Despite radical technological innovation that only becomes more impressive and nuanced with each new development, there is still so little that we know about our universe. In fact, the paltry amount that we do know (or at least believe that we do) is so inconsequential that it barely even registers when we assess it alongside all we are trying to understand about what lies beyond our galaxy. It is for this reason alone that we’ve found the development of a specific branch of science fiction storytelling, particularly those narratives that are built around presenting more realistic depictions of what likely occurs outside of our immediate surroundings, while also not being afraid to make a few ambitious guesses for the sake of provoking some discussion and wonder in the audience. Andy Weir is an author who has made a decent living from a category of science fiction that is rooted in reality but has its own unique approach to a lot of subjects – his novel The Martian was a minor cultural sensation, and one of his follow-ups to that wonderful book came in the form of Project Hail Mary, with which it shares some fascinating conceptual similarities. Much like The Martian, it also didn’t take terribly long for it to be brought to life on screen (both being adapted by Drew Goddard), but rather than having Ridley Scott handling directing duties, the task is handed over to Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the directing duo behind some cherished and popular films, and who have proven to be very committed to projects that pique their curiosity. The story of a former scientist who has chosen to lead a more simple life as a schoolteacher, but who is suddenly recruited to take part in a dangerous space mission that will most certainly lead to his death, a sacrifice that is for the good of humanity (and the entire universe as a whole), is one that seems to be fertile ground for a strong and engaging film – but despite its promise, Project Hail Mary proves to be quite weak, lacking much substance and proving that ambition means nothing without the right commitment and willingness to step outside the often heavy-handed confines of the genre.

The idea that we know so little about our universe (or even all that much about our own galaxy) has been the foundation for countless works of science fiction over the decades, and the fact that scientific innovation has made observing the research being done more accessible than ever has led to some fascinating attempts to merge reality with speculation. Weir is evidently someone who takes his position as one of the more respected writers in contemporary science fiction quite seriously, which has led to his books being both radically popular and quite acclaimed by both experts and casual readers. It seemed inevitable that Project Hail Mary would be brought to the screen, not only based on the pedigree of the writer, but also the actual themes being examined. The structure is extremely simple, almost to the point where it often seems designed to be adapted – someone who has left the world of cutting-edge scientific research behind in favour of a more humble life is inadvertently plunged back into the world he abandoned, and forced to take part in a mission that will involve him sacrificing himself, but for the sake of saving the entire universe, and in the process befriends a peculiar entity who helps him understand more about the universe than any other human has ever (and likely will ever) been able to learn. Themes such as survival, the boundaries between science and society and the desire to save the world are all vital to the film, and forge its central identity. However, once we start to realise there is actually not much else to this story, and that the film is indeed following a very conventional narrative path that can sometimes be quite predictable, our interest begins to wane. It doesn’t stop Project Hail Mary from having some decent moments where everything starts to fall into place, but it is overall quite a conventional story that exists somewhere in between that liminal space of introducing an abundance of specific scientific and technological jargon, but also not being too dedicated to actually expanding on any of it, hoping that the viewer will give the film the benefit of the doubt and not be too intent on getting much explanation.

One of the many reasons why Project Hail Mary has been such a success comes down to the fact that casting is often integral to these films, to the point where the right actor being placed in the central role can easily distract from any plot-based shortcomings, since audiences seem to be predisposed to certain performers, seeking out their work regardless of quality. Ryan Gosling is in an interesting position in his career, since for the past several years, he has been embracing more populist work, while also trying to deliver performances within these films that are not just run-of-the-mill portrayals of the same persona, but instead have more complex qualities. This often leads to a bit of a disconnect, where Gosling is always good, but the films that surround him can be of varying quality. Project Hail Mary occupies the latter, since while he is giving a committed, heartfelt performance that is more than just a conventional hero part, the film that surrounds him is not giving him all that much to work with, which is particularly concerning when we realise so much of the story involves Gosling acting primarily by himself. He does what he can with the material, but there is only so much that he can do to convince us, which leads to the film often feeling like it is not actually interested in the character of Ryland Grace as anything more than a vessel for the more obvious ideas. There is an attempt to shade in the nuances of the character, particularly in the use of the supporting cast, which includes James Ortiz, who both puppeteers the character of Rocky and voices the part (since it was deemed that, despite not being a well-known performer, Ortiz brought the necessary gravitas to the part), and Sandra Hüller, as the film’s conflicted villain who may not have malicious intentions, but certainly does engage in the act of duplicity for reasons that are outlined throughout. Ultimately, even in the attempts to make these characters seem more complex (which also includes Hüller performing a highly publicised rendition of Harry Styles’ “Sign of the Times”, a clear attempt to humanise a complex character), no one in Project Hail Mary is doing particularly challenging work, which is very much reflected in the final product.

Something that everyone can admit (even if begrudgingly) is that Lord and Miller have become notable voices in the contemporary film industry, since not only have they directed many commercially successful and critically acclaimed films, but they’ve played the game smartly enough as writers and producers that they’ve been able to form very strong connections, elevating themselves from the filmmakers behind small, rambunctious films like 21 Jump Street and The LEGO Movie to the people tasked with making a large-scale science fiction epic, without having to sacrifice the qualities that made them so popular in the first place. However, we do have to wonder to the extent to which this is actually the best approach for this material, since there is certainly something more required than just filmmakers who know how to work with a budget, particularly since they haven’t quite established a notable artistic vision. To its credit, Project Hail Mary was not crying out for a director who was going to approach it as some overly important literary work – even with his popularity and the fact that his books are well-received, Weir does not write novels that are intended to redefine the genre – but this doesn’t stop us from noticing just how much of the film is built on the belief that the audience will be more than willing to just go along with some of the more questionable narrative choices. The filmmaking is good and certainly worth acknowledging in terms of the visual effects, cinematography and editing (and even with my own disappointment with the film, its important to recognise the lengths to which Lord and Miller went to integrate practical effects and puppetry where possible, giving the film slightly more credibility than a wall-to-wall use of computer-generated imagery could’ve ever provided), but its impacted by the often heavy-handed emotion and a script that has far too many cliches, both in terms of how the plot progresses and the actual dialogue, which is by far the weakest aspect of this already very conventional film, with the overuse of exposition and occasionally blatant emotional manipulation bordering on tacky a lot of the time.

Taking everything into account and observing how all the individual components in the film are at the very least decent, we have to wonder what it is that actually makes Project Hail Mary a bit of a misfire. It is well-crafted in a technical sense, and there’s certainly nothing inherently poor being done by the actors (who are the film’s sole saving grace), and we also can’t attribute all the failure to the writing, since while the screenplay is filled with the most obvious and surface-level writing, there is only so much that the words on the page can do to distract from the other elements in a film of this size. Perhaps it’s even wrong to view it as a failure as a whole, since there are certainly good parts contained in this film; it’s merely a matter of whether or not each viewer is going to find its very obvious and frankly quite shallow approach to be aligned with the kind of escapism many of us crave, or purely lazy storytelling. I unfortunately gravitate towards the latter, since the film is far too long for something that is actually saying so little (it’s en vogue to make science fiction epics that border on 150 minutes, but at least the majority of them have a deeper purpose that justifies that length), and does ultimately overstay its welcome – it’s never a good sign when the audience can pick apart the film and highlight specific passages that clearly existed to pad the story, rather than serving any dramatic or conceptual function. It’s solid in terms of its visuals (and one can even argue that the entire purpose of the film was as a means to test out new technology for the medium) but it is severely lacking in its story, removing a lot of the whimsy and wonder of Weir’s original text and focusing more on being a didactic, shallow science fiction film that is tonally inconsistent (it never knows if it wasn’t to be a sombre drama or a more lighthearted comedy – and it is unfortunately not strong enough to lay claim to being a particularly effective hybrid) and explores very obvious elements that don’t serve any purpose other than keeping us interesting for a couple of hours, and leaving virtually no impression in the aftermath, which is never an ideal outcome for something that is straining so desperately to be seen as a classic in a genre that simply did not need another heavy-handed, shallow story about the volatility of our universe.