The Martian

So many movies to see, so little time!  Sadly this year, I canceled my Entertainment Weekly subscription because I never had time to read them these days.   And now there are so many good movies out, but even if I can make time to see them, I have no time to do my "research."  So, all I knew about The Martian, was what I had heard on NPR: it was based on a book by a software engineer Nasa-loving nerd who just really wanted to write it and didn't care to make money on it, so he wrote it and put it on the internet... and people LOVED it.  We actually chose it for our book club book this month, but I haven't even started it yet.  I had not even watched a trailer, but knew it was about a guy that got stuck on Mars.  That didn't sound that great to me, and I imagined it would feel like "Gravity," which was beautifully done, but incredibly intense.  Then I saw it was nominated for Best Comedy or Musical Golden Globe, it made it to the Dollar Theater, and Book Club is meeting soon and I haven't started the book.  SO, we got a sitter last night and went with everyone else in East Cobb to see it.  It was awesome!  If you love nerdy problem solvers like we do, it is a must-see. Fantastic cast, great directing, fun music that adds to the comedic element.  It does seem a stretch that the Golden Globes categorized it as a "comedy" and it certainly had some Gravity-type intensity, but it was also a lot of fun and triumphant.  Matt Damon was great and well cast in the role.  I liked everyone, except it is hard for me to accept Jeff Daniels or Kristen Wiig in a serious role, ever.  I was surprised at the end when I saw it was directed by Ridley Scott, as it seemed a different type of movie than he usually does, but I was impressed.  Also, once you see it, "The Martian" seems like the perfect title, but beforehand, you're not sure what you're getting into.  It is really good though, even if you're not all that into science fiction (like me).  I give it an A-.