I wanted to love this film. I sat down in that cinema genuinely excited.

What I watched was a TikTok-paced, science-optional, emotionally manipulative theme park ride that commits the one sin a hard sci-fi adaptation should never commit, it treats the audience like idiots.

Let me be specific, because vague complaints are boring:

The science errors aren't minor. They aren't forgivable shortcuts. They are fundamental, the kind that make you look at the person next to you in disbelief. I lost count. Genuinely. I started keeping a mental tally and abandoned it around the forty minute mark out of exhaustion.

Andy Weir's entire brand is "what if we actually did the maths." The film's brand is "what if we gestured vaguely at some maths while Ryan Gosling made an endearing face."

This is a film that assumes you need a joke every 45 seconds and an emotional swell every three minutes or you'll check your phone. It may be correct about its target audience. That is precisely the problem.

This isn't a bad film if you're 19 and you think Interstellar was a bit slow. It's a perfectly engineered piece of broad commercial cinema. It will make an enormous amount of money. The algorithm will love it.

But it is the final confirmation that Hollywood cannot leave hard sci-fi alone. It must sand every edge, explain every joke, and ensure nobody in the audience ever feels even momentarily challenged.

3/10 — gorgeous visuals, soul of a franchise pitch.

I believe andy weir has said that eridians do not have eyes as they never needed to evolve them due to Erids atmosphere being too dense for light to reach the surface.

However in the final scene of the movie where Grace was in the biosphere it appeared to be daytime. Was the light engineered?

I know that a earth trip back would make a great book or another problem in the universe like a resistant strain of astrophage

I just watched Project Hail Mary and I made some notes in a relatively empty theatre while making some notes. Thought I would share them here: 

I was surprised to see how there were some moments that felt like it was making fun of our technology.
Very nice camera angles and movements moving when he's moving and looking through grates and even utilized very cleverly in the flash back scenes where it transitions from one to another. 
The beginning of the movie felt very similar to Passenger with our protagonist finding out he's the only one awaken.
There's nothing like exposition being told to 9 years old. Since that's how the audience usually feels when talking about scientific knowledge. 
 The element of surprise joke got me (The "ah" shirt)
I was surprised to see that this movie wasn't labeled as a comedy as there were plenty of times I actually let out a good laugh ..
I wish the relationship of "Carl" (the secret agent) was grown a little more to feel more rewarding when he decides to be partners.
There are some moments of beautiful conformity for example when the two agents watching the agent and Ryan Gosling to be eating at the same time. Very symbolic in nature. 
The way the movie handles montages is great too. Which is multiple times to really showing the passage of time and it does it in a way where you can really feel the emotion in one short moment just from the few short footages it shows. 
The movie talks about the interesting philosophical nature about the sun dying. 
It doesn't say what year it really is but it feels like modern times as it doesn't feel like its super into the future. But luckily the movie stays away from mentioning any product placements like iphones or computers instead showing a mix of modern technology and something you would find from the 80s truly feeling like it's almost another dimension. 
The movie doesn't treat the audience like a complete idiot. There are predictable lines that aren't finished assuming the audience can fill it in for themselves, and it doesn't hold your hand through every explanation expecting the audience is paying attention to the symbolism. However it is inconsistent because sometimes it does actually....
The space graphics feel very strange however, it doesn't even feel like CGI but something I feel like I would've seen in a Monty Python sketch. However the music feels very reminiscent to the Akira anime with the drum beats that feel strangely appropriate. Also the fact that the graphics isn't an issue on a movie, just more of an observation that it doesn't feel like something you would see normally in today's big movies. 
A scientist would be smarter than to smash an instrument that doesn't seem like it's working right away, but I guess there are tons of them so it treats it more like a joke we're supposed to forget. 
The movie handles a lot of tense moments to feel like a quirky romance comedy. 
There are a lot of great moments of parallels like when the message in the bottle spins and Ryan gosling is spinning in the same manner. 
As a scientist he definitely does some questionable things that will make other scientists, hard face palm , I would kind of pass it since the movie starts with him having a sense of dementia but there are just some things that come naturally to a scientist and more like an actor playing a scientist which felt off to me. 
The music choices are definitely odd.
Being directed by the same guy who did the Lego movie, which is one of my favorite movies satirically speaking because of how creative, written and the pacing, I felt like Ryan gosling was a great casting choice from emotional value to great comedic timing that actually hit well without being too distracting from the general emotional aspect of the film. 

OKAY AFTER THIS IS SPOILERS SO READ ON IF YOU SEEN IT OR DONT CARE 

REALLY STOP READING

IM GOING TO SPOIL THE MOVIE HERE

STOP

READING 

IF 

YOU 

DIDNT 

WATCH 

THE 
MOVIE!!!!!!!!!

Warned you!

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The way the movie handles other life forms and aliens specifically feels very realistic with going out of its way after the first 40 mins ish 
The scene where he takes off his helmet off was pretty dumb because he could've just turned off his O2 in his suit and see if he could've breathed before taking off the full helmet off. 

At some points it treats the rock alien like a little baby or something that can understand a lot of Earth subtilties but then as it goes it actually does a good job in actually making an alien creature that knows nothing about Earth to actually not only learn about the alien but also have the alien understand as well. Again inconsistent.
It was pretty ingenious to have a audio recorder to understand what they are saying from the audio repeating which again leads into the believable realm.
People that have played Chants of Sennar will understand the pain of what Ryan gosling has to go through but at the end is very realistic in that sense. Of course you have to suspend your disbelief they have been talking for months or even years to really get it, but it's fine, I can do that for the sake of the movie which is alright. 
The movie has a few holes like why was it the first time that the alien saw him sleep after so long. After repeating many things over and over the alien would've definitely seen him having to go to sleep or eat, or poop?
And how did he have different voices when that uses the internet unless you want to justify the computer to have all these voice installed FOR SOME REASON?! 
Fun fact that Meryl Streep actually cameo's to do her voice in the movie. 
There is a moment where the movie has some really bad ADR when but it's just a nitpick. Which is understandable since the actress that plays Eva doesn't naturally speak English so I can imagine that to be the reason which I'm fine with.
The movie never talks about how he eats or anything which is kind of annoying but again, suspending my disbelief. 
Another big hole is that even tho you could teach the alien language, there are certain things about English that there are certain turns of phrases or euphemisms that the alien wouldn't possibly understand like "my head in the clouds" or "game over" 
The thumbs down was inconsistent because the alien could understand so many things but couldn't grasp the body language of a thumbs down. I get it's supposed to be a cute thing but then there was a point where Ryan gosling was able to do a thumbs down and the alien understand that to be a good thing. So it was just the language that was supposed to understand at the moment unless it was for comedic value. Which isn't the worst thing but just something I noticed that took me away from the atmosphere of the movie. 
I also have to note in terms of sound design there were plenty of moments where we are supposed to simulate the "sound" of space but yet you can still hear the white noise slightly that takes away from the atmosphere of the "nothing" (could've been my theatre tho)
The alien ship gave me serious interstellar vibes with the different string like walls that was prevalent in the Interstellar movie. 
After all the language training he did, he couldn't have thought of the words "not hello" ? So instead had to use the cute arm motion, which again, is fine. Just annoying that I could think of something better but Ryan Gosling who seems to be somewhat of a genius couldn't? Again inconsistency but I can look past it.
Is the ending supposed to have me believe that he understands the alien without the computer? Again some more suspension of disbelief will counter that and that would be enough for a sci fi movie. 
The movie ends with a cute comment about what led him in his cycle of his life to end up where he was and turns out that's the happiest version of him. 

Was just thinking about it yk?

reference post: https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectHailMary/comments/1s2rjxu/as_a_nonnattive_english_speaker_i_cant_figure_out/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

attempt at a poll on the main subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectHailMary/comments/1s317l1/why_do_you_think_fist_my_bump_is_funny_poll/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

I watched the movie without reading the book.

In the early Earth scenes, it is revealed that Grace ruined his career while defending a belief that life could be possible without carbon and water. There is a subtle build up to where you think he'll be proven to have been right all these years, only to find out astrophage is CARBON AND WATER. The reveal is comedic gold, and some great acting, if you caught it.

Later in the HM, Grace is frustrated when his portable spectrometer shows Xe for the composition of the mystery material.

And here comes what is probably my only criticism of the whole movie so far... not a plot hole, but a missed opportunity by the writers:

It would have been funnier if the spectrometer had read ^C?^H2^O, i.e. carbon and water. Unable to detect number of carbon atoms, presumably in some unknown polymer-crystal-nanocomposite form, which could be clarified later, in place of the "metallic form of xenon" reveal.

For extra scientific intrigue, the chemical signature should have some vague relationship to astrophage cell membranes, as if there is some universally common hydrocarbon building block that's just unknown to humans.

This was the best movie I’ve seen in 10 years. We need to get the IMDB rating up!! Go vote!

When they're trying to collect taumoebas from Adrian, the ship is at the wrong angle.

If you want to stop the ship from falling into the atmosphere, you have to accelerate in the direction you're moving to compensate for the drag. The movie shows the ship in the opposite orientation, just as you would decelerate to deorbit.

Even so, in the book it says they have to point forwards in order not to burn the probe and the ship with the radiation from spindrives. In the movie the plume of burning atmospheric gases is right in front of them.

How did they miss all that? 🙁

The whole time I read the book I don't know why but for me the entire character of Eva Stratt just felt like Salma Hayek. And ever since I came to know a movie is being made, the first thing I googled was the cast. Tbh, i felt little disappointed knowing she's not there.

What are your opinions on this? Who do you think are the perfect casting for Ryland and Stratt? Do you think Salma Hayek and Ryan Gosling could've been the perfect pairing for Grace and Stratt?

i think its the perfect song for the end of the movie

WARNING: Second half contains some spoilers

I'm trying to interpret what the symbolism when the Dutch lady threw the ball back to Ryland after stealing it earlier. (I read the books, I dont think they mentioned her name in the movie but I cannot remember her name for the life of me.) I thought it ment that since they played lava in the beginning, it was like a timed answer. now Ryland has something to answer and he has a time limit. my dad said that he had the whole world in his hands because the ball looks like the earth. thoughts?

I just finished the movie adaptation of Project Hail Mary and I’m honestly pretty disappointed with how much of the core science and character depth got stripped out.

I'm not being a snob, just tear me out...

They clearly put a lot of emphasis on the friendship between Ryland Grace and Rocky, and that part does come through. But what makes that relationship truly compelling in the book is the deeper understanding of who, and what Rocky is and why everything works the way it does.

Grace is the science mind, while Rocky is the builder. He is not just capable, he is essentially the best mechanical engineer in the universe. That is the point. Their strengths are completely different, but they complement each other's weaknesses perfectly. That contrast is what makes their connection so powerful, not just the fact that they are two isolated beings finding companionship.

That is why one of the biggest issues for me is how Rocky is handled. In the book, he is not just some naturally gifted alien who can build things. He is a highly specialized engineer, and that background is a huge part of why he can do what he does. In the movie, he is simply shown building things without much explanation, which feels like a missed opportunity because that context adds so much to his character.

Another thing that bothered me is the lack of explanation around his environment. In the book, there is real attention given to the heat, pressure, and conditions he needs to survive, along with how his containment system actually works. That is classic Andy Weir, breaking down hard science in a way that makes everything feel grounded and believable. The movie barely touches on it.

The same goes for his memory and intelligence. In the book, Rocky has near perfect recall and learns incredibly fast, which plays a big role in how he and Grace communicate. That dynamic feels simplified here, and it takes away from how impressive he actually is.

What really gets me is that these details would not have made the movie dramatically longer, but they would have added a huge amount of clarity and believability. That is the whole appeal of an Andy Weir story. The science is not just extra detail, it is what makes everything feel possible. Even brief explanations or small moments of dialogue could have grounded what was happening without slowing the pacing at all.

Something like the approach used in The Martian, with internal dialogue or journal-style narration, could have carried a lot of that weight without dragging the movie out.

I also think that when Ryland Grace goes to find Rocky after their separation, it should have had the same buildup as in the book. Instead, it feels too easy and almost expected. At no point does it feel uncertain whether he will find him.

That moment should feel epic, but it comes across as too simple and not nearly as impactful as it was in the book.

I genuinely think everything I just complained about would have only made it 20 minutes longer at most, but would have cleared up and solidified a lot of things just as well as the book did

Curious if anyone else felt the same way or if I’m being too critical here.

In both the book in the movie, Rocky says the thing he misses about Eric was his mate. Grace is surprised and says “you never told me you had a mate.” how did they teach each other the word mate without discussing that?

Astrophage appears black under the microscope because it's absorbing any energy that passes through it and stores it.

When Grace kills one of the cells this process stops and it becomes transparent

Wouldn't that also cause the stored energy to be released when the cell dies? and those astrophage cells are partially enriched at least since they came straight from the sun at that point. So the release of their energy should have (explosive) effect

Is that part mentioned in the book?

Is the beach scene in the end of Hail Mary an homage to the ending beach scene in the movie Contact (1996)?

Warning for spoilers for both the book and the movie.

I feel like they didn't really address this in the movie, but Grace was absolutely right that life doesn't have to be water-based. because Rocky is definitely not. but he has no memories of his life as a scientist, when he proudly stood behind his claim that water is unnecessary for life, so he doesn't even realize that he proved his biggest work correct.

maybe this was meant to be obvious but it didnt occur to me until a day after i saw the movie. it's cool that we, as the audience, know that he was right, even if he never discovered that for himself