Cast away in space. Formulaic and sterile. Decent watch.

Rating: 7/10 (8 March 2016)

I haven't read the book nor was the movie made for those who did. Also I know that lots of things were changed, or omitted altogether. So I write this review with no relevance to the original source.
The movie consists of 1 part mars scenes and 2 parts people talking and looking at monitors. But that's okay, the movie had only 100ish mil budget, you got to feed the stars right?
The movie ends like a fairy tale with cheers, hugs and applause... Have a nice dinner afterwards to complete the evening, call your parents and invite them for Christmas or something, because the elation simply won't last.
The movie has a very positive vibe to it, you never feel that the main character is in any real danger, even when he humbly declares that he broke his ribs.
The acting is rehashed from other movies and is not convincing, I assume it is how they got their roles in the first place, with Damon and Chastain coming straight from the Interstellar set, with not much else changed aside from scenery and the plot. I think I got used to Damon's fake tears by now, he does it good, so good that you realize he does it exactly the same every time.
Cue in the visual explanation cliché of a complex plot device, complex for you of course. Yes similar to the one in the Interstellar.
Overall a very smooth, formulaic and sterile space drama with very little memorable scenes, at least not an hour later.
No Sean Bean was harmed in this movie, they even let him to play golf in the end. 7/10