Enjoyable feel good movie

Rating: 9/10 (4 October 2015)

The title basically sums it up - the movie is constantly upbeat, optimistic, happy and amusing. Watney (Damon) almost never losses his composure, constantly turns lemons into lemonade and so on. The rest of the characters all exhibit the same can-do attitude, and the way you go with this will probably effect how you experience this movie - a guilty pleasure ride of optimism and belief in the human spirit and scientific prowess of humanity (well, NASA...); or as a very long, detailed and visually striking infomercial for NASA and the Mars mission goal.
Assuming you have chosen the first option, Damon is optimal casting. His character plays well into the Damon persona, and seemingly requires little effort on his side. Watney is likable, cutesy and well, slightly boring - you couldn't call him a protagonist as he doesn't really change or evolve. But, then again, that's true for all characters in this film. What little conflict there is is played out in calm and polite conversations, a hymn of professionalism and technocracy. And they all come out the same as they came in.
From all technical aspects - visual, cinematography, acting, direction, score - it's well-made. It is entertaining, interesting, suspenseful almost throughout despite the obvious end (spoiler: he doesn't die on Mars). Towards the end the can-do attitude is a bit too over the top and the finale plays out a bit like an extended Macgyver times 6 episode. This, with the epilogue, are actually the weakest part of the film.
I went with my family, and my kids (10, 11) loved every minute of it and in particular the realistic aspects of the film. That in itself was worth the price of admission.