Review: 'Project: Hail Mary' a science-fiction rarity

Amazon MGM Studios, 2026.

"Project: Hail Mary" is sure to be a crowd-pleaser, but what makes it a rarity is that it embraces something modern science fiction too often lacks: hope and optimism. Those virtues not only help the film stand out, they make "Project: Hail Mary" feel like the right movie for this moment, when both are in short supply and more needed than ever.

Grade: B

Based on the 2021 novel by Andy Weir (author of "The Martian" who gets a co-credit on this film with "The Cabin in the Woods" scribe Drew Goddard), the story follows Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling), an astronaut who awakens aboard a spacecraft deep in interstellar space with no memory of how he got there. Gosling is in nearly every scene, carrying nearly every scene on his own (you could say that "Project: Hail Mary" is full of Grace! Ahem...). He soon discovers not only the importance of his mission, but that he is not alone.

Surprisingly, this alien being isn't hostile, not predatory, and not at all what we've come to expect out in cinematic space. Grace's relationship with "Rocky" becomes the emotional core of the film, and where its heart truly lies.

The movie uses flashbacks to gradually reveal how Grace ended up on this mission. A scientist with some unconventional theories, he catches the attention of a determined government agent, Eva Stratt (Sandra Huller), who needs Grace to literally save the planet. Even this backstory takes some surprising turns, that deepen the film's central themes.

For a movie with a massive budget and that is mostly CG, I surprisingly wasn't a huge fan of the visuals. There is no up or down in space, and the cinematography constantly reminds us of this, as the camera spins and twists ad nauseum. Many of the action sequences I found to be clunky, claustrophobic, or just visually confusing. And the movie is not only too long, but it contains a few false endings that sort of grinds the movie to a halt.

I did not read the book, but I am told that the film stays quite true to it, for what it's worth.

But despite its flaws, "Project: Hail Mary" has heart. It's witty, engaging and never uninteresting. Grace is a hero of an unusual mold, a reluctant soul who doesn't know what he's capable of until he's done it. There is no traditional villain here (just a starlight-sucking black substance that threatens existence itself), and even in the face of a catastrophic future, the film suggests that our humanity remains the brightest and most unextinguishable light of all.

Saving the universe is not the most important mission in "Project: Hail Mary." Survival may be a real long-shot, but having compassion, empathy and courage is what ultimately makes life worth saving.

Grade: B

Genre: Science Fiction, Drama, Thriller.
Run Time: 2 hours 36 minutes.
Rated PG-13.

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Huller, Ken Leung, Milana Vayntrub, Liz Kingsman.

Written by Drew Goddard  ("The Martian," "The Cabin in the Woods") & Andy Weir ("The Martian")

Directed by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller ("The Lego Movie," "21 Jump Street," "22 Jump Street," "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs").

"Project: Hail Mary is in theaters everywhere on Friday, March 20th, 2026.