The premise of this film is that something like a space bug is basically… eating the sun.
Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller), a mysterious government-type, approaches Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling), a disgraced physicist now teaching science at an elementary school.
Grace is determined to be Earth’s last chance to save the planet. He is put aboard an experimental spaceship and sent to another sun that is the only one in our cluster NOT being eaten, to see if he can figure out why.
The story by Drew Goddard and Andy Weir is imaginative and riveting. The DP, Greig Fraser, has his hands full with the special effects required for this film. The ship sequences are brilliant. The percentage of the film on the ship makes it the primary set of the piece. The special effects team on this film pulled off an amazing feat, making us not see them as effects but as a ship in another solar system.
Project Hail Mary is the fifth film directed by the team of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Their previous films are comedies, and two are animated. This film is a new genre for them. There is humor. It slips through in odd moments that help keep this film (156 minutes) moving along at a good clip.
I saw the film in IMAX. It was a treat. A long treat that flew by.
Directors: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller, Lionel Boyce, Ken Leung, Milana Vayntrub, James Ortiz, Liz Kingsman
MPA Rating: PG-13 (for some thematic material and suggestive references)
Selig Rating: 4.5 Stars
Runtime: 156 Min.
Release Date: 03/20/2026
Language: English
Genre(s): Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Trailer: PROJECT HAIL MARY Final Trailer
The Selig Rating Scale:
5 Stars – Excellent movie/show, well worth the time and price.
4 Stars – Good movie/show
3 Stars – OK movie/show
2 Stars – Well, there was nothing else…
1 Star – Total waste of time.