic consequences on Earth. Multiple stars are affected, except Tau Ceti, so a spacecraft, with the reluctant Grace, is sent there to investigate this strange phenomenon.

The flashbacks chronicle Grace's journey from being recruited by Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller), researching on the alien microbe, to being sent to space in hopes of finding answers. This relatively simple structure is more focused on driving the narrative forward and filling gaps, but is secondary to the present moment, as Grace encounters Rocky, learns to communicate with it through extensive computer mapping and cooperating with it on the singular mission of elimating the universal threat. Grace's arc from being a self-doubting coward to a heroic and brave figure is, interestingly, less emotionally affecting than the friendship that develops between him and Rocky. There are numerous heartwarming moments, alongside some which are hopeful, inspiring, hilarious and melancholy. Paired with Gosling's conviction, it's the emotional hook of the film that grounds the overall (again, sorry) project.

Working with cinematographer Grieg Fraser, the rotating camera captures the weightlessness and disorientedness of space well. There's also a constant play with the aspect ratio, settling for a more cinematic vibe during the flashbacks and full screen back to the present, something that reminded me of some video games. Admittedly, it does run a tad too long as it goes through multiple endings, each one signalling an uplifting resolution, a perplexing choice. Still, even if it doesn't reach its greatest potential, Project Hail Mary is a worthwile look, with fun buddy dynamics, meticulous details, and sights to behold.