A space adventure with a human touch

Rating: 8/10 (1 October 2015)

Ridley Scott, one of the most well known and respected directors working today combines with Matt Damon donning a spacesuit once again. A big budget then, and lots of publicity. Does the film live up to its hype?
Scott's 4th sci-fi if my math(s) is right. He clearly knows what he's doing, but Prometheus was no better than average, so a great film was by no means guaranteed. Blade Runner and Alien are both icons of the genre, but for my money, Gladiator is his best film by some margin. The Martian doesn't knock that off of my personal top spot, but it definitely holds its own among the also rans like the aforementioned icons and Matchstick Men.
What's good about it? I think this is an example where most things are done really well, with each element having a positive impact on the end result. Let's start with the writing. The source material from Andy Weir (which I've not read yet) is highly regarded and it's been adapted by Drew Goddard, who has some great TV shows and films on his CV, not least Alias, Lost and Daredevil. His impressive provenance means the script actually feels well crafted for a change rather than something that's been knocked up on the back of a fag packet. It helps no end, and the frequent bursts of humour are well judged. Balancing the humour, Scott says the film is a love letter to science, and these elements are pitched just right.
Other stuff...the 70s music is apparently faithful to references in the novel and is surprisingly enjoyable, and the sound design throughout is great. The picture is vibrant and pin sharp (I'm guessing Scott doesn't have to skimp on equipment) with some superb cinematography - a couple of shots of the earth seen from space easily rival the spectacular images in Gravity.
Matt Damon is extremely likable in the lead role (making up for being a bit of a tool in Interstellar) but this is as much an ensemble piece in my book as much as it's a spotlight for Damon. The film is littered with sparkling performances from a very talented cast.
So I guess you're waiting for the but. Has to be one or two, otherwise the film would be 10/10 right? Well it's really just minor quibbles about my favourite area to focus on, the story.
As I've already said, the writing is great overall and the script is highly competent. But under close scrutiny, there are a couple of flat spots and at the other extreme, a couple of moments of jeopardy that feel forced. I don't know how reading the book compares, but on screen these moments smack of someone arbitrarily throwing in some danger to keep the plot going and the tension high. The moments in question just didn't feel organic enough for me, so as a result, I was jerked out of the film a bit and not fully invested in the scenes that immediately followed. I'm sure other people wouldn't be quite so critical, but I personally wasn't as lost in the story as I wanted to be. I'd probably rate Gravity a little higher in that respect and also in regard to its emotional punch.
As I said, these are minor quibbles only and I strongly recommend you go out and see it unless you hate sci-fi. Try and avoid spoilers, too. I tried, but managed to learn about two major plot points, which was a shame. Ah well.