Featured Image: (Pacer Graphic / Darby Self)
There have been an abundance of good films as of late. It seems like production studios, casts and crews are doing their best to bring back an era of cinema we haven’t seen in a long time. This is especially evident with the recently released space odyssey “Project Hail Mary.”
“Project Hail Mary” released in theaters on Mar. 20, 2026. The film was distributed by Amazon MGM Studios and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the duo behind successful films such as the “Spider-Verse” franchise, “The LEGO Movie,” and the rebooted “Jump Street” franchise. “Project Hail Mary” follows Dr. Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling), a middle school teacher that finds himself on a mission to save the world from a solar extinction event. Along the way, he meets Rocky (James Ortiz), an alien organism that resembles a rock. After finding out that the same problem threatens both of their worlds, they must work together to find the solution amongst the stars.
The film is the adaptation of a 2021 science fiction novel of the same name written by American author Andy Weir. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) acquired the rights to the book for $3 million in early 2020. Then in April 2024, Amazon MGM, who acquired MGM in 2022, announced that 2026 was the likely release window for the adaptation. Touted as the “#1 Film in the Universe,” the movie has already seen a massive amount of success since its release.
This is large in part due to the stellar performance by Ryan Gosling. There is rarely a moment throughout the entire film where Gosling is not on screen. The way he conveys loneliness, confusion and existential dread all within the opening sequence immerses the audience quickly. This may be Gosling’s best performance yet. To confirm this notion, you only need to look at the audience scores and critic reviews throughout his entire filmography and compare it to his role as Ryland Grace. His character goes beyond that confusion and dread. When he solves a problem, he gets excited. This, in turn, excites the audience because they want to see him succeed due to his character being a relatable one. Grace isn’t a grandiose archetype; he laughs, he cries and he gets scared when faced with the possibility of dying or being alone. He doesn’t see himself as a hero, but over time he turns into one. His character arc, although not in chronological order, allows the audience to grow with him as he travels through the Milky Way galaxy aboard the Hail Mary.
At the beginning of the film, Grace wakes up with retrograde amnesia aboard the Hail Mary, a spacecraft designed by the nations of Earth for deep space exploration. After discovering that he’s stranded in space and the only other two passengers aboard the Hail Mary are deceased, Grace falls into despair. A flashback reveals that Grace is a middle school teacher and disgraced former molecular biologist. Some of his students wish to know more about what scientists are calling the Petrova line, an infrared line between the Sun and Venus.
Despite his protest, Grace is coerced into explaining the line to the class. He tells them that microorganisms found in the Petrova line, known as astrophage, are dimming the Sun. He also tells them that this will result in the drastic cooling of Earth over the next 30 years. After class, Grace is recruited by Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller), a government agent, to join a team of scientists that have been gathered from all around the globe to study this problem. We later discover that this operation is referred to as Project Hail Mary.
The project involves a suicide mission to Tau Ceti, the only nearby star in the galaxy that is undimmed by astrophage. As Grace is approaching Tau Ceti, he spots an alien ship. After the ship voluntarily docks with the Hail Mary, Grace boards it to explore.
As he nears what appears to be an entrance, he meets an alien organism and names the creature Rocky. Rocky is also the sole survivor on his ship, but now that he and Grace have found each other, neither will be alone. Grace discovers that Rocky is at Tau Ceti for the same reason that he is, to discover a solution to the astrophage outbreak. The pair decide that working together would be best for both of their planets’ futures.
Watching Grace and Rocky travel through space together is made even better by the cinematography and special effects throughout the film. It was shot for IMAX using Arri Alexa 65 cameras with an aspect ratio of 2.1:1. The sensor is used with anamorphic lenses tilted at a right angle, 90 degrees, to create the standard IMAX aspect ratio of 1.43:1. Different aspect ratios are used when scenes from the past are intercut with scenes from the present. This, and a slight lens blur, makes the viewer feel as if they really are attempting to recover lost memories from the past. This is just one of the many ways that cinematography is incorporated into “Project Hail Mary” to bring it to life.
The visual special effects were completed through a large collaboration by Framestore, Industrial Light & Magic, Sony Pictures Imageworks, BUF, and Wylie Co. VFX. Despite sounding like it would be congested with a multitude of ideas and effects, the teams actually work really well together to make every effect look solid and not out of place when compared to other effects throughout the film. At one point in the film, Grace finds himself engulfed in a form of light. While this scene could have easily been blinding and unnatural, the light is actually warm and gentle. It feels like a natural occurrence in nature instead of a computer generated scene filmed on a studio lot. This dedication to making the film look and feel beautiful further adds to the depth of the immersive world of “Project Hail Mary.”
When taking into account every element of this film, it’s easy to see how it has had the success that it has earned. “Project Hail Mary” has grossed over $300 million globally and received critical appraise from both fans and critics. It’s 95% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with its reviewers calling it a masterpiece. A career defining performance by Ryan Gosling combined with stunning visuals creates an immersive experience that bodes well for the rest of cinema in 2026. Only time will tell if the story of Grace and Rocky can keep up with the rest of this year’s stacked card.
