A potential Sci-Fi epic with emotional links to the past

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2016)

Firstly, I must say that I enjoyed this movie on its own merits and thought the science was adequately explained and believable for all but the most nit-picking nerds and idiots who don't realise that, by definition, science fiction is still fiction! The cinematography was well done and the pacing was good. Damon plays the part of the marooned astronaut well, adding a typical astronaut/pilot get-it-done practicality to the natural circumstantial fear and frustration. I felt that the portrayal of the reactions of the NASA management and Houston technical members was excellent, reflecting the reality of the publicly funded and politically vulnerable agency. My only dis-satisfaction with the film is that I felt the epilogue section after the rescue was unnecessary and detracted from the dramatic impact, which the film-makers had successfully imparted at that point. If it were not for those end sequences I think this movie could have joined the ranks of great movies like 'The Right Stuff' and 'Apollo 13' as a classic favourite of aviation/space enthusiasts like me.
I appreciated the film even more though on a more personal level, as I am old enough to remember well the Apollo era; particularly the gut-wrenching wait as I and virtually the whole world held our collective breaths as the tense and potentially tragic drama of Apollo 13 unfolded. To this day those involved in the space program maintain a reverence for those who have gone before and especially those who have given their lives and to me this film celebrates that type of attitude and culture.
This film references past history, books and films very well too. I loved the Hermes crew's description of the astrophysicist as a 'steely-eyed missile man'. In short, I recommend this movie for any enthusiasts of aviation and the space programme, anyone who enjoys quality sci-fi movies and anyone who enjoys a good but simple tale of triumph over adversity. I therefore do not recommend this film for armchair geek-critics who think the only quality needed for a good movie is perfect scientific exactitude.
Oh, and by the way... For all you moronic scientist wannabes, humans actually DO exhale oxygen in significant quantities. Each breath taken only utilises only a small proportion of the O2 available before the remainder is exhaled, along with the CO2 and other unused components. Criticism of this as a supposed scientific 'flaw' in the film illustrates only your own ignorance and inability to research the facts before bursting forth into factually defective, self-important bluster. The dynamics and physics of space travel were also pretty accurate, despite what some 'reviewers' suggest.