‘Project Hail Mary’ Review

By Nadia Dalimonte

Ryan Gosling in Project Hail Mary

Christopher Miller and Phil Lord deliver Spielbergian levels of spectacle and wonder with their Project Hail Mary, a heartfelt space odyssey. The film radiates a warm sentiment throughout: it’s not about the destination, but the friends you meet along the way. While on a mysterious mission, Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) befriends a delightfully high-maintenance alien named Rocky. The two form a protective, transcendent bromance that comes out of shared isolation. By learning how to speak each other’s languages and work together, Grace and Rocky skyrocket towards saving the world. Miller and Lord visualize the possibilities we can achieve if we embrace the unknown with empathy. It’s a work of emotional sincerity that evokes the luminous empathy of Steven Spielberg’s E.T.: the Extra-Terrestrial. Covering familiar ground in the human and alien camaraderie, Lord and Miller show a clear understanding of how this dynamic truly goes a long way when prioritized over sci-fi elements. Project Hail Mary explores curiosity as a balm for isolation. When curious, Grace faces the unknown with an open heart and mind. He reaches out to his surroundings and finds love in an unexpected place. Through stunning visuals and charismatic star performers, the film signals that we are very much not alone.

With a screenplay by Drew Goddard, based on Andy Weir’s 2021 book of the same name, Project Hail Mary tells a classic story of person versus nature. The film’s opening moments introduce us to Ryland Grace, a science teacher suffering from amnesia while aboard a spaceship. He has no recollection of who he is, how he ended up light years from Earth, or where he’s headed. As Grace pieces his memory back together, he finds himself at the centre of a one-way mission to save all of humanity. In two interspersed timelines, the film clues us into how Grace’s backstory on Earth leads to his interstellar predicament. Flashbacks reveal an international task force, led by Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller), who seek Grace’s molecular biology expertise to help thwart a mysterious substance from killing the Sun. The mission activates his reluctant heroism, but in space, an unexpected ally emerges. Rocky the alien, whose planet also faces extinction, gives Grace a solid common ground. 

The narrative framing works wonders to build suspense around each new discovery that Grace uncovers about the mission. By having dual timelines at play simultaneously, the film avoids trappings of repetitiveness and stagnancy in one location. Interspersing the Earth characters with the space plot also underlines how everything Grace overcomes in the present day is much bigger than himself. At the film’s core is a story of several minds working together and embracing different languages towards a shared goal. Lord and Miller envision this core theme on a massive scale that also manages to feel very intimate and character-driven, thanks to their focus on Grace and Rocky’s friendship. Between practical effects, full-scale set pieces, and distinctive visuals for the two timelines, there’s plenty of immersive visuals to relish in. Daniel Pemberton’s spectacular score also delivers on the spectacle and realism. 

We’ve been blessed with one of the brightest stars in the galaxy to navigate through Lord and Miller’s version of space. Between his roles in Ryan Fleck’s Half Nelson and Damien Chazelle’s First Man, Ryan Gosling is no stranger to teachers and spaceships. Gosling’s performance in Project Hail Mary delivers on a charming hybrid of both worlds. The film calls on Grace’s inner child for an abundance of curiosity and imagination. This sense of wonder pushes him towards exploring alien terrain. Given his background in education, Grace also sees a teachable moment in meeting Rocky. He shows his new friend how human communication works, underlining the film’s prominent theme of looking out for one another in support of something bigger than oneself. Gosling moves to an incredibly playful tempo and powers the story with career-best charisma. He balances humour and heartbreak, embracing the interior messiness of his character being at the helm of a space mission. While his doctorate roots him in science, Grace is simply an ordinary guy who is absolutely terrified of the position that he finds himself in. Gosling journeys through this hesitancy and fear with a grounded, heartfelt portrayal of inner strength and sacrifice.

It’s no easy task to elicit genuine emotion out of an alien rock without a face. Project Hail Mary has given us not just one of the most memorable movie aliens, but a friendship for the ages. Gosling shares screen time with the stellar achievements of James Ortiz, the lead puppeteer and English translation voice who brings Rocky to life. The characters’ relationship is jam-packed with funny camaraderie, heartfelt dialogue, and a sincere emotional through line that unites them. Ortiz’s high-energy performance adds multitudes of dimension to Rocky’s presence, and the practical effects help craft a tangible environment where Gosling can react to the immersive puppetry at work. We don’t get an extensive visual of Rocky’s planet, nor is it needed beyond a welcome glimpse into his spaceship. Rocky stands out plenty as a layered character, and his design showcases a wildly impressive range of expressions.

​Whether through Lord and Miller’s dazzling direction or Greig Fraser’s beautiful cinematography, the film excels at getting key messages across without having characters over-explain the plot. The production shows an admirable level of trust in the audience to piece imagery together and feel the undercurrent of emotionality from magnetic character development. Eva, who leads the Hail Mary task force of scientists, is an insightful guide for what Grace is going through. She teaches us how to engage with the mission, while also grounding a science-heavy storyline in real emotion and matter-of-fact stakes. Deep down, she’s an empathetic leader who makes impossible decisions without centring herself in them, and Sandra Hüller does a brilliant job at conveying the motivations behind each one. Eva has a job to do, and it involves big-picture thinking that prioritizes being practical above all. There’s a coldness to her that Hüller never allows to become simplistic or repetitive. Instead, Hüller conveys nuanced shades of desperation in controlled self-expression. In a standout karaoke scene, she sings Harry Styles’ Sign of the Times, a song on its way to becoming the film’s anthem. It’s a quietly heartbreaking moment of comfort for everyone in the room, who are about to face what could be their final show on Earth.

Sandra Hüller in Project Hail Mary

​While the film has one too many endings in its final act, which could have been more polished overall, the conclusion it ultimately lands on is an impactful one. Grace being humanity’s only hope for survival is a moving reminder that all it takes is one person’s shared perspective to make a difference in the world. The film speaks to a form of survival that involves finding the strength we carry deep within ourselves to persistently move forward. Project Hail Mary is a triumph that fills your heart with hope and excitement. However grand and overwhelming its interstellar scale, the empathetic approach makes this story feel intimate and personal.

Project Hail Mary skyrockets to theatres on March 20.