If I'm going to be frank, part of me wants to consider Ridley Scott's "The Martian" as a sort of apology for "Prometheus." I mean, there are a large amount of similarities between the two, with some being in the props (the space suits the astronauts wear have the same yellow glow inside the helmets, and are even vaguely similar in design), and some being in the very structure of the film (a highly planned and detailed mission to an extra-terrestrial location goes badly). It's where and why the two films differ that serves to be the most interesting part of all this.
The Ares III is forced to leave Mars when it is hit by a large storm. In the process of leaving, Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is struck by debris and thought to be dead. The storm threatens to destroy the Ares III, and kill the rest of the crew, so mission commander Miranda Lewis (Jessica Chastain) is forced to leave the planet, presuming Mark to be dead. As the trailers have shown, he isn't. He awakes and finds himself alone on Mars, with no way to contact his crew or the rest of NASA on Earth. From here, he attempts to find a way to survive as long as he can and reestablish communication with everyone back home.
So, it's easy to see this film as two in one. One film: the trials and tribulations of a human on a deserted planet, forced to improvise every aspect of his survival. The other film: the difficulties of NASA trying to manage a crisis on both public and technological grounds. In the hands of a lesser screenwriter and director, the two would be an ill fit for each other, but Drew Goddard and Ridley Scott found a way to make everything fit together both visually and tonally. The two halves of the film compliment each other in such interesting ways, the discoveries and setbacks affecting both Mark and the scientists at NASA in parallel fashions. Scott, himself, said that he sees the film as one about the fact that we are never really alone, and I'm inclined to agree. Mark finds a way to keep a video diary and records entries every day. At one point he has a little rover that almost serves as a pet. Back on Earth, the scientists and engineers at NASA all pool their resources and lean upon each other to find the myriad solutions necessary to try to find a solution to their predicament.
The interesting thing is, despite all of the drama that comes along with trying to stay alive and keep a man alive on a deserted planet, this isn't some overly self-serious piece of Oscar Bait. There are jokes, oh so many jokes, to be found in this film. That really goes a long way towards making the characters endearing, and in making them very human. Even more, there is a very clear confidence in each actor with the scientific terminology they use. It's very believable that these characters are not only real people, but very much so experts in their fields. Chastain is, as usual, in full form as Commander Lewis. She isa fully confident, and strong leader, but happens to have very feminine traits. Basically, she well-rounded and complex. You know, like an actual person. The rest of the crew bring something special as well, with strong, though somewhat brief, performances from Micheal Pena, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, and Askel Hennie. Some additional, fantastic performances include Chiwetel Ejiofor and Sean Bean as Mars mission directors Vincent Kapoor and Mitch Henderson, Jeff Daniels as Teddy Sanders, the head of NASA, and Kristen Wiig as Annie Montrose, NASA spokesperson. No character actually serves as an antagonist, each instead trying to make decisions to the best of their abilities in absurdly tough situations.
The whole of this film works as another great film under Ridley Scott's belt, and a welcome return to form. It really wouldn't surprise me, given how human all the characters feel, if tons of young people who see this film decide to pursue a career in science. Really, this may have been one of the most science positive films I've ever seen. Thankfully, it's also one of the best of the year.
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