Well Worth a Ticket Price

Rating: 8/10 (8 October 2015)

The Martian is about a crew of NASA astronauts in the year 2050 conducting a mission on Mars. The movie begins as Mark's crew tries to rescue him after leaving him behind after a severe storm. Mark's crew members left him behind thinking that he died due to atmospheric pressure. However, Mark managed to survive using all the practical skills he acquired during college and training at NASA. Mark needed to survive 561 sols, or days, with the food he was left at the now abandoned Mars station. The same crew that left him are now aware of his survival, and try to rescue him. Mark makes contact with NASA on Earth and is informed of how many sols it will approximately take for the crew's voyage. Each day Mark journals the days he has left and the progress he makes of farming and rationing food. Somehow, Mark used all his resources efficiently for survival of 561 days until his crew returned for rescue. By the end Mark barely makes it out of Mars with his crew mates that initially stranded him there in the first place.
This film is clearly well directly and detail oriented of each scene. The director did an entertaining job on the scientific knowledge a variety of different sciences such as botany, the study of plants. This was very important because Mars is considered arid and thought to be uninhabitable. His variety knowledge of chemistry and bacteria understanding helped him create water and food. "You can't expect anything when you're there," was stated by Mark Watney to student astronauts by the end of the film. The movie clearly led up to that ending phrase since the audience did not know what other skill Mark would be hiding up his sleeve. The film indicated that they did the proper research with the book, making sure it was consistent for the film industry and the book readers.
The Martian had qualities similar to Cast Away, where the protagonist is on a journey back home. These types of movies are important because they all derive from the Greek Iliad the Odyssey. The Martian took into a futuristic twist to its setting. This film definitely appeals to young male teenagers and all movie fans looking for a good adventure. Although in some scenes, my eyes began to get heavy, the Martian needed some improvements regarding their storyline. The ending was very predictable and I already knew from the beginning that Mark was going to be saved. I suppose the director attempted to keep consistent with the book, but not all films have to follow the structure of the book. I would recommend watching this film if you are interested in science and beautiful scenes. The pictures and scenes are beautiful, however there are very few plot twists. Plot twists are what keep an audience interested and awake. In an interview the director, Ridley Scott states that "I'm a movie maker, not documentation. I try to hit the truth." From his film with the Martian, I can see how he tried to keep everything as realistic as possible. He made an accurate interpretation of our technology in the year 2050. From the small detailed to the NASA technology to the scenery of Mars, this film could honestly make the audience believe that this film is a documentary of the future. Scott's representation of the truth has entertained millions world-wide this weekend and has made me satisfied with my ticket purchase.