Movie Thoughts: Project Hail Mary (2026)

• Released: March 9th, 2026
• Directed by: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
• Running time: 2h 36min
• Rating 4/5

Synopsis

A science teacher named Ryland Grace wakes up in space and finds out that he's there to find a way to save humanity. On his quest he's joined by an alien named Rocky.

My Thoughts

I was a bit apprehensive going into this movie, both because I'm not too big on scifi and also the fact that I was overstimulated and had a headache when arriving at the theater, but I watched the film regardless. And boy, am I glad that I did. This is a genuinely great film.

Whether it's the likable main characters who share a really believable and genuine connection, the stellar effects (both practical and CGI), the interesting setup and plot, the way the movie slowly reveals more and more in flashbacks. It's all good stuff.

I also really appreciate that this movie takes its time. In some caess this can of course be too much, when a pace is too slow and it feels like it drags. But honestly that wasn't the case here, in my opinion. Despite being over two and a half hours long, I never really felt the running time of this movie. Honestly I liked the fact that it was taking things easy. Especially the scenes where Grace first meets Rocky and slowly learns more about him are well-done, really taking their time to teach us about this race of aliens and who Rocky is as a person. That's just super neat, and this was also where I was the most invested.

The flashbacks of Grace back on Earth were also well-done. They never overstayed their welcome, and I think that each bit of flashback was done at the right point in the story. It was enough to keep the audience guessing, but also provide them with enough context while the main story moved along. 

The bond between Grace and Rocky is also genuinely great. I never had a doubt for a second that these two who are so different started to bond as they learned more about the other, a bond that eventually became a really deep friendship. And I especially admire how they manage to get this across effectively despite Rocky essentially looking like a space rock. He doesn't even look remotely like a real creature (like a humanoid or at least an animal) it'd be easy for humans to project emotions onto. Rocky literally looks like a rock with limbs. He doesn't even have a face. And it works. Which is really impressive.

Overall this movie just, well, works, it really works. It's definitely one of the better ones I've recently seen. I might even watch it again someday, who knows.