At our house, we are currently obsessed with Project Hail Mary! My husband and I went first to the movie together alone as a date. You may not think it constitutes a Date Kinda Movie, but for total space nerds as we are, it definitely counts! 🤓🌌
Ironically, right as I was drafting this article, I saw a funny Instagram with a dude making a joke of “well, I had fun but she’s never going on another date with me again!” because he “made” his girl go with him. Well, at least she learned about centrifugal force and Petrova lines! That is NOT us!
After going to it, we were so impressed, we knew we wanted the kids to see it, too!
Now, quick disclaimer: While we felt that our kids were able to deal with the intensity of the film, it does deal with very heavy subject matter (i.e. you know.. the world ending!! mass destruction!!) and other difficult topics. It doesn’t have any cursing (that I caught) or sexual content beyond the merest of nods.
PARENT PAUSE: However, I do not want to declare that it is necessarily the right movie to see for your family. You have to be the judge of that!
I recommend checking Kids-in-Mind and perhaps even watching it first before you decide whether your kids are mature enough to see it. In my experience, Kids-in-Mind is much more objective and also lays out more specifics than Common Sense Media. CSM also has issues with reviews being either hit or miss. Their volunteers aren’t always consistent in their movie review quality, but I digress…
This film is EMOTIONALLY INTENSE. And I don’t just mean “sad.” I mean the kind of intensity that makes you understand – on a deep spiritual level – what it costs to love someone. What it costs to be brave when you have no choice. What it looks like to give up everything for someone else.
There are moments of real grief in this film. There’s a scene involving a character’s deaths that are not quick or easy. There are moments where you’re watching a person face their own mortality and make peace with it. These are beautiful moments. Meaningful moments. But they’re heavy.
After we told the kids some spoiler-less points about the movie, they were desperate to see it in theatres, too… So, I was dragged to it again after a week or two! I say “dragged…” – I mean, I adore the movie, but…
We went on a Tuesday afternoon and it was $5! Just like what Real Good-Ol’-Days pricing is supposed to be! Can’t complain there!
We may or may not have smuggled in Goldfish and chocolate-covered Craisins…
So, while I was watching it AGAIN, I had an epiphany! Homeschoolers need a unit study inspired by the movie!!
Deep inside my canvas tote bag tunnel, with the phone brightness turned all the way down, I quickly scribbled down my tons of ideas.
I also realized that the same people who directed Lego Movie, Lego Move 2, and Penguins of Madagascar – all of which I adore and have seen multiple times when I generally despise watching things more than once – are behind this movie, too! Phil Lord and Chris Miller! So therefore, I will only watch *their* movies multiple times.
Evidently I’m the demographic and have the sense of humor of a 13-year-old boy.
Sadly, and also joyfully, later that evening, I saw that there already was an official Project Hail Mary unit study! They did this just for homeschoolers! How amazing is that?!!
The Official Project Hail Mary Science Unit Study curriculum was written by Apologia author Sherri Seligson, M.Ed. Sherri Seligson is a marine biologist, homeschool veteran, speaker, and author of several science courses and educational videos. You can find her at Sherriseligson.com
If that isn’t cool, I don’t know what is… I immediately followed all Sherri’s socials, too! What an awesome thing to honor homeschoolers in this way. And, with a specifically Christian company, I might add!
One thing I noticed – while the unit study is great, it is about science!
The movie is so full of symbolism, great cinematography, deep characters, and philosophical dilemmas, it seems to be begging to have another complementary unit study focusing on the creative side!
So, I made one! You can have it for free after subscribing.
My background in graduate level film studies academia worlds gave me extensive tools to explore the beauty of this movie and I’m thrilled to share my work with you!
And, just for fun, I also made 9 unique color sheets featuring scenes from the movie! I made them myself and there are none like them out there…
I mean, you need this download just for the coloring sheets! I’m super proud of how they turned out.
Ahem. Disclaimer #2 in this Blog Post: This is unofficial fan art inspired by Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary. I do not own the rights to these characters; all rights belong to the author and Amazon MGM Studios. I’m not making a profit off of any of this – cough cough – like the bagillions of RedBubble shirts and 3D printed models and jewelry popping up on Etsy!
My recommendation: Read Kids in Mind’s breakdown. It’s detailed enough that you can decide: “Yes, my teenager can handle this” or “This is too intense for my family right now.” And that’s a completely valid decision either way.
If you decide to watch it, after seeing the movie, check out the official sciencey unit study and also my film studies/art based one!
What you’ll get for 100% free:
🎥 Film Studies as an Academic Discipline – Learn cinematography, symbolism, sound design, editing, color theory
🛡️ Character Philosophy – Explore bravery, courage, vulnerability, sacrifice, faith
🖋️ Screenwriting Craft – Understand why filmmakers made different choices than the author
🎵 Music & Sound Analysis – How composer Daniel Pemberton uses sound to build emotion
🖼️ Visual Literacy – Learn to “read” a film like you’d read a novel
🎨 Color and Artistic Expression – Decorate 9 unique color pages with tons of details
✨ Discussion Questions & Answer Keys – For every section
The Philosophy Behind This Unit Study:
When I built this curriculum, I asked: “What can I teach that other curricula aren’t teaching?”
The answer: Film literacy.
Here’s the thing: We teach kids to read books. We teach kids math and science. But almost no curriculum I’ve seen teaches kids to read a film – to understand cinematography as a language, to recognize symbolism, to understand how a composer uses sound to build emotion.
Yet our teenagers live in a visual culture. They watch films, shows, YouTube videos… They understand that they’re feeling something, but they don’t always understand why or how.
This unit study teaches them that! Or is at least a good start!
Remember… NOT TO DO THE UNIT STUDY UNTIL AFTER THE MOVIE.
I repeat: No spoilers are allowed!! Bad Bad Bad! (as Rocky says.)
(And won’t get why until you watch the movie!)
I intend to make more film unit studies in the future. Let me know your suggestions for future studies!
