Speaker 1: Hello, ladies and gentlemen, Welcome back to an episode Geek First.
Don't know which episode number. This is split into two
parts because this is the non spoilers review for Project Hill. Mary,
I am just the clown prints of podcasts today, tres Now,
I'm joined by.
Speaker 2: Via Tamiba Taylor Field.
Speaker 1: Yes, and as I just mentioned, this is the non
sports we got to see an early screening. So we'll
give you just our overall thoughts, maybe a few little
trinkets here and there, but nothing if you've not read
the book that would spoil any plot points, ending, spoilers, twists,
whatever that may be. And then on the Friday, myself
and Taylor will drop the spoilers episode where we do
a deep dive and get into everything. If this is
your first time listening to gek first, we very much
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It is a very good time. We'd very much appreciate
the sport, so we would thank you very much. And
lots of good stuff dropping this week. But I'm gonna
throw it to the man himself because this guy. I
don't know when this movie was announced or a trailer,
but I just feel like I've been hearing from Taylor
about Project hil Mary for years now. You know he
read the book. He's walking up to random people in
the theater night. You read the book. You read the book,
just you know, give them an alleyway, just trying to
beat them and if they've read the book or not.
But Titfield, you have read the book. You've been very
excited for this movie. So, as I said, non spoilers,
did this deliver for you?
Speaker 2: I'd say did? Uh? Yeah? Was it a perfect ten? No?
But wow?
Speaker 3: The only hang up I have on that regard is yes,
it was two and a half hours. But to phase,
I mean, squeeze like this whole thing in there. You're
gonna rush a few points and it's not that thick
of a book, like, it's a pretty decently quick read.
But I think there are some things that were tricky
to pull off. But they did a very good job
with it. Visually, it's a fantastic movie. I have no
cons at all about the set pieces and the CGI
and everything that they threw in there. It was wonderful.
But definitely there were some moments at the start where
it was quick cut, rapid fire, but they throw comedy
in there, and I think the comedy helps alleviate some
of that where you maybe if you're the ga, you
don't really pick up on how fast it's going.
Speaker 2: And I think that that's a good thing.
Speaker 3: Because, like I said, yes, you've got a lot of
parts that are really glazed over really really quickly, and
so you get the introduction to the characters, then you
get okay, here's a problem, and then it kind of
expedites and kind of goes.
Speaker 2: Quicker and quicker and quicker.
Speaker 3: But then in the middle of the movie you get
a nice few periods of this kind of like slower
paced moments with our characters that really help unravel I
don't want to say the narrative, but kind of show
a lot of development and emotion, and I think that's
one of my favorite things with this is Ryan Gosling
really owns this role and you can really feel those
comedic beats you laugh at. There's nothing that feels like
it was forced humoring here. There's obviously humor that they
threw in here that was in the book. Just I
feel like it's just Ryan Gosling just being so charismatic
and great as a character in here playing Ryland Grace,
and so I think he just does a fantastic job
and yeah, stacked with all the emotional stuff that they
put in here too. He's great. He's really really great.
I was absolutely tearing up at probably just one one
moment in particular that had tears coming down my eyes
because it was all Ryan Gosling just just selling it
all in the face and just the the expressions and
the emotions. So I'll highlight that whenever we do there
spoilers review portion. But yeah, no, I think it was
it was really really good, well rounded off. And there
is an extra bit too that they threw in here
that was not in the book that was actually really
cool to see. It kind of it's a part of
the book, Like, if you've read the book, you'll know
it obviously, but it's just something after completing the book,
you're left to wonder, Okay, what does this look like?
Speaker 2: What is this.
Speaker 3: Kind of scenario here? And so in the movie it's
just like, oh, yeah, here's just here's a scene that
you don't get in the book. It's like, oh, this
is kind of cool. That kind of sheds a little
light on the situation, which I actually really really appreciated
and I liked. And when we got to the very ending,
I was thinking, Okay, how how far are they going
to go with this? I thought for a second they
weren't going to show a couple things, but they they did.
They showed it, and it got really exciting for me.
And I think that's one of my favorite things about this
was when you read the book, you paint the narrative
into your mind and you generate how it looks and everything.
And so I had all of this kind of stuff
painted in my head as to how I see it
and whatnot. And so a lot of people can get
defensive about that because when they watch the movie, they
have their own interpretation, and then when they see how
the movie is interpreted. They get very i'd say retaliatory
about it, and you know, like the Median Territorial about like,
oh no, this is how it is. But it's all
up to interpretation because everyone reads it and everyone takes
it differently and sees a different setting in their minds.
And when I saw this, yes, it was very different.
Not a spoiler when I read the book. I read
the book, it was the ship being very white and
clean and everything on the inside, and even though it
details like yeah, it gets messy and stuff like that.
Watching in the movie and you can see this in
the trailer. It's very dark and it's very it's very
human tech like space shippy. You know, it's very fitting.
But I didn't have any moment in this movie where
I thought, oh this this wasn't like the book, you know,
it's pissing me off or I'm getting upset because it's
not like the book or anything. It was definitely easy
to take in and embrace and just run with this
as as it is. And I mean, yeah, like you said,
I've been pitching Project tail Mary for the past little
bit because my coworker just he mentioned it. He's like, oh,
you like the Martian because it was the same author,
and I haven't read the Martian, but I remember watching
the movie and I loved watching that movie. And I'll
have to see if I get around to uh, his
other book, Artemis. I think it was called but yeah,
this is I.
Speaker 1: Thought I read someone was adapting Artemis recently. I can't remember.
Speaker 2: Really, I'll have to see.
Speaker 3: I don't know if a lot of people were super
hot on that one, but again, it's all up to interpretation.
Speaker 2: But you know, I read, I read the book and I.
Speaker 3: Couldn't put it down. It was just absolutely wonderful. I
fell in love with it. And so I went and
I returned that copy back to its owner because I
was borrowing it, And so I went and bought my
copy the other day because I'm going to reread it
because it's just such a it's such a delight.
Speaker 2: And yeah, when I found out the movie was coming out,
I was over.
Speaker 3: The moon, ecstatic because just the idea that what we're
getting is going to be painted and live action just
got me so giddy and so excited.
Speaker 2: And it's just one of those.
Speaker 3: Stories where Okay, you have this problem and you have
things happening, and again in such a short book, you
get to the point where, oh my god, they're just
throwing this curveball on you. That curveball, I mean, you
see it in the trailers. If you haven't seen the trailers,
think good. I'm not going to say what it is,
but yeah, it's just it's something that I plan to
rewatch and I want to. I don't know if I'll
be able to excuse me, I don't know if I'll
be able to pull my dad around to it, because
I think he's like a one movie every month's kind
of guy that I can kind of rope him in.
So I think I'm gonna take him to Star Wars
mandl Or in a grogu because he seemed to be
kind of he seemed excited about that, like, oh Star Wars,
oh okay, and I think he'd enjoyed that. But this
is one that I might try to rope mint seeing
in the theaters too, because I think this is up
his alley. But it's just you can you can see
in my closing statement here, you can see the level
of optimism that I think the author Andy kind of
ropes into his his narratives, whether it's Matt Damon's character
in the Martian where it's just like, Okay, he's against
all odds, he's left alone on this fucking planet and
he's got limited resources.
Speaker 2: But it's optimistic.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 3: He he's smart, he grows potatoes out of his poop,
and he survives, he gets back to Earth and then here, yeah,
you're dealing with just unspeakable odds and limited limited resources
and problems and trying to figure out the math to
to your solutions and whatnot. And it's just it's full
of optimism. And I just think that they do a
good job at emphasizing that based on Andy's writing, albeit
a bit rushed at times, it still does a really
really good job and you can really feel that in
the theater. Everyone was just they were laughing together at
the moments that we're emotional. People were quiet, and so
I think it was it was a very very good
time on the big screen. I highly recommend it. You
should see it on the big screen because visually, oh, chef's.
Speaker 1: Kiss, he's muted. You need to say he was done.
Speaker 2: You know, I had a cough. I had a cough.
Speaker 1: Oh I see I see. So uh yeah, you're good
on that portion, then good recommend it.
Speaker 2: Obviously I recommend it for sure.
Speaker 1: Okay, so that's not cough, that's a weird cough. Yeah.
So with this movie, obviously, not just Taylor, There's been
a lot of buzz about this right for I think
multitude reasons because not only a long with Taylor, Lots
of people love this book, have said great things. Obviously,
The Martian was a big thing that really Ska directed,
But not only is it from the same writer, it's
also from the same screenwriter, right, Drew Gotter adapted that
as well, so kind of similar aspects there. Phil Lord
and Christopher Miller. I've enjoyed to really liked a bunch
of their stuff, and they have directed it in a
long time, so it's been a big deal. Like the
last thing they directed, let me pull it up here,
it was two episodes of Last Man on Earth, which
I really loved, that Will Forte show, but like Cloude
Chance Meatballs, really enjoyed twenty one Jump Streets. Not one
of my favorite go tos with those two movies, but
tons of people love those movies, right, Lego movie that
was something that kind of changed the game. And then
they've been heavily involved with the Spider Verse stuff right,
big on producing front the past couple of years. But
this is a big deal that they really haven't directed
a movie twenty fourteen and twelve years. They've had their
hands and tons of pots, right, but to direct a
proper movie feature film twelve years or yeah, twelve years,
that's that's pretty crazy considering how much work and how
much norawiety they have in the industry. So there's lots
of stuff going on. And then I feel like there
was a lot of whether it's test screenings or just
people in the industry being like, oh, you gotta look
out for Project kil mayor that's gonna be something special,
that's gonna be something you gotta watch out for for
the summer, spraying, Oscar sees it, all this type of stuff.
So the hype was going right, and then people started
to see the or the critics started to see it,
and then the reviews were there calling it perfect and
an epic masterpiece. All this type of stuff, right, and
then there's some tech like fan screens. I think earlier
a couple of like U and S bubs they showed
in his college. We're just like and I saw he
dropped the five stars, so you know, what. There's lots
of hype going in this movie. So it's one of
those things that you can worry about, the over hype.
And that's the thing where I think, with so much
hype around it, does it meet that hype. I can say, yes,
it does meet that hype. Just had to go for
the journey a little bit there. Yeah, I did worry
about that, though I did worry it was over the hyped.
And I was gonna say, like the first act, not
like I don't even think first act, like maybe the
first see that's the tough thing because it will wait
till spoilers because how the movie actually opens is great.
The how they tell the story is a plot device.
I like, I think that's where today you brought up,
and that's where it wouldn't be a negative for me, sorry,
be a negative for me, wouldn't be on the score
per se. And then I think it worked out eventually.
Was There is a lot of humor in the first
act particularly, and it kind of dribble like dribbles over
into the second one. Not like I don't I'd have
to watch again and see what really hits for me,
because there's a lot of stuff that luckily it wasn't
bad jokes like really not just like oh, just like okay,
a little chuckler like h or just like a dead
pan I'm not laughing as much. I think a certain
type of comedy that goes well with Lord Miller and
Ryan Gossling. But for me, it wasn't like hitting in
on the like every single time at the park where
the theater was having a great time with it. Right,
So I was gonna say where it was. From the
beginning of the second act, I was really in joying
the movie, but I was like, Okay, I don't think
it's reaching those levels of what I've heard about, right,
And that's where I did think, oh, that's gonna be
one of those movies that is overhyped. And I go, okay, yeah,
well made good, but just wasn't the what I would
put it the film in the year. But no, I
think this is an incredible feat. I think this is
a level off for Lord Miller. I'm very excited to
see what they do next. Apparently they're the ones developing Artemis,
so there you go. They have them Lissa as directed
right now, directors right now, but I don't know if
that's confirmed, but anyway, so it soundly they're at least
producing that. But this I think gets them to another level.
There's those projects we see all the time with certain
directors and they're still young guys where it's just you
can tell they've leveled up, evolved, change their game, gone better,
and with everything they've done so far in their career,
maybe not even counting Spider Verse being then they didn't
direct it, but with their filmography, this is hen shoulders
above everything. And yes, there is the fact of it's
based on a book that people really like, so of
course you have that layway right, but that doesn't guarantee
that gets you off, and that that's the plane to
That doesn't mean there's a landing. There are hundreds of
books adaptions, game adaptations, comic adaptions that we've seen that,
oh it was bad because they did X, Y and
Z not correctly right. You still have to have everything
fire and all cylinders, so along with them, obviously, I
think the score is great. Daniel, I think it is
pretder BRender or Bretterer tun I can't remember, but he
has aspired for stuff. He was great and the score
is kind of all over. There's multiple sections in this
film that feel like they're scored by someone else in
a good way. They have a different theme that's going
on or a different vibe. It's very cool, very erratic
score in all the best ways visuals. Like Taylor said,
I definitely say see it on the biggest screen possible.
I think it is just such a feat I think
there's in a day and age where we talk about
all time where visual effects were created and then whether
it was they went overboard or productions get rushed. We
see so many visual efects nowaday is that they look
so bad we go you know what, I wish this
was practical because these visual efects are just not doing it.
That's not in here at all. Like as far as
like that complaint, it is a stunning movie. It looks gorgeous,
looks very much like I'd say a good mix of
The Martian Interstellar, which are two movies that I'd put
are the tippy top for space, like looking really good
and just looking believable. So whether it's the ship, the landscape,
the visuals, the CGI, it all lives in breeze. There's
not a second to get taken out of the venture. Obviously,
there's a big thing Taye alluded to that if you
don't see the trairs, imagine everyone's seen it. And I
get why they show that because in the movie, the
way they have this paste out, oh your last day
in the non spoilers are in the spoilers. To me,
it makes sense why they did lead with that, and
you obviously want to have some sort of selling point
for said movie. That's something that works extremely well. And
that's another thing that could no pun in space intended
or no space pun intended, but that could creater the
fucking movie big time. If that thing doesn't work, it
doesn't all So all these things and everyone else great acting,
great action, writing, whatnot. So all these things are great.
And then Phil Lord Miller, you know Phil Lord, Chris Miller,
not one name they I'd put at the tippy top
of You know, they're landing this plane, but there's no
way they could land this plane without Ryan Gosling. And
especially there are is long long portions and very long
portions considering let's just say Ryan Gossling is having to
act a certain way with certain situations. It's a thing
where he is primarily alone in this movie. I don't
know the screen time I'm gonna say sixty five percent.
It might be more than that. I think it could be.
But there is a lot of stuff on Earth before
he goes to space. You've seen the entrance where they're
explaining him, and Sandra Huler is and there, who's great
as well. But there is Kopi's amount of times where
he is just alone and he's just playing off things.
I'm sure they have a set form, and they even
said they didn't use any green screen shots, but there's
some stuff where you know, he's acting just completely alone
against something a tennis ball, some sort of screen. I
look over here to this, there's so much stuff he
has to do by himself. Is it is incredible, And
I think other than like the dark and dreary, i'd
say like place beyond the mines, Blade Runner and Drive.
I feel like that's the only thing he doesn't show here.
The rest of the stuff in his repertoire he shows
off in tenfold. He comes out, he's charming, he has
like a slight not even romance, but just he gets
show some of those you know, caris back flirting, vibes,
very comedical. Like he said, not everything worked for me.
I think there was I would scale back on the
comedy a little bit, but for the theater, it pretty
much all worked for me. But it is. That's what
I say with him and the movie, there's tons of
comedy and tons of laughs, and I get it because
it's a stressful situation, right erst dying. So it's a
good that his character is constantly going highs and lows, right,
So it's good to break down that character and they
establish it doesn't really feel like it is just like
oh jokes with the sack of jokes. That is that
type of character, right, Maybe it's a character that in
real life would kind of annoy me. And they even
do that at times to show like, yeah, maybe he's
not the most like enjoy to be around sometimes, right.
But what I will give it credit for is I
think at multiple times in the movie it lays out
and it gets very serious, whether it's drama or emotion,
and I think that's good. There's times, which we've talked
about many franchises do this, but the MSU is the
biggest culprit of it right now, where there's some big
drama going on, but they gotta throw a fucking joke
in there, right, And that's where I'll give it where
I think they go hard on the humor, but I
think they go hard on the right part. So that's why,
Actually the humor doesn't affect my score because not all
the jokes I really jived with. But there wasn't moments
where I'd say, there's a third act, there's another time.
There's multiple times, but to them in particular, where you
could easily throw a joke in there with this character
who's known to kind of joke around and uses as
a crutch, you could throw it in there, and they don't.
They let them out play. And yeah, I actually had
one moment where I was tearing up. I don't think
it's the same as Taylor. I don't know if anyone
else in the theater. And happens in the first act.
It was tremendous acting. And yet Gossling, I think obviously
we have lots way to go. I definitely think it's
gonnaet animated for Best Picture. I think Gossling, he's definitely
my front runner run to Oscar. There's tons of times
still to go, but we just end the Oscars in
Golden Kis last week. This is like a front runner
of many categories. Gossling is that definitely. I can't know
if I can say it's his best because I have
to think about that, because this guy has a great career,
one of the best working actors. But this is definitely
I would say like top three up there. Okay, I'll
go top five to be safe, but I'm pretty calm
from the top three. I think Gosling is is a
force in this movie because of just what he has
to do and same thing like that other element. If
Gossling doesn't work to this degree, the movie would just
shatter apart. And sure, there's lots of great actors there
that can do a good performance, but I don't think
every actor could do exactly what he could. Hear, Like,
look at Ian McKeown when he had to act against
fucking cgi tennis balls and he, you know, was just
like this fucking sucks man. He did the best he can.
But Gossling just thrived here. It was There's just a
lot of unbelievable things in this movie that he makes
you believe. And I think Gossling deserves a huge amount
of praise. Obviously, crew everything, the directors probably mostly right
because they put this together. They really you know, fly
the plane, but gossom man like Lord and Miller were
flying the plane, but Ryan Goslin had the directions, you know.
Or maybe it's the other way around that might be
the better analogy. But those three together, I think are
really the driving forces this And uh yeah, no, And
because this is a non sports usually we wait. But
I don't know what Taylor's going, so I was kind
of surprised. But I'd be dropping the big old ten
out of ten on this one. So I don't have
That's what I didn't say. I didn't read the book.
I don't have any of that. Do I think it's
like a perfect movie. No, But as I've said before,
my score is always a combination of my enjoyment and critiques.
I have some critiques and some little grim of there,
but lots of times when the highs are highs, you know, Sinners,
Big weekend Oscars, I have issues with that movie. But
when the highs get so high, that's where it gets
you to a certain level where Okay, it kind of
gnulls out some of that stuff that maybe I didn't
think was perfect. But an amazing journey, amazing great journey
with his character, multiple great emotional moments that make you
and like there alluded to as far as the hope
and the optimism, I think that has Martian has that
for sure, but this is like that double and lots
of times I love, Like I've said this for I
love movies where people are depressed. I love long, sad movies.
But at the same time, I do love the movies that,
as Rob Williams says in Goodwill Hunting, like that's the
good stuff right there, and that's that's what this has.
So uh yeah, definitely go see it. By Taylor what
would what would be your score?
Speaker 3: He made some really good points there. I want to
give it that full like, I want to give.
Speaker 2: It that full ten.
Speaker 3: But at the end of the day, I just think,
oh it was I don't like how they rushed at
the beginning, and I felt like the end was definitely
rushed too, So I don't.
Speaker 1: Really I thought the dand was not slow, but like
took its time quite a bit.
Speaker 2: I don't feel like it took its time. I feel
like like.
Speaker 3: There there was a part where it just got really expedited,
and I think, oh, that's just I don't know, and
they cut a few extra things off. I should say
two from from the end, maybe one notable thing that
I was looking for, but another thing that they could
have really sold an emotional moment, but they didn't go
that route. But like all that being said, I'd still
go with personal biased. I go a nine point five.
I just I'm not going to get the full ten
because I think that the start and the end had
some rushed moments, whereas the middle was slower, and they
had a lot more stuff that was just juicier and whatnot.
And yet, like you, like you said, the way they
tell the story, that's exactly like how it is in
the book, and I'm very happy that they adhered to that.
Speaker 2: I think that was that was great.
Speaker 1: So yeah, well there you go. It's in there. Now
to Tras likes project Killimary more than Taylor.
Speaker 2: You know, he hates something shirt. Now you gotta read
the book.
Speaker 1: Maybe one day, but no, no rush right now. Not
a book guy, you know, No, I just don't have
time burb books. That's the thing. I'm always backlogged, I said,
aweste is next, I'm like a one book of guys,
one book a year type of guy. There's so much
stuff I'm already you should see my backlog on com books,
so that's our non Spoils So let us know if
you've seen it, how you enjoyed it, and if not,
you wait till Friday, and obviously patron Discord asks us
any questions, and then we'll be back with our Spoils
review and it won't be boring