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| Matt Damon |
The new drama "The Martian" is a sensational return to space for "Alien" director Ridley Scott, and there are no hostile creatures to be concerned about, except for an often hostile planet of Mars. Thrilling, funny and visually stunning, "The Martian" doesn't disappoint Scott fans or fans of the novel upon which it's based. A human mission to Mars goes awry, and astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead and left behind on the planet by his crew. Watney fights to survive in the harsh environment and to signal to others that he is still alive. Upon discovering Watney's signal, NASA, scientists all around Earth, and his crew members collaborate to find a way to rescue him. Directed by Scott and written by Drew Goddard ("The Cabin in the Woods") based on Andy Weir's best-selling book of the same name, "The Martian" is an exciting and often very humorous, intergalactic combination of "Saving Private Ryan" and "Cast Away" with an all-star cast headlined by the always charming Damon, who grounds the film memorably in an excellent turn. The rest of the large cast is great too, including Jeff Daniels, Chitewel Eijofor, Jessica Chastain, Sean Bean, Michael Pena, Kristen Wiig and Mackenzie Davis. The film is engaging, even in the extended moments that Damon's very smart Watney is traversing Mars alone, as the "best botanist on the planet Mars" does his best to survive; these moments best capture the humorous, sarcastic (and often profane) spirit of the book. In addition, there are a couple of main sequences from the book that are in the movie too, which should please fans of the book (it did for this one). Scott deftly mixes the humor along with some of his trademark, first-rate visuals and technical prowess which should easily capture some Oscar nominations for the veteran director, and just in case you're wondering, the Wadi Rum valley in Jordan stands in for Mars quite well. It goes on a tad too long, but the last, crowd-pleasing act is a breathlessly tense one as they have to literally go back out to space to grab Watney and bring him home. "The Martian" is a much more exciting, plausible and fun experience than last year's ridiculous "Interstellar" (which also, interestingly, featured both Damon and Chastain). Put this one on your must-see list, and expect to see it again come awards time.
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