My favourite movie of the last decade

Rating: 10/10 (5 March 2016)

I am genuinely amazed at the number of bad reviews there are on here for The Martian. Now I never read the book, but I absolutely LOVED the film. So much so, I watched it twice within a week. It has been such a long time since I have been left with that wonderful sense of satisfaction after investing two hours in a really good movie, and this did it 100%
I am usually left highly disappointed after watching this genre of film, so I wasn't expecting much. Something like Gravity I thought, great special affects, dramatic scenes, and an average storyline, but The Martian was a whole different calibre of film and was perfectly constructed from start to finish.
I was instantly thrown in to a scene where astronaut Mark Watney and his crew are setting about their mission on Mars. But the sh*t hits the fan about ten minutes in where a storm causes Watney to be thrown from the crew and left for dead. There was no long lingering introduction to the film and its characters, just instant drama and character development. This forcibly got me caring for the entire crew, and got me emotionally invested until the end.
Matt Damon has always been good at what he does, but I felt he hadn't really shown off his true raw talent since Good Will Hunting back in 1997. Well he did in this. He was captivating in every single scene, and managed to do what Tom Hanks achieved in Cast Away and single handedly gripped the viewers' attention completely (with the help of a beautifully crafted script). Another reviewer got it bang on when they described it as Apollo 13 meets Castaway. The exact comparison I too had made and a combination, which works superbly.
The makers of this film put so much effort in to making it scientifically accurate which made it all the more pleasurable to watch. There was nothing far-fetched or stupid like in a lot of films of the same genre, and the combination of this, with a solid plot made for a truly interesting, exciting and enjoyable film.
There was drama, great effects, humour, heartwarming moments, a great soundtrack and a flawless screenplay. If you only see one movie this year, make it this one. An absolute must see.