In the movie The Martian, Matt Damon plays Mark Watney who is left on Mars and presumed dead after a freak storm sends the team of astronauts aborting their mission and heading back to earth. The United States mourns his loss and has a very public funeral. The only problem is Mark is not dead. Well, that’s not the only problem. Mark must find a way to communicate with earth and keep himself alive for several hundred days while he awaits a possible rescue.

Using his ingenuity and a hefty smattering of science, he manages to turn his meager supplies into a life-sustaining crop of plants that he grows inside one of the facility’s large rooms. Meanwhile back on earth, NASA works desperately to find a way to rescue him. It’s a race against time. There are setbacks, successes, and surprisingly several humorous situations. In all, the movie is excellent.

There is cussing, though not a whole bunch, and there are some intense scenes that might be difficult for young children. But, the movie is excellent. The special effects are superb and Matt Damon does a fantastic job.  In all, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable movie that keeps you interested the whole way through.

I strongly recommend you go see The Martian.