Topic: 20th Century Fox "The Martian" (Ridley Scott film)
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 05-23-2014 12:23 PM
Hollywood Reporter broke the news that Ridley Scott is in negotiations to direct Matt Damon in the feature film adaptation of "The Martian," being made by 20th Century Fox.
According to the Herald Sun, Scott is now in Sydney, Australia, looking for suitable locations that might resemble a Mars landscape.
p51 Member
Posts: 1642 From: Olympia, WA Registered: Sep 2011
posted 05-23-2014 02:17 PM
Wow. I could actually see Matt Damon in that role. And I think Ridley Scott would do a great job, if he stays true to the book!
"Last Days on Mars" used the country of Jordan as a location, and it looked decent.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 10-21-2014 08:54 AM
Casting has progressed beyond Matt Damon as "Mark Watney" and now includes Jessica Chastain, Jeff Daniels, Kate Mara, Michael Pena, Kristen Wiig and Sean Bean.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 05-24-2015 06:06 PM
Empire, Entertainment Weekly and People magazines have provided the first look at Matt Damon (and Kristen Wiig) in "The Martian."
"The Martian" will be released on Nov. 25, 2015.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 05-24-2015 06:06 PM
Teacher in space Member
Posts: 71 From: Registered: Sep 2013
posted 05-25-2015 01:02 PM
I am a bit disappointed that they show his face too much. I would rather see he wearing golden visor outside. Matt would be good enough actor to mimic feelings with body language.
Also lights inside helmets... why?
cspg Member
Posts: 6210 From: Geneva, Switzerland Registered: May 2006
posted 05-25-2015 04:21 PM
An orange suit on a red planet? And the suit looks a lot like Luke Skywalker's (see the cover of the book, Star Wars Storyboards: The Original Trilogy, Abrams, 2014).
capoetc Member
Posts: 2169 From: McKinney TX (USA) Registered: Aug 2005
posted 05-25-2015 10:08 PM
I think the pics look pretty good, and I remain hopeful that Ridley Scott just ripped the pages out of the book and stuffed them in the camera.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 05-26-2015 06:43 AM
Another photo, this one showing the crew of the Ares 3:
stsmithva Member
Posts: 1933 From: Fairfax, VA, USA Registered: Feb 2007
posted 05-26-2015 05:24 PM
I really liked the book (devoured it during a busy two days) and I'll probably be interested in the movie... but it would have been really cool if Discovery or the Science Channel somehow had the money to do a good-quality miniseries adaptation. If you've read the book, you can imagine how much they're going to have to cut to make a two-hour movie.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 06-07-2015 08:53 AM
ARES:live video release
Ares 3: Farewell
Astronaut Mark Watney introduces the Ares 3 crew before their mission launch.
randy Member
Posts: 2176 From: West Jordan, Utah USA Registered: Dec 1999
posted 06-07-2015 10:28 AM
If the rest of the movie is anything like this trailer, it should be pretty good.
Ronpur Member
Posts: 1211 From: Brandon, Fl Registered: May 2012
posted 06-07-2015 05:48 PM
I love this! And I want that patch. As well as a model of Hermes.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 06-08-2015 09:36 AM
Here's the official trailer. (A word of advice though, if you haven't yet read the book, you may not want to watch this until after you do.)
p51 Member
Posts: 1642 From: Olympia, WA Registered: Sep 2011
posted 06-08-2015 12:13 PM
I see his flight suit has USAF astronaut wings. That's not the vibe I got from the book, I would have had the character pegged as a Ph.D. astronaut type, not a military one.
Like many of you, I'm really looking forward to this as I loved the book.
Can't wait to hear Damon yell, "JUST LIKE IRON MAN!" which makes sense if you've read it...
NavySpaceFan Member
Posts: 655 From: Norfolk, VA Registered: May 2007
posted 06-09-2015 04:21 AM
quote:Originally posted by p51: I see his flight suit has USAF astronaut wings.
I took a close look at those wings, and they look more like silver MS wings vice USAF astronaut wings.
Ronpur Member
Posts: 1211 From: Brandon, Fl Registered: May 2012
posted 06-09-2015 09:48 AM
He did wear an other crew members clothes and EVA suit in the book, right? Maybe that is what you saw.
p51 Member
Posts: 1642 From: Olympia, WA Registered: Sep 2011
posted 06-09-2015 12:05 PM
quote:Originally posted by NavySpaceFan: I took a close look at those wings, and they look more like silver MS wings vice USAF astronaut wings.
Watch the first video in this thread, the 'farewell message one' at about 0:18. Make the screen large. That's VERY clearly USAF astronaut wings he's wearing.
onesmallstep Member
Posts: 1310 From: Staten Island, New York USA Registered: Nov 2007
posted 06-09-2015 01:34 PM
In all the NASA photos of civilian shuttle astronauts (not including retired military), their astronaut wings are silver with the astronaut logo inside a circle while an Ascan; then becoming gold when they make their first flight.
But since this is science fiction, maybe the USAF allowed the movie NASA to borrow their pilot wings. Sweet revenge for all those Navy swabs who dominate the astronaut corps. Go blue!
Ronpur Member
Posts: 1211 From: Brandon, Fl Registered: May 2012
posted 06-11-2015 02:50 PM
The release date has been moved up to October 2!
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-04-2015 08:31 AM
ARES: live video release
Ares 3: The Right Stuff
NASA offers a declassified look at the psychological testing involved in preparing the ARES 3 crew for their journey to Mars.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-19-2015 07:40 PM
New trailer released today:
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-27-2015 10:30 AM
Neil deGrasse Tyson's StarTalk presents the ARES mission:
Gilbert Member
Posts: 1328 From: Carrollton, GA USA Registered: Jan 2003
posted 08-27-2015 06:43 PM
That is so COOL! I'm gonna make all the folks I drag to the movie with me watch this prior to seeing the film.
Ronpur Member
Posts: 1211 From: Brandon, Fl Registered: May 2012
posted 08-27-2015 09:15 PM
Wow! That is awesome!
Sam Que Member
Posts: 180 From: Chicago, IL, United States Registered: Feb 2009
posted 08-28-2015 12:59 PM
With all the positive comments, just downloaded the Kindle version.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-04-2015 02:59 AM
collectSPACE (by Francis French and Robert Pearlman)
In the history of Hollywood envisioning the future of space exploration, few, if any movies have come as close to NASA's own goals at the time of their release as does "The Martian."
At a recent media event that previewed NASA's "Journey to Mars" and the Ridley Scott film opening in theaters on Oct. 2, the director of the U.S. space agency's planetary science division integrated images from the movie into his talk about NASA's real missions to the Red Planet, subtly blurring the line between reality and imagination.
"As a filmmaker, [Scott] wanted to make ["The Martian"] realistic, and I really appreciated pulling together teams of people and answering the questions that he asked," stated NASA's Jim Green while describing his interaction with the movie's director. "And the more that happened, the more I got excited about it."
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-05-2015 07:06 AM
collectSPACE (by Francis French)
It's fascinating to watch a bunch of movie industry-types and the engineering folks of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory mingle. NASA is eagerly promoting its efforts to look for evidence of life on Mars: but if it needed to look for how people from very different worlds interacted, the discussions between entertainment industry bloggers and JPL engineers would be a great place to start. The engineers, many in stonewashed jeans and white sneakers with the ubiquitous polo shirt and lanyard that seem to be the JPL uniform, are ready to give it their best shot.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-09-2015 10:28 AM
The first marketing tie-in with "The Martian" was rolled out today with Under Armour performance apparel:
Under Armour is now offering six different t-shirts with Ares 3 mission logos and logotypes.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-11-2015 08:20 PM
Tonight was the world premiere of "The Martian" at the Toronto International Film Festival.
In addition to the cast and author Andy Weir, NASA astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson and NASA planetary science director Jim Green walked the red carpet.
KSCartist Member
Posts: 2896 From: Titusville, FL USA Registered: Feb 2005
posted 09-12-2015 01:05 PM
Did you go to the premiere as well Robert?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-12-2015 01:18 PM
I did not. I will however, get a chance to see the film and interview Sebastian Stan ("Chris Beck") and Mackenzie Davis ("Mindy Park") when they visit Johnson Space Center this week.
LM-12 Member
Posts: 3207 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: Oct 2010
posted 09-13-2015 08:54 AM
Looks like an interesting movie, but was the "in-your-face" comment by the main character really necessary?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-13-2015 10:15 AM
It is a line from the book, and in the context it is used, it is appropriate for Mark Watney's character to say.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
NASA rolled out the red carpet for two 'red planet' movie actors on Tuesday (Sept. 15), sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the space agency's real journey to Mars with the stars from "The Martian."
Sebastian Stan and Mackenzie Davis visited the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston, where the actors met with their characters' real-life counterparts, took a spin in a prototype rover and spoke with the astronauts aboard the International Space Station.
The day was capped by a preview screening of the Ridley Scott-directed film, which opens in theaters on Oct. 2.
"I think you can go back and tell the other cast members that you got closer to Mars than any of them have done," said Ellen Ochoa, a shuttle-era astronaut and the director of the Johnson Space Center, referencing Stan and Davis' visit and a Martian meteorite brought out for display.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 09-16-2015 01:55 PM
I saw "The Martian" last night as part of a NASA screening coinciding with the visit to Johnson Space Center by the cast members.
Suffice to say, I came out of the theater wanting to see it again.
I don't want to go into many details, as I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but the film remains fairly loyal to Andy Weir's book, omitting a few scenes (likely for length) and adding one significant new one.
As someone asked me on Facebook, on a scale of 1 to 10, where "Apollo 13" is a 10, I would rank "The Martian" a solid 8. Maybe an 8.5.
That said, if I hadn't read the book and I wasn't a self-professed space geek, I could easily see giving it a 10. The 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes is well deserved.
p51 Member
Posts: 1642 From: Olympia, WA Registered: Sep 2011
posted 09-16-2015 02:14 PM
Thanks for the opinion!
It's not like I wasn't already going to see it, but it's good to hear what a space fan like the rest of us thought of it.
A pal of mine at JSC caught a preview and he said it's the best representation of space flight and NASA overall in fiction that he's ever seen (and he said he's seen them all).
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 05-23-2014 12:23 PM
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