The Martian (2015) ****½/5: Maybe a little too feel good for my taste but still one of the year's best films. It demonstrates the importance of having a high work ethic.

The Martian is clearly one of the year’s best films. It’s one of those films that demonstrate that  a high ‘work ethic eliminates fear’ according to the great Michael Jordan. It’s a very good sci-fi film. Its greatness will be measured in the coming years. For now what I will say is that it’s somewhat of an upgrade on Gravity (2013) because it isn’t as sentimental and it has a more inspiring scope to work with. This film clearly shows that we don’t need to witness travel  to other galaxies to have a meaningful sci-fi film.  There is plenty of material to work with in our own solar system. 

This film is primarily about Mark Watney’s (Matt Damon) tale of survival on Mars after being  left behind when a mission on Mars goes wrong and his team is forced to leave him thinking that he’s dead.  The film also details the rescue effort ‘launched’ by NASA for Mark  which required extensive collaboration and cooperation. It eventually reaches the point where many people all over the world begin rooting for the success of the rescue mission.

Positives

The primary positive for me is that this film demonstrates that a high ‘work ethic eliminates fear’. It’s a quote from M. Jordan that has stuck with me and this film demonstrates the efficacy of taking such a position. In order to survive in the kind of perilous situation that Watney found himself one must have a high work ethic. It is that high work ethic that will lead to other things such as ingenuity as you find a way to beat the odds and this ingenuity will then lead to cooperation. If Watney was lazy and simply gave in to the possibility that he would die alone stranded on Mars then he would not have been able to communicate and then cooperate with NASA in order to get back home.  The decision he took to try and survive was the most important part in the film. It might seem like the obvious thing to do at first until you’re in his shoes. Not everyone is made of that kind of mettle. There really is a difference between ‘knowing the path and walking the path’ according to Morpheus.  The  descriptive elements of his survival such as planting potatoes in his station,  creating water and making an effort to communicate through dated technology was very important in demonstrating the high level of his work ethic and this was also reinforced in Watney’s closing remarks about always being ready to respond to any problem that will arise. It is that kind of message that can transcend the scientific trappings of the film. The film was correct in showing the many onlookers all over the world because no matter where you’re from you can identify with someone that can beat the odds. To beat the odds requires a lot of grit. One could argue that the film is a bit too optimistic but it’s not naïve optimism because he made a decision not to die on Mars or to try and survive as long as possible. Like I said earlier there are many people that would take the decision to wait to die and declare the position as hopeless. There is one point when  you see the toll that making the effort to survive has had on Watney’s body. When I saw that I was genuinely touched. It wasn’t naïve optimism. One must believe that there is more to life than just waiting to die.  Having a high work ethic, that comes with a high level of determination, is key to avoid the trappings that comes with laziness.  The harder you work to get things done the more you will be recognized in the world because your level of production cannot go unnoticed. No nation becomes rich while the labour productivity of the populace is low.

This sci-fi film also demonstrates, like Total Recall (1991), that our solar system is rich with material for fictional escapades.  Obviously Mars is the  candidate for such escapades but many films can be made about other planets and moons. Are other planets capable of being colonized? The science says that once the sun starts to expand and life on earth becomes inhospitable there are other planetary bodies like Mars or the moons of Saturn or Jupiter that would respond positively as the heat from the expanding sun melts their frozen insides. Recent discoveries about the flow of water on Mars suggest that it might be successfully colonized in the next couple of centuries.   One day they will have to do a film about evacuating from earth to somewhere within our own solar system. Not like Interstellar that dismissed the possibility of trying to identify any planet or moon in our solar system that could be colonized. Instead, in Interstellar,  NASA astronauts went through a wormhole, miraculously placed by divine beings, that allowed  them to travel to another galaxy.  Films like Gravity and now The Martian demonstrate that there can be fun sci-fi films without some overwhelmingly fantastic element involved. It can be a good old fashioned story about regular human beings in space like Apollo 13 (although that was based on a true story). Films about regular human beings grappling with space which is the vast new frontier.

I liked the level of international cooperation in this film unlike the American Exceptionalism of Interstellar that was released last year. If human beings are going to get anywhere in terms of settling the frontier of space international cooperation is a must. It is no longer America’s burden especially with countries like China and India on the rise.  There was also some interesting info provided regarding the international agreements when it comes to colonizing new planets. It makes you realize that colonization of other planets or moons  won’t be so simple especially as the US is no longer the only country capable of manned space travel. If China doesn’t get involved in a serious way, in the next 50 -100 years, I would be very surprised.

There is not too much sentimentality in this film. In some respects it’s how you would expect such a story to be told. Not enough dramatic effect will probably not make it as effective in some way but that’s a minor issue.

There was a little political intrigue at NASA which was interesting. Heavy is the head that wears the crown sort o’ thing.

The visual presentation of Mars in the film is stunning and one can see why it’s the only planet in our solar system that human beings are likely to settle on. There is clearly something there for us to work with.

Great performance by Matt Damon. The optimism he portrays is infectious. He does have his doubts but the drive to survive overpowers them. The high work ethic.  Teamwork also makes the dream work.

This film sends an important ideological message about why laziness or low labour productivity doesn’t pay.

Negatives

Well the primary negative about this film is that I did not hear or see enough about Mars. Mars seemed more like a backdrop. Yes it’s a desolate planet but what about its atmosphere. What were they doing on Mars in the first place? I was not too clear. Sometimes I was wondering about the sci-fi nature of the film. There was a lot of talk about colonization and so on but not enough about Mars. This is  reasonable criticism because there is more exposition about Botany and NASA’s machinery than the planet itself. I heard about Mars’ atmosphere but that was it basically. Mars is famous for its mountain ranges yet there was no idea about what you are seeing. Couldn’t they have included a shot of Olympus Mons? This is not just for aesthetic reason because it would make the geography more believable. Many people could get the impression that it’s all CGI or an artist’s impression of Mars that we’re seeing.  I am sure the scientists have begun identifying certain areas by names. I get the idea about the sol days passing by being more important and the location of NASA landing sites etc but I would have liked to hear and see more about Mars. The main strength of Interstellar was its discussion about gravity and the black hole.

The other negative  is the  very convenient nature of the film. Not saying I want to see negative things happen but personally I think that it would have been a stronger movie if he was not the only one left on the planet.  He and a woman stranded would have been nice, Jessica Chastain maybe. Someone being left behind would have been nice. Not negative but balancing out the overdose of optimism. People still need to be reminded that bad things do happen. This is a minor criticism but I remember how Gravity had Bullock and Clooney and it showed that in a lot of cases the message you’re trying to send is stronger when things actually go seriously wrong. Your survival becomes even more precious. If not two people then Watney’s fight to survive on Mars; a fight that lasted as long as his supplies could hold out. He would not hold out in this case but Watney would still have been remembered as a pioneer even if he died. It would have been sad but it would have probably elevated the film to true greatness. But naturally they would not go in that direction. This isn’t the 70s. Films in the 70s would have taken that kind of risk. Nolan came close to taking that risk in Interstellar although he gave in to emotionalism.

I would have loved to hear more about what people in the streets cheering Watney on thought about it all.  There’s a lot of cheering and staring at the screen but not enough talk amongst people in the crowd. All we have is a CNN reporter. CNN clearly a major sponsor.

I’m not going to dwell on that by the way. It’s still a good film. Maybe a little too feel good sort of film but it’s well constructed. You never get bored while watching because Matt Damon and Ridley Scott deliver.