Film Review: The Martian

The Martian. Rated M (survival themes and coarse language). 141 minutes. Directed by Ridley Scott. Screenplay by Drew Goddard. Based on the novel by Andy Weir.

When their Mars mission is hit by a ferocious storm, commander Lewis (Jessica Chastain) makes the decision that the crew leave the planet’s surface and return to the relative safety of their spacecraft, the Hermes. But when the violent windstorm slams a piece of equipment into astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon), he becomes separated from the rest of the crew, and electronic signals from his space suit indicate that he has not survived the impact.

Commander Lewis reluctantly makes the decision to leave Watney behind, only to later learn that he has survived and that NASA is preparing a rescue mission. All Watney has to do is work out how to survive alone on the planet for the four years it will take the rescue mission to reach him.

At a running time of two hours and twenty-one minutes, it’s not that hard to know precisely how he feels. Apart from the opening storm sequence, The Martian feels more like an extra special episode of ‘Better Homes and Gardens’, as Watney potters about tending his crop of potatoes, making and repairing things, while recording entertaining entries into the mission’s video log about how ingenious, funny and resilient he is.

Back on Earth, things are equally ordinary, as a terrifically miscast Jeff Daniels plays Teddy Sanders, the Director of NASA, as something like an incredibly bored school principal. What is impressive, in spite of the ordinary performances, is the extent of ground-breaking technological and scientific innovation that figures prominently in the story, both at NASA, in outer space, and on Mars.

But for all that’s a stake, The Martian is a strangely drama- and atmosphere-free zone.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.