New Year’s Eve was a crazy time. We didn’t have help, the jellybean had diarrhea and Marvin decided to cook a ton of food for the midnight celebrations. Yet, somehow, I followed my urge to watch The Martian. Probably not the best time to watch a film, but it did help in lessening my stress levels and allowed me to greet 2016 with more positivity.
The Ares III mission crew is midway through their stay on Mars, when a severe dust storm forced them to evacuate the planet and return to Earth. When Mark Watley was struck by debris and his suit showing no vital signs, the group is forced to leave him behind lest they also risk their lives. Unfortunately, Watley actually survived and without any means of immediate communication to relay the news to his crew, much less to the mission control personnel on Earth. Alone on the planet, he faces the challenge of surviving long enough until the arrival of the Ares IV crew. Unfortunately, that mission isn’t scheduled for another four years.
The Martian could have easily been a depressing film with its premise. And given that it’s a fall film, which usually features emotionally charged films (aka films that require a lot of concentration to watch and emotional rehabilitation afterwards) leading up to award show season, it very well could have been that. If it weren’t for book reviews that indicated a more upbeat tone than anticipated and the fact that Ridley Scott was directing the film, I wouldn’t have chosen The Martian given my harried mood on that day.
The Martian, at its core, is a survival story. The film covers Watley’s experience on Mars upon finding out that he had been left behind, injured and alone in the worst possible environment a human could find himself in. Watley turns to recording video logs, even if he knows that no one would end up watching them, if only to have an outlet or one sided verbalizing of his thoughts. It is through those logs that viewers learn about how he is feeling about his situation, from the initial, overwhelming realization that he could very well die on Mars without anyone knowing, to the moments of clarity and ingenuity that would allow him to survive for a few more sols on the planet. Matt Damon as Watley sets the tone for the film, with the other characters and the film’s viewers invested in his every development or experience. He infuses his performance with both brevity and humor, deftly handling the challenge of acting without another actor or character to bounce off lines with.
The Martian tackles serious and complicated themes, but succeeds in making the viewing enjoyable for audiences. Watley’s optimism is prevalent throughout the film, thus making the setbacks and frustrations (as he was wont to experience considering how long he was alone on that damn planet) easier to watch. Even the science featured in the film is easy to enough to follow, from Watley’s experiment with growing his own food to further extend his food supplies, to figuring out how to communicate with just a still camera from an old rover. The film’s execution of the scientific or technical methods performed by Watley or the rest of the cast doesn’t tax the viewers who aren’t as keen on science (I count myself as part of this group).
While Watley is the core and titular character of the film, there are others who are part of the story. The rest of the Ares III crew, who have to come to terms with leaving Watley behind, especially after finding out that he actually survived the dust storm’s effect. The’re also the personnel of NASA and JPL, who strive to establish communication with Watley and find ways to either save him or keep him from starving before he can be rescued. The Martian is as much a story about the people who were millions of miles away as it was about Watley’s extreme experiences. With Jessica Chastain, Jeff Daniels, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, Sean Bean, and Chiwetel Ejiofor as part of the cast, you know that your viewing is in excellent hands. The loveliest surprise for me was the inclusion of Donald Glover as an eccentric astrodynamicist, mostly because Rich Purnell is a fun character and in part because I missed him when I watched the sixth season of Community.
I wish I could have watched The Martian on the big screen when it was released locally a few months ago. The martian landscape and scenes in space would have been wonderful to watch, making watching the film’s core storyline of survival against what could have been the most daunting of odds all the more satisfying.
But, still, watching it at home with Marvin and with the jellybean running a muck all around was definitely a great way to end 2015.
Happy viewing!!
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