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The author Andy Weir’s futuristic story The Martian Tale was an immediate hit following its publication during 2014, even with its acclaim, it made for a surprising selection to become a major cinematic release. Initially released independently, the book leans strongly on the internal monologue of astrobotanist and mechanical engineer protagonist Mark Watney detailing with great care on his strategies to stay alive after being stranded upon the Martian surface through cultivating potatoes and salvaging components from vintage space agency rovers. The novel features little conversation and heavy on explanations regarding scientific processes.

Yet director Ridley Scott and scribe Drew Goddard produced a mesmerizing feature titled The Martian, that debuted a decade back back in early October 2015. Matt Damon excellently portrays why Watney is such an absorbing lead character: the way his can-do attitude combined with nerdy wit banish the existential dread facing circumstances where his likelihood for making it are minimal. Much as the original story, the film presents highly realistic sci-fi, packed with humor and thrills. However, the filmmakers did have to make a few compromises for the screen, spending more time focused on the space agency staff attempting to rescue Watney, and adding more action to the climax. And those changes came at the expense of a couple of the top parts contained in the initial literary work.

A Story About Calorie Counting

The Martian revolves around food management. The protagonist constantly calculates his dietary needs he needs to live, while NASA tries to figure out how to get him more. After an incident ruins the astronaut’s spud garden and a quickly prepared Mars-directed relief bundle detonates following liftoff, Watney’s only hope becomes a retrieval effort from his team who accidentally left him behind.

The novel and film each emphasize that this approach, requiring the crew of the Ares III using Earth’s gravity for acceleration and returning to Mars for the rescue, is extremely risky. However, Weir draws a more direct parallel among the threats confronting every crew member.

The Dark Emergency Measure

The vessel must intercept its dedicated provision craft to secure sufficient nourishment and hydration to complete the round trip to the red planet. Should that not work, the team possesses a grim alternative strategy: all members aside from the tech expert Beth Johanssen (portrayed by Kate Mara on screen) would kill themselves. The lone survivor, Beth, due to her youth and petite size, would eat her crewmates to survive. When the Ares III does get the supplies, the thankful team lightheartedly remarks on the order in which Beth would have dined on them. This represents rather dark comedy, so the reasoning for its exclusion is apparent, however, I value the plot’s precision by having all personas struggle against the brutal facts of off-world life. This also highlights their readiness to sacrifice themselves, beyond just aiding Watney.

The Suspenseful Loss of Contact

The film adaptation also cuts the most suspenseful part of The Martian in favor of spending more time to the rescue operation aspects occurring in orbit. In the book, Watney loses his means to talk to the space agency, stranding him without support through the concluding segment of the plot. Watney then has to navigate to a vehicle intended for a future Mars mission. That trip is put in jeopardy due to a sand tempest that will stop his rover’s solar cells from charging and finally immobilize him. The space agency detects the incoming tempest, but can’t warn him. They are kept in tense expectation to observe whether Watney will realize what’s happening and adjust his plans, or if every attempt they made to rescue him will prove pointless.

Similarly, the exclusion of this portion is logical from the cinematic version. Ongoing dialogue between Watney and other characters increases the picture’s liveliness. However, I still somewhat desire Goddard and Scott had been a bit gutsier and trusted Damon to maintain segments where he battles the environment solo, with the supporting cast placed in the same role as the audience: powerlessly wishing for success.

Looking Ahead to Future Adaptations

Goddard is returning to Weir’s work with an adaptation of his 2021 novel Project Hail Mary Tale, scheduled for 2026 under the direction of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Like The Martian, the book focuses on an isolated astronaut employing his expertise and creativity to stay alive. Ryan Gosling is set to take on a similar character to Damon’s: a screen star engaging enough to hold down lots of solo scenes while executing Weir’s distinctive wit. Hopefully, that film will match the quality of The Martian, but in any case, perusing the original book is highly recommended to discover what gets lost in adaptation.