An Imperfect yet Enjoyable Sci-Fi Shipwrecked Tale

Rating: 6/10 (15 October 2015)

Andy Weir's novel of the same name, originally self-published in 2011, was quickly optioned by 20th Century Fox as its popularity soared. Ridley Scott ultimately helmed its translation to screen which was released in October of 2015. It tells the story of Mark Watney, a botanist aboard the Ares III, a manned mission to Mars, who must, as he put it, "science the sh*t out of this", in order to survive. Audiences are treated to a lone man against nature whose superpower is ingenuity. However, the jocular tone prevents us from making a connection with Watney. Instead of seeing him agonize over lost family (he mentions his parents once but has no partner or children), wrestle with faith, doubt his abilities, or even feel the effects of a prolonged isolation since time whisks forward fairly briskly, Watney is neither given a chance to overcome a character flaw nor are we able to truly sympathize with his situation. His video journals are filled with too many jokes about disco music. In keeping with the lighthearted tone, we know all too well that he will overcome all obstacles and ultimately return to Earth. But we don't watch just to see him do those things, we watch to see our protagonist learn something of himself, or of society, making the climax all the more triumphant.
The film is more successful with its scenes on Earth. We are privy to the closed-door negotiations about how to retrieve Watney safely. They calculate the risks and benefits of telling Watney's crew he is alive, about advancing the timeline of their next mission, about skipping safety checks, about partnering with the Chinese NASA counterpart, and about the overall cost of resources to rescue a single man. These discussions were filled with drama. But again, as these discussions span the course of years, we do not feel like we are among the world citizens gathered in their public squares in rapt attention watching the live coverage of his rescue.
Though perhaps unfair to make direct comparisons to other films, The Martian does call to mind 2013's Gravity. Gravity, though perhaps suffering from its overt attempts at allegory, was both more visually stunning and engaging precisely because of its focused timeline.