The Martian Review

     Ridley Scott is often cited as one of the most celebrated directors of all time, being the mastermind behind classics like "Blade Runner," "Alien," and "Gladiator." But for the past few years Scott has not been at his best. The once praised director has since brought us some of the most critically panned movies in years such as "Exodus: Gods and Kings" and "The Counselor." Since "American Gangster" Scott has been looking for a way back on top, which brings us to "The Martian." Based off the acclaimed 2011 novel of the same name, it had to be one of the most talked about books in years. Sporting a rather unique premise and an all-star cast, it quickly became one of 2015's most anticipated movies after the trailers release. But while most everyone was excited, I still had my reservations. Ridley Scott isn't the director he once was, and after his last couple movies I pretty much wrote the guy off. But going into "The Martian" I gave him one last chance, and I'm glad I did.

     Mark Watney is a botanist and astronaut on a mission to mars with a team of five others. His job is to take soil samples to see if food could be grown on mars. One day while taking some samples, the team is alerted that a massive sandstorm is heading straight towards their base. Knowing that the storm is strong enough to topple their return shuttle that is fastened to the ground, the team captain decides to evacuate the red planet before their mission is up. While heading towards their shuttle, Mark is hit by a piece of debris. He goes flying and the sensors in his suit malfunction; barely able to see in the storm, the team has no option but to escape. The following day Mark wakes up on the mars surface, seriously injured and low on oxygen. He manages to make it back to the base and close his wounds. He quickly realizes that he is in some serious trouble. He doesn't have a lot of food and water and he's on a planet where if he steps out of his base without a space suit on he will die. On top of all that, the fastest that earth could get a shuttle to him would be in a few years. Scared and exhausted, he has reason to just give up; but he refuses to die on the red planet. So the question arises, how does he make a few months supply last for a few years until he can be rescued.

     "The Martian" was one of those movies that I had high hopes for, but went into with low expectations because of Ridley Scott. His last few movies were so underwhelming that it was hard to give him the benefit of the doubt; but with "The Martian," he is back. Basically, this is one of the year’s best movies. And it is Scott's best movie in over a decade. The way he directed this movie was brilliant, the amount of suspense is nail biting at times. Alongside "Sicario," this is one of the most intense and suspenseful movies I've seen in a long time; and certainly the best survival movie in the past few years. One of the stand out aspects of the movie would be the acting. Everyone does a great job, it's easily one of the best ensemble casts of the year; and there could be a few Oscar nominations for acting. What helps is that pretty much all of these characters are incredibly likable, and you are rooting for them to succeed. And every time they fail your heart sinks a little bit. The dialog between the characters is also top notch. This is one of the best written movies of the year, and a serious contender for best adapted screenplay. Speaking of the writing I really have to commend the humor. When you think about a man fighting for his life, you don't find much humor in the situation. But "The Martian" is filled with comedy that works very well, and had the entire theater laughing. When you have a movie on a foreign planet, you really have to nail the look of it all; and this movie does that perfectly. The visuals are gorgeous and the production design is top notch, you really feel like you are on mars yourself. The great special effects also help; both the practical effects and the computer generated ones. But while being on mars is riveting; being on earth though, not so much. The scenes that take place on earth are less interesting than what you see Matt Damon's character goes through on mars. While there by no means boring, you just can't wait to get back to the red planet. "The Martian" exceeded my expectations in almost every way. A movie filled with enough math and science to make any geek go nuts ended up being one of the year's most gripping movies. While they could have cut about 20 minutes or so, I found myself so connected to the screen and all the characters on it. "The Martian" is one of the must see movies of 2015, and a return to form for Ridley Scott. 

Pros: Great special effects, impressive visuals and production design, very suspenseful, humor works well, likable characters, great writing and dialog between characters, fantastic performances from Matt Damon and the rest of the cast, Ridley Scott's best movie in a decade, best survival movie in years, a nerd's wet dream.

Cons: Earth scenes aren't as interesting, 20 minutes too long.

4.5/5 Stars