This week, Project Hail Mary is out in theaters, but there’s an even better sci-fi movie waiting for you at home.
There are some thematic similarities between Project Hail Mary and Interstellar, the science fiction masterpiece by Christopher Nolan.
It’s too soon to say how Project Hail Mary will be received in a decade’s time, but Interstellar has held up very well since its release in 2014.
Now, Watch With Us is sharing the reasons why you should watch Interstellar this weekend instead of Project Hail Mary.
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Christopher Nolan’s Vision of Space Is Breathtaking
Project Hail Mary and Interstellar both revolve around a mission to the stars that may ultimately determine the fate of humanity. Each of the two films tackles that story a little differently, but in terms of pure visual spectacle, Interstellar may be in a league of its own. Nolan’s films are usually beautiful to look at, but this movie is in a league of its own.
One of the reasons why Interstellar has held up so well is that Nolan wasn’t solely reliant on CGI to create the illusion of space. Instead, the filmmaker used a combination of practical effects, large-scale ship models and IMAX cameras to recapture the look and feel of actual space footage from NASA documentaries. This may be the closest thing to experiencing space travel without being an astronaut.
‘Interstellar’ Is Packed With Stars
Nolan’s films often draw some of the top names in Hollywood, so it wasn’t too shocking to see Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine, John Lithgow and Casey Affleck with prominent roles in the film. The real surprise is that Timothée Chalamet and Mackenzie Foy were cast before their careers really took off. Chalamet has since emerged as a perennial Best Actor contender. As for Foy, her career has been quiet for the past few years, but she showed a lot of talent here as young Murphy “Murph” Cooper.
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As seen in the clip above, Matt Damon has an extended cameo late in the story that may make you think of his other big sci-fi film, The Martian. That movie was based on the book by Andy Weir, who went on to write Project Hail Mary. As McConaughey once said in True Detective, “time is a flat circle.” Everything is connected if you look closely enough.
The Film Is Ultimately a Father and Daughter Story
For all of incredible spectacle on-screen and the race to save humanity, Interstellar‘s best asset is that it comes down to a father, Joseph “Coop” Cooper (McConaughey), who has to leave his children, Murphy “Murph” Cooper (Foy) and Tom Cooper (Chalamet), behind on Earth so he can find a new home world for humanity. There are some powerful and emotional moments when Coop realizes that he’s missed almost their entire lives.
Chastain takes over the role of Murph in her adult years, and she winds up carrying a lot of the film on her back as well. While Coop is on his mission for Earth, Murph has to figure out how to safely evacuate everyone on Earth before the planet dies. Their stories are intricately linked across decades of time, until Nolan reveals how the past and future intersect late in the film.
If you’ve never seen Interstellar, we’ll refrain from sharing any additional spoilers. But this is the movie to watch if you’re thinking of seeing Project Hail Mary.
Interstellar is streaming on Paramount+.
