☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Project Hail Mary (2026) – P. Lord & C. Miller
Another sci-fi blockbuster in what has become a well-established genre going back to the 1950s, if not earlier. Project Hail Mary nods to the past classics (2001, Close Encounters, E.T., Interstellar, etc.), often explicitly. But, as directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (best known for directing The Lego Movie, 2014, as well as producing the various Spider-verse films) from Andy Weir’s book, it has a very odd tone, perhaps goofy is the right word? (The movie’s soundtrack definitely contributes to this tone). I kept asking myself whether the film was designed primarily for kids (not unlike E.T.) because the level of corniness and especially sentimentality is awfully high, especially for a film that includes a worldwide disaster-level premise (instead of the world overheating it is actually going to cool down by 10 or 15 degrees as some strange bacteria seem to be eating away at the sun). Ryan Gosling is essentially a one-man show as the scientist-turned-schoolteacher sent thousands of lightyears away to solve the problem. The story is told partly in flashback, as we learn how exactly Gosling (playing Ryland Grace) ended up in space with the help of project director Sandra Hüller. Gosling is charismatic as usual but the comical earnestness he’s tasked with sometimes feels a bit “cringe”. To say more about the film’s plot would probably be criminal because it took me in directions I did not expect. In terms of its speculation about future events, does it get it right? Looking back at the genre today, it often seems prophetic (hello Hal) but also can end up being technologically dated. The same fate may befall Project Hail Mary and I suspect that some aspects might seem silly decades down the track (sillier than intended) but truly it is hard to say what it might have gotten right. Overall, the film looked great (maybe even greater in iMax?) and I certainly was never bored but I’m not sure I signed up for a buddy comedy?
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