With a title like Project Hail Mary, we have a movie that is almost tailormade for a Catholic reviewer.  On the other hand, I suspect that is not the first thought among those who see it, or at least come across the name.  It is a shame, too, because there is plenty of material in it to give me a theological basis for the following discussion.  Still, when people hear the words “Hail Mary,” the image I am sure comes to most peoples’ mind is someone chucking a football down the field in the wild hope that it will land in a teammate’s hands and win the game.  Before such grid iron contests, though, there was the prayer that gave that play its name, the Ave Maria.  Yes, without Catholicism, there would be no Hail Mary, which is how the Latin Ave Maria translates into English.  To add to the Christian flavor of the proceedings, the main character is scientist Dr. Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling), a last name that is the fifth word in the prayer.  What this all amounts to is a fulfilling cinema experience that I am happy to share with you.

At the start of Project Hail Mary, it does not look like Dr. Grace will be able to share much of anything aside from extreme terror.  He has awakened from a coma in deep space, not knowing how he came to be on this craft.  What is worse is his discovery of two other people who had been with him, now deceased.  In short, he is suffering from amnesia, not entirely sure of who he is, though his memory gradually returns.  There are some context clues in the various items he finds around the ship, but the biggest help is his seemingly preternatural scientific ability.  With that, he is able to determine that he is a long way from Earth and heading away from the planet.  We are fed his recent past in flashbacks, but I am going to tell it in order so as to make the plot make better sense.  At first, he is a modest school teacher giving lessons to middle school aged kids.  It is below his education level, but he had upset the scientific community with his findings and had essentially been shunned from academia.  After class one day, he is approached by Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller).  She is interested in his work on molecular biology.  At this time, there is something called the Petrova line, which goes between Venus and the Sun, and is slowly choking away our star’s light.  This means that Earth only has a few more decades before it is no longer able to sustain life at current levels.  Samples have been taken from this strip, and Dr. Grace is asked to analyze them.  He finds that they are a living organism that stores a great deal of energy.  Actually, there is a lot of science stuff here that I frankly did not understand, so please forgive my rudimentary description of it.  At any rate, because of these organism’s output, which they call “Astrophage,” they move to an aircraft carrier cruising the oceans and induct him into a top-secret team attempting to use the substance to power a ship.  Such a vehicle is needed because their team has found a planet in another part of the galaxy that is resistant to Astrophage’s predations.  The mission is to go there and figure out why this is happening.  It is a long shot, hence the title, and a one-way trip for anyone who decides to go given the distances.  In this way, Dr. Grace essentially trains everyone on the scientific aspects of what they are undertaking.  Yet, with launch nearing, a catastrophic explosion takes out the scientists qualified to go to space.  He is asked to go by Eva, but he says no despite what it could mean for the planet’s survival.  He is not given a choice.  They knock him out and this is how he wakes up thousands of light years from home.  Not long after coming to terms with his fate, he arrives in the target solar system.  Awaiting him is another ship of unknown origin.  In layman’s terms, it is an alien vessel, though technically he is also an alien.  His initial reaction is to try to lose the other, but it stays with him with ease.  Indeed, his co-explorer gives him no choice but to make contact.  Once their vehicles are linked, Dr. Grace makes contact with a being that looks like a spider made of rocks, but with only five limbs.  Once he gets over his horror, in a rather unimaginative moment he decides to call his new companion Rocky (voiced by James Ortiz).  The first order of business is to figure out a means of communication, which they manage through the universal language that is mathematics.  Rocky has come here on the same mission as Dr. Grace.  Similar to the human, Rocky’s crew had also died enroute.  Once they work out the language barrier, they get to resolving the existential threats to their planets.  At the same time, they become friends, with Dr. Grace bringing Rocky aboard the Hail Mary with its greater maneuverability.  Together, they travel to their target planet and discover that its atmosphere holds the key to stopping the Astrophage.  However, the maneuver to collect the samples goes awry.  Dr. Grace is knocked unconscious with the Haily Mary spinning out of control, and Rocky risks the ship’s atmosphere, which is toxic to him, to get the human medical attention.  When Dr. Grace wakes up, he finds Rocky lifeless.  Doing what he can for the little guy, while it recovers, Dr. Grace is able to find what is needed to save their planets.  Rocky eventually comes to, and they say their goodbyes.  Yet, on the way back, their new substance proves to be a contaminant.  Again, there is some science-speak here, but Dr. Grace determines he must return to Rocky to help him while sending the substance ahead to Earth.  It means he cannot go home, but we conclude with him on Rocky’s planet.  He is told that they have come up with a way to send him on his way, but he stays to teach their young ones.

The fact that Project Hail Mary ends in this fashion might conjure comparisons to The Martian (2015).  Both films are based on novels written by Andy Weir.  Of the two, I prefer The Martian, though I have read neither of the books.  My judgement is based solely on the cinematic versions.  It is entirely possible that I am the idiot here, but I was able to more easily digest the scientific aspects of the earlier movie than Project Hail Mary.  Nonetheless, what unites them is the longshot nature of dealing with anything regarding space.  Going out into the void beyond Earth’s atmosphere takes a level of trust akin to Faith.  You have to have confidence that your ship will keep in the oxygen you need, that the fuel you are carrying will not explode, and that your computers will operate as they should in order to keep you moving in the desired direction.  In short, just to leave our gravity takes a Hail Mary.  If more people had that kind of faith, then we would be approaching Heaven on Earth.  Unfortunately, the majority of us are Dr. Grace.  To be fair, being asked to willingly choose martyrdom is not an easy proposition.  I have no doubt that the most regular Mass attendee might hesitate if faced with a similar situation.  It is also in this way that these two motion pictures differ.  Dr. Grace has to be forced into going to space, but to his credit, he makes the most of it.  Dr. Mark Watney (Matt Damon) in The Martian is much more willing to take chances in order to save himself.  They each go about their business in a scientific manner, but Dr. Watney is more eager to make the difficult decision from start to finish.  For this reviewer, it makes for more exciting cinema, and is the kind of attitude to which we should aspire in faith lives.

Speaking of faith lives, there are some solid allusions to God in Project Hail Mary, which should not be surprising given the title.  There will be some of you who will note the presence of intelligent beings from another planet and say that contradicts the existence of God.  Whenever we get this in Hollywood, I am forced to issue the disclaimer that the Church has never officially denied the existence of extraterrestrials.  I do not see why any more needs to be said on the subject.  On the topic of God, the most interesting moment comes when Dr. Grace questions Eva as to whether she thinks their mission will work.  Her answer is simple, saying “God willing.”  He follows this with another question: does she believe in God?  Her response is something I wish more people would say themselves: it beats the alternative.  The idea is irrespective of religion, but this Catholic will take it as a beginning.  Besides, Faith is about growth, and we all have to start somewhere.  In all seriousness, though, what is the alternative?  If there is no God, what are we doing?  What is the basis of morality?  Why be good at all?  An age-old argument is that the dictates of a community governed by laws is enough to keep people in line.  All you need to do to know this is not true is to look at the news.  The movie backs this up when Eva speculates that if their mission fails, the governments of the world will not cooperate, and humanity will suffer all the more.  That Dr. Grace is unwilling to do what needs to be done is further testimony to this fact.  The logical leap, then, must be that there is some ultimate form of remuneration for wickedness that keeps some in check.  This is not the foundation for religion because a relationship with God is not based on fear of eternal punishment for wrong doing.  The hope is that it inspires people to do good.  It cannot be said that this is the case for Dr. Grace, but he is willing to sacrifice going home to save Rocky.  That is faith in action.

There are some intense moments in Project Hail Mary, but I would not call it an action movie.  It is a little slower moving, but it is its heart that keeps the story moving.  As I have discussed, I did not understand the science parts, but the problem is easy enough to grasp.  In all, this is a satisfying watch that gets my recommendation.