I have talked about my love of The North Park theater here in Buffalo. A few years ago, they crowdfunded for a 4K projector (of course, I donated). This opened the door to more screening opportunities. After the new projector was installed, MGM contacted North Park to see if they were interested in screening "Project Hail Mary." They took them up on the offer, so when it came time for me to see the movie, there was only one place to go.
The sun is being overrun by a microscopic organism called astrophage. Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) is recruited to help figure out how to save the sun.
While I was recovering from surgery, I listened to the audiobook version of "Project Hail Mary" and enjoyed it. One thing that author Andy Weir does very well is something commonly called "competence porn," people being really good at what they do. It is a genre I love because it showcases smart people being smart and is something we so sorely need in reality. He did that with "The Martian," and it is on display here too. One thing Weir doesn't do well is write great dialogue that really fleshes out these characters. That is where having someone adapt his books for a movie works well. Drew Goddard, who also wrote the adaptation of "The Martian," brings the characters to life. It is a big part of why the movie adaptations are better than Weir’s books.
Ryan Gosling is a great actor who has done a little bit of everything in his career and has avoided franchises and sequels; that will change with next year’s "Star Wars: Starfighter." Grace is a role that requires a great actor, and Gosling nails it. On the trip to a star unaffected by the astrophage, the two other crew members die, and Grace is left alone as he tries to figure out what to do and whether he can complete his mission. It is in these moments that we see the person Grace is. Gosling handles what are essentially monologue scenes with such ease. He is working out where he is, how he got there, and what he needs to do, all on his own.
