Better Than The Book

Rating: 7/10 (11 October 2015)

What I liked about the film was that, unlike the book, it had more gravitas. You felt the seriousness of Mark Watney's situation. It had more emotion and more human character. The film also had less swearing and crude humour, and I never thought that I would ever be saying that about a book.
But the film also inherited some of the books flaws. My biggest dislike is that it lacked a sense of time. You didn't feel just how very long he'd spent on Mars, you were just told that. And I think too much time was spent back on Earth and it really took away from the sense of isolation that should have been there.
My final big flaw is the uneveness of the film. I didn't like the beginning of the film as it felt rushed and they were just cramming everything in. The ending however I loved. It was exciting, nerve racking and everything you'd want out of a movie like this.
Matt Damon did a great job in correctly portraying everything that was likable about Mark Watney. And it's just nice to see a smart person that isn't another House-esque smug, arrogant Genius. The rest of the actors did a good job as well.
Overall I think I liked this movie better than the book. It's very recommendable.