notes for the weekend: project hail mary
why did it hit so hard?
I know I’m a beat late on the Project Hail Mary hype train, but I wanted to both watch the film and read the book before I wrote anything about it. Plenty has been written, so not much more needs to be said. The book is great. The film is great. Both are funny, interesting, plot-driven and have some interesting characters (I found Professor Huller to be a unique and fascinating character, which surprised me for a sci-fi book, but then again she may be a trope in sci-fi since I don’t read much. I enjoyed her quite a bit).
It’s a rare instance where I don’t think I really have a preference between book and film. Each offer their own perks:
More scientific background to why everything’s being done the way it is, and why problems occur
Tons of internal monologue you don’t get in the film
Slightly more character development
You don’t have to sit in one place for almost three hours. That was a lot.
Ryan Gosling is funnier than the author. Most of the jokes in the film are new, or improved (then again, I read the book after the film, so maybe it’s a symptom of already knowing the punchline. Also I have a ambivalent relationship with humor in audiobooks - sometimes when the narrator cues up a joke with a “I’m about to say something funny” voice, it kind of ruins it for me. It’s one of my regrets in recording my audiobook that I did this. I wish I would have read it more deadpan.)
If you’re not into scientific details, the film simplifies the plot and moves it along.
Again, if you’re not into the science, the visuals of the film are really in tune with the book and help you to follow it.
Space visuals are just really fun.
So, I recommend both. I enjoyed both.
But one thing I’ve been thinking about: Why did this film resonate so hard with us?
Maybe the answer, for those who’ve seen it, seems obvious. But I haven’t seen anyone write about it, yet.
I think the answer is: this is a book about connecting to the Other during a time when polarization is threatening everything.
As Fleming Rutledge has recently written, one of the vital tools we need, if the church in particular is ever going to heal polarization, is to have an arsenal of stories about connecting to the other side. We need to be able to paint a picture, in both fictional and real terms, of what it means to find the Other and genuinely love and connect.
Not to change their mind (though we might level them out a bit).
Not to fix them (though we might temper their extremism).
Not to prove we’re right (that won’t work).
But to genuinely reach out our hands to someone who feels like they are a different species, with a different language and mathematical system and way of experiencing reality, and to connect.
This, after all, is the scandal of Jesus. He reached out to everyone: political zealots. Right-wing extremists. Morally reprehensible outcasts.
That’s really what this film is about: it’s playing the film on something we think is impossible, right now. It’s asking, “What if we found some common problems to solve, did the hard work of tackling the many barriers between us, and actually tried to save the world?”
I can’t think of a more prescient story for this cultural moment.
You can check out the book and audiobook here.
You can check out the film here.
Read well and rest well,
Nicholas
I listened to the audiobook last year. Adored every moment, even if the deep science dives were a bit much for my very non-science brain. Great comparison of the differences between the book and the movie, and loved your summary of what this movie is about. Such a great film. The only thing you are wrong about is that the 2.5 hour run time is not a bad thing. ;) It's a perfectly paced movie, in my opinion. I'm planning to go with a friend tomorrow and see it a second time.
Project Hail Mary is our Christian book club's current pick. I know some members were not to keen to read this genre! But book clubs are meant to stretch one's reading activities. I appreciate your words and review, and plan to share your article when our group meets this month to discuss Project Hail Mary.