NEW CHAPTER OUT! Also a review of Ridley Scott's comeback... · 2:43pm Sep 30th, 2015
Hey guys, I don't know if you received the notification or not, but just in case this blog post is just to tell you that a new chapter of Changeling See, Changeling D'OH is out.
Since this blog post would be too short otherwise here's a movie review for a film I saw at an advance screening yesterday;
Directed by Ridley Scott and adapted from the novel by Andy Weir, The Martian is a science fiction survival film about astronaut/botanist Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon) who is presumed dead and accidentally left behind on Mars by a sandstorm and needs to find a way to survive long enough to be rescued.
As any film buffs may know, Ridley Scott has made many great films (Alien, Blade Runner, and Black Hawk Down just to name a few), but his recent career hasn't exactly been a string of hits (Robin Hood, The Counselor, Exodus: Gods and Kings, etc.). Seeing how it is the adaptation of one of my favorite books, I was going to use this movie as his last chance, if he bucks up the book's humor and with with his slow pacing and scenery porn then I'm done with him. Fortunatly, Scott does a stellar job and I'm happy to say that good Ridley Scott is back!
Andy Weir used to write webcomics and that style showed in the book as his writing tends to be snappy and snarky. This contributes to one of the book's greatest strengths which separates it from other survival stories like Cast Away or All is Lost in that rather than brooding or moping, the protagonist deals with everything with a witty sense of Gallows humor and thankfully this element made it into the movie. There are several great quips and funny scenes from both Andy and the people trying to save him. I do wish that the movie included more of the book's humor though.
While I heard Jeremy Renner when reading the book, Matt Damon does a great job capturing Andy's snarky optimism and dramatic moments and the film has one Tartarus of a supporting cast including Jeff Daniels, Michael Pena, Sean Bean, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. They give great performances too.
Being a Ridley Scott film, the scenery is gorgeous. It also has better pacing than most of his other work as well and the science in this film is all accurate. I saw it in 3D and while the Martian landscape looks great, ultimately its not worth the extra money.
In summary, The Martian is a scientifically-accurate, inspirational (I normally hate that word, but that's just how good this film is), and witty film with great casting, direction, visuals, effects, and performances. If this movie had more quips and humor (specifically more funny lines from the book) it would be perfect, but as it is I HIGHLY recommend it.
Final Score: 4 1/2 out of 5 Potatoes
Rating: PG-13
Release Date: October 2
