An astronaut becomes stranded on Mars after his team assume him dead, and must rely on his ingenuity to find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive.
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring "the Martian" home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible, rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney's safe return.Written by
20th Century Fox
The "cloak-and-dagger" meeting to propose the Rich Purnell Manuever is dubbed Project Elrond after the Council of Elrond in the "Lord of the Rings" series. When this name is questioned, the first character to explain it is Henderson, played by Sean Bean. Bean played Boromir in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) and was present during said council. See more »
Goofs
In the MAV takeoff scene in the beginning of the movie, the MAV appears to be very vulnerable to strong storms present on Mars and easily tipped over. It seems unlikely that the 2nd MAV could be placed on Mars for long periods of time and be expected to stay upright until the next mission arrived. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Melissa Lewis:
All right team, stay in sight of each other. Let's make NASA proud today.
Rick Martinez:
How's it looking over there, Watney?
Mark Watney:
Well, you will be happy to hear that in Grid Section 14-28, the particles were predominately coarse but in 29, they're much finer and they should be ideal for chem analysis.
Rick Martinez:
Oh, wow. Did everybody hear that? Mark just discovered dirt.
[laughs]
Rick Martinez:
Should we alert the media?
See more »
Crazy Credits
In the opening credits, the letters of "THE MARTIAN" fade away but as the top of the "T" fades, it then leaves an "I" onscreen for a fraction of a second, reminiscent of Ridley Scott's "Alien," where the letters slowly fade in one at a time. See more »
Alternate Versions
In June of 2016, an extended cut was released on Blu-Ray and Ultra HD 4K Blu-Ray that adds 10 additional minutes of footage. See more »
Turn the Beat Around (Love to Hear Percussion)
Written by Peter Jackson (as Peter Jackson Jr.) and Gerald Jackson
Performed by Vicki Sue Robinson
Courtesy of RCA Records
By arrangement with Sony Music Licensing See more »
Exceptional sci-fi drama from Ridley Scott about an astronaut (Matt Damon) stranded on Mars and the efforts made to rescue him. As others have pointed out, there's more than a little bit here that reminds you of movies like Apollo 13 and Cast Away (particularly the former). I fail to see how that's a knock on it but it's being presented as such by some. We all come to movies with our own expectations and baggage. I'm not a Scott fanboy expecting him to wow me (his last two films were not great). I just wanted to be entertained and this did the trick. It's a movie aimed at the masses that is smarter than your average movie aimed at the masses. Maybe it's not for all nerds (a quick glance at some of the reviews shows a lot of inane nit-picking from people who seem to have no concept of dramatic license), but I didn't find the movie dumbed-down at all. I also want to say how much I appreciated that this managed to stay remarkably light and positive while still maintaining the tension, proving once again that you don't have to be depressing to be good drama. If you haven't seen The Martian yet, you should. It's a great film with a first-rate cast, good direction, and stellar effects. If you're just looking for a quality movie to entertain you for a while, this should be something you'll enjoy.
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Exceptional sci-fi drama from Ridley Scott about an astronaut (Matt Damon) stranded on Mars and the efforts made to rescue him. As others have pointed out, there's more than a little bit here that reminds you of movies like Apollo 13 and Cast Away (particularly the former). I fail to see how that's a knock on it but it's being presented as such by some. We all come to movies with our own expectations and baggage. I'm not a Scott fanboy expecting him to wow me (his last two films were not great). I just wanted to be entertained and this did the trick. It's a movie aimed at the masses that is smarter than your average movie aimed at the masses. Maybe it's not for all nerds (a quick glance at some of the reviews shows a lot of inane nit-picking from people who seem to have no concept of dramatic license), but I didn't find the movie dumbed-down at all. I also want to say how much I appreciated that this managed to stay remarkably light and positive while still maintaining the tension, proving once again that you don't have to be depressing to be good drama. If you haven't seen The Martian yet, you should. It's a great film with a first-rate cast, good direction, and stellar effects. If you're just looking for a quality movie to entertain you for a while, this should be something you'll enjoy.