‘The Martian’ is the new movie from master director, Ridley Scott, and is thankfully considerably lighter, funnier and easier to understand than his last space-set production, Prometheus. Based on the best-selling book by Andy Weir it’s a real return to form for both Scott and leading man, Matt Damon.
The movie is set in a recognisable near-future and opens on the team of a manned mission to Mars collecting samples on the planet’s surface. This actually sets up the focus, and arguably the real hero, of the whole film: science. After a fierce storm causes the crew to believe astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is dead, Commander Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain) takes the decision to abandon the mission and head back to Earth, leaving Watney stranded and alone on the hostile planet.
With only meagre supplies, Watney must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to survive and find a way to signal to Earth that he is still alive. Meanwhile, millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists discover the truth and work tirelessly on how to bring “the Martian” home. His crewmates, devastated upon discovering Watney hasn’t died and they abandoned him, decide to try and mount a seemingly impossible rescue mission. The movie moves mostly between the first two strands, Watney on Mars and NASA on Earth, then adding in the crew in space towards the end, managing to deftly mix the different scenarios and emotions involved.
As Watney is alone and his storyline focuses on “sciencing the shit out of this” to solve his survival and rescue problems, this thread of the film co
uld easily have become, as in the source novel, a lengthy and somewhat boring technical section. Fortunately Scott focuses on the visuals, keeping the details brief and the script surprisingly blunt, sparky and funny. Damon’s Watney is suitably witty, self-deprecating and, forgive the pun, down-to Earth for someone so clearly intelligent and capable. At times it does seem a little like ‘MacGyver on Mars’ (who knew duct tape was so useful in space?) but Damon’s warmth plus the standing joke with the music on the soundtrack keeps it ticking over nicely. In contrast, the beautifully shot scenes where you see Watney alone on the desolate, hostile and seemingly vast plains of Mars underline the bleakness of his situation.
The NASA plotline is a little more conventional with ‘boffins’ working round the clock to come up with a plan, and is reminiscent of Apollo 13 and other similar movies. Chiwetel Ejiofor and Jeff Daniels put in their usual neat turns as the men in charge; Kristen Wiig’s PR woman adds a modern, if slightly irritating, touch and a cameo by Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino is brief but nicely done. The crew-in-space thread is the least interesting but the cast are all still very watchable.
What makes The Martian different from many space-set movies is the explicit focus on and elevation of the technical side; the science, maths and technology that all three groups need to use to bring Watney home. Instead of brute strength, ‘real world’ skills or the noble sacrifice of amateurs, (Armageddon, anyone?), these are highly educated and trained professionals. But while they may be ‘boffins’, these are no dull, white-coated, tousle-haired scientists hidden in a lab. These characters are young, witty, modern and practical –using their knowledge and skills to achieve incredible feats.
The Martian is good, fun, suspenseful ride although the ‘thriller’ aspect of ‘will he get home?’ soon wears off. It doesn’t have the depth of Gravity, which I loved, but is still an intelligent piece of movie-making. Definitely recommended.
THE MARTIAN is in cinemas from October 1st.
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