An astronaut becomes stranded on Mars after his team assumes him dead, and must rely on his ingenuity to find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive and can survive until a potential resc... Read allAn astronaut becomes stranded on Mars after his team assumes him dead, and must rely on his ingenuity to find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive and can survive until a potential rescue.An astronaut becomes stranded on Mars after his team assumes him dead, and must rely on his ingenuity to find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive and can survive until a potential rescue.
- Nominated for 7 Oscars
- 40 wins & 199 nominations total
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Summary
Reviewers say 'The Martian' is lauded for its engaging plot, Matt Damon's compelling performance, and its mix of humor and drama. The film is appreciated for its realistic space survival depiction and scientific accuracy. However, some find it overly optimistic and emotionally shallow, with underdeveloped characters. Pacing issues and reliance on convenient plot devices are noted criticisms. Despite these, 'The Martian' is widely seen as an entertaining and thought-provoking sci-fi film.
Featured reviews
I heard a lot about this film regarding its scientific validity as a piece of fiction. Perhaps as a result of this I assumed that the film would be a dry affair – an impression sort of confirmed by the longer than normal running time. As it happens, this is not the case at all because The Martian has much more in common with the entertaining blockbuster that the starry cast list and presentation suggest it will be. The story wears its science very much on its sleeve, but yet makes it accessible and fun – with the slick presentation making it so. As a result everything seems to be explained with everyday objects, and even the most complex principles are presented in simple terms (references to Iron Man for instance). As a result the film gets to have its cake and eat it – although the film is helped by the knowledge of a lot of this being possible (eg hitting a point near Pluto recently with very tight tolerances on a journey of years).
The film itself doesn't really play up the drama in a heavy way, but rather does enough to invest the viewer in it without making it too much of a downer or serious. The soundtrack is hugely upbeat, the content is mostly light in tone, and the science is delivered in a very user-friendly fashion – essentially in the service of the tone and the entertainment value, nothing more than this. The starry cast add to this feeling, and use their screen presence well. Damon is consistently likable, which is just as well since he is alone in the vast majority of his scenes. The ensemble cast has a lot of depth to it, all of which are solidly watchable – Chastain, Wiig, Daniels, Eiofor, Peña, Bean, and so on. The Chinese aspects of the plot serves as another reminder that this film is a blockbuster out to make money, but it doesn't seem too out of place. Technically it looks great and it impressive how convincing the surface of Mars looks.
In the end we get to the fist-pumping mission control scenes that we all knew were coming, but along the way the film is slickly packaged and entertaining as a result; even if the oft-mentioned scientific validity of it all is not something it ever seems concerned with itself.
The film itself doesn't really play up the drama in a heavy way, but rather does enough to invest the viewer in it without making it too much of a downer or serious. The soundtrack is hugely upbeat, the content is mostly light in tone, and the science is delivered in a very user-friendly fashion – essentially in the service of the tone and the entertainment value, nothing more than this. The starry cast add to this feeling, and use their screen presence well. Damon is consistently likable, which is just as well since he is alone in the vast majority of his scenes. The ensemble cast has a lot of depth to it, all of which are solidly watchable – Chastain, Wiig, Daniels, Eiofor, Peña, Bean, and so on. The Chinese aspects of the plot serves as another reminder that this film is a blockbuster out to make money, but it doesn't seem too out of place. Technically it looks great and it impressive how convincing the surface of Mars looks.
In the end we get to the fist-pumping mission control scenes that we all knew were coming, but along the way the film is slickly packaged and entertaining as a result; even if the oft-mentioned scientific validity of it all is not something it ever seems concerned with itself.
This is a rare, light-hearted science fiction film that deliberately downplays the most common fears about the future and the unknown universe, focusing instead on human effort and the science that can save humanity.The film has a tech-geek's idiocy and optimism. (Matt Damon, of course, did it perfectly.)Even if the movie is a little bit stereotypical in its emotional setting, it can still touch the audience at crucial moments.
The Ares III manned mission encounters a sand storm on Mars. Astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is left for dead as the rest of the crew evacuate on their spacecraft. Mission control back on Earth is shocked when they discover that Mark is actually alive and alone on Mars.
Simply put, this is a fun space adventure. There is a good deal of Apollo 13 and Gravity. Damon is humorous and engaging. Meanwhile, the mission control back on earth is doing interesting things. Nobody is the villain. Jeff Daniels is a capable bureaucratic leader. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives the team intensity and has fun scenes with Mackenzie Davis. Almost every side character adds to the group. As for the spacecraft, it's interesting to have Jessica Chastain as the commander. The entire cast is great. The whole story is thrilling. There are unexpected turns. It has the feel of reality. A lot of praise has to be given to director Ridley Scott for a well constructed film. Also it's genius to give it a disco soundtrack.
Simply put, this is a fun space adventure. There is a good deal of Apollo 13 and Gravity. Damon is humorous and engaging. Meanwhile, the mission control back on earth is doing interesting things. Nobody is the villain. Jeff Daniels is a capable bureaucratic leader. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives the team intensity and has fun scenes with Mackenzie Davis. Almost every side character adds to the group. As for the spacecraft, it's interesting to have Jessica Chastain as the commander. The entire cast is great. The whole story is thrilling. There are unexpected turns. It has the feel of reality. A lot of praise has to be given to director Ridley Scott for a well constructed film. Also it's genius to give it a disco soundtrack.
Seeing that the movie was over 2 hrs long, and knowing that the person was going to be stuck on the planet by their self for the majority, I didn't have high hopes for it. Usually these types of movies are boring. Not a lot of writers can pull this off. This movie was really good tho. A group of us watched it and really enjoyed. There were some things they failed to explain, that we collectively came up with our own answer for. Other than that, it was great. I never felt bored or left waiting for more. Overall, I feel it was very well written, produced and acted. Well worth the watching. Some people on here have griped that it was 'predictable', but then, most movies are. Who ever watched Star Wars with the thought that Vader would ultimately win??? Who ever watched Star Trek thinking that Kirk wouldn't find a way to save the day? And frankly, who grew up watching Scooby Doo thinking that someone would actually kill Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne or Velma???
The film is the finest examples of science fiction and science fiction embodies everything required. Matt Damon has given the right role until the end of the case. Besides the fact that one does not really need. All movies have moved on their own. We have seen examples of this, such as the Buried and 127 Hours of very good quality movies. The master Ridley Scott's science fiction after a long separation has made a great comeback with this film case. After this film, Ridley Scott disappointing those who say the sound was cut. Thank you for this wonderful film Ridley masters. Maybe the best in 2015, as I mentioned in the title.
Did you know
- TriviaRich Purnell slips and falls after he finds a way to rescue Mark Watney and tells his boss "I need more coffee." Donald Glover revealed in an interview that he slipped for real and just got up and continued to act, and the footage was retained in the final edits for the movie.
- GoofsThe film shows Watney following a parachute and shrouds to find the buried Pathfinder lander, but the Pathfinder used a unique airbag system that involved cutting the lander loose from the parachute and Rocket Assisted Deceleration System above the surface. The lander then bounced at least 15 times inside the airbag cocoon before coming to a rest, while the remaining rocket thrust carried the backshell and parachute away from the landing site.
- Quotes
Mark Watney: I don't want to come off as arrogant here, but I'm the greatest botanist on this planet.
- Crazy creditsDisco music, which had been a running gag throughout the film, is played during the ending credits. Appropriately, the first song played is "I Will Survive," which features the lyric "And so you're back, from outer space."
- Alternate versionsIn June of 2016, an extended cut was released on Blu-Ray and Ultra HD 4K Blu-Ray that adds 10 additional minutes of footage:
- Extended footage of Watney shortly after his abandonment, waking up in the habitat
- Additional moments when Watney charts a course for the rover and dozes off at the wheel, commenting on this to his vlog
- An additional scene after the NASA press conference confirming Watney survived, in which PR Director Annie warns director Vincent Kapoor not to use the phrase "bring him home alive", and also complains about her private life
- Additional moments while Watney and the Pathfinder team communicate, including more repartee between Kapoor and the young JPL technician, and Watney using an unusual insult when he hears his crew have not been told he is alive, followed by the reaction of NASA team members to this
- A short scene after Watney patches the hole in the habitat after the explosion using plastic sheets, in which he uses smoke currents to detect and patch holes with sealant
- Additional scenes showing Rich Purnell requiring the use of a supercomputer to deliver his Earth slingshot calculations
- A scene in which Watney completes the soil analysis started by his crewmates in order to complete their original mission before he leaves Mars
- A scene in which Watney inflates a pressurized tent to eat and clean his body outside the rover on his way to the Ares IV coordinates. He also leaves an apology to the Ares IV team for using their supply drop.
- A short moment in which Commander Lewis and Martinez discuss how many times their simulated rescue mission has resulted in Watney's death
- ConnectionsFeatured in Ares III: Farewell (2015)
- SoundtracksHappy Days Theme
Written by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel
Performed by Pratt and McClain (as Pratt & McClain)
Courtesy of Reprise Records
By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing
- How long is The Martian?Powered by Alexa
- How did The MAV manage rendezvous with the HERMES if it was an emergency evacuation? Doesn't it require precise planning to rendezvous with an object in orbit?
- Wouldn't Watney be negatively affected by the different day-night cycle on Mars?
- Would Watney need to use antibiotics after being wounded in space?
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Misión rescate
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $108,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $228,433,663
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $54,308,575
- Oct 4, 2015
- Gross worldwide
- $630,621,406
- Runtime2 hours 24 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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