# The Martian film - seen it thread. Unboxed spoilers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 30, 2015, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095 "2015-09-30T23:46:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/41 "2015-10-03T19:03:43Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Okay, scratch that. He _did_ use everyone’s shit, because now I remember he was complaining about the particular stinkiness of Johanssen’s output. That’s when he was wearing the nose stoppers. You’re right. I forgot that bit. Still, given that he was on an airless environment, couldn’t he have mixed the shit without needing to breathe it? (Although that would require finding a heated but evacuated part of the habitat.) ---
**Author:** ![Ramira](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ramira/32/344_2.png) [@Ramira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ramira)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/42 "2015-10-03T19:17:10Z")
Perhaps it is needed to reflect on the mechanics of heat and vacuum. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/43 "2015-10-03T19:18:52Z")
Sorry. Forgot about that bit. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/44 "2015-10-03T19:40:46Z")
> [@carlotta](#): > > Surely it doesn’t make sense that the one astronaut in charge of doing things on the outside of the spaceship doesn’t use a tether but just blithely uses handrails and casual floats from one part to another. Remember that earlier they talked about how they had taken all of the tethers that they had and joined them into one long one so they could get the maximum distance for catching Watney. They just weren’t expecting to also have to have someone else go set a bomb. ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/45 "2015-10-03T20:03:42Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Multiple mentions were made of an oxygenator, which is a device that makes oxygen from carbon dioxide. As long as that kept working, he’d never run out of oxygen. > > Does anyone know if that’s a real device or just science fiction? Pretty sure it’s real. It’s been a while since I read the book, but I suspect that it’s a device that just splits carbon dioxide into oxygen and carbon monoxide. Might use hydrogen and/or a catalyst to facilitate the reaction - the hydrogen would pull the oxygen off, giving water that you then split with electrolysis to get the oxygen and hydrogen back. There’s a similar system already in place on the ISS, although that one turns carbon dioxide and hydrogen into water and methane, and the methane is then just dumped overboard so there’s a constant loss of hydrogen. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/46 "2015-10-03T20:24:51Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Multiple mentions were made of an oxygenator, which is a device that makes oxygen from carbon dioxide. As long as that kept working, he’d never run out of oxygen. > > Does anyone know if that’s a real device or just science fiction? The next Mars rover in 2020 will have one for testing. It’s called MOXIE and is essentially a reverse fuel cell. There’s a Scientic American article about it. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/47 "2015-10-03T21:49:34Z")
The one thing that I thought they got actually WRONG about the science was the mission coming back early. In reality, you don’t really have options on your launch window for interplanetary missions. An early abort-to-orbit like they showed would have resulted in the crew waiting in Mars orbit aboard the ship for their window, and then coming back at the same time that they were planning on anyway. Was that addressed in the book? ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/48 "2015-10-03T22:03:11Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Absolutely stupid yet funny thing heard while leaving the cinema… “how did Sean Bean survive” I was hoping to see his character hit by a bus or something during the credits… ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/49 "2015-10-03T22:15:30Z")
I enjoyed it quite bit. I was a little surprised they cut out the entire trip to the other Lander. The cliff sequence and roll over seemed written for the screen. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2015, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/50 "2015-10-03T22:24:12Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > The one thing that I thought they got actually WRONG about the science was the mission coming back early. In reality, you don’t really have options on your launch window for interplanetary missions. An early abort-to-orbit like they showed would have resulted in the crew waiting in Mars orbit aboard the ship for their window, and then coming back at the same time that they were planning on anyway. Was that addressed in the book? Well, in the book - and not mentioned in the movie - is the fact that the Hermes uses a continual-thrust ion drive. Launch windows are more important when there’s a burn and wait sort of orbit. But if Hermes could continually thrust then it becomes less important. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/51 "2015-10-04T00:02:46Z")
I went in already highly inclined to love it, and did. Not gonna pick apart plot points, just gonna revel in it. Thanks, Andy! Facebook-feed comment: _Saving Private Ryan, Interstellar_, now _The Martian_. The film industry has worked very hard to keep bringing Matt Damon home. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/52 "2015-10-04T00:59:34Z")
> [@AndrewL](#): > > Pretty sure it’s real. It’s been a while since I read the book, but I suspect that it’s a device that just splits carbon dioxide into oxygen and carbon monoxide. Might use hydrogen and/or a catalyst to facilitate the reaction - the hydrogen would pull the oxygen off, giving water that you then split with electrolysis to get the oxygen and hydrogen back. There’s a similar system already in place on the ISS, although that one turns carbon dioxide and hydrogen into water and methane, and the methane is then just dumped overboard so there’s a constant loss of hydrogen. A fuel cell makes water. One could use current from a solar cell to make hydrogen and oxygen form water. We saw it this afternoon. Outstanding. I did miss, NASA: “you’re a dick.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/53 "2015-10-04T02:49:33Z")
Just saw it this evening, loved it. The book was a great read, the movie was slightly different, but the spirit of the book was still there. Andy Weir did cooperate on the screenplay. After being disappointed for a few minutes by not hearing the opening line of the book at the start of the movie, it seemed that it was a good choice to tell the story in a more chronological fashion. But I did keep waiting for the ‘‘I’m pretty much fucked’’ The last bit of the film, back on earth, wasn’t really necessary, but it didn’t detract from an outstanding movie experience. BTW, I get the feeling that we’re going to see more of that Donald Glover guy (the one who played Rich Purnell), that guy has presence! ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/54 "2015-10-04T03:40:07Z")
I saw it this afternoon and really loved it. I even felt compelled to microwave a potato for dinner. One funny thing: earlier today I was reading a much more conservative message board, and someone said that \*The Martian \*was a terrible movie, and that she and her husband had walked out. After several people pointed out that it got great reviews and asked what she didn’t like about it, it turned out that she was upset that in the movie NASA receives help from China even though “we know they wouldn’t help us out or care about the situation.” Apparently that made the movie completely unrealistic. :smack: For my part, at one point during the movie, I started wondering if it was based on a true story. That’s how much I was caught up in the story. Between this movie and _Everest_, I am completely reversing any objection I once had to 3D. ---
**Author:** ![JcWoman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jcwoman/32/2889_2.png) [@JcWoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JcWoman)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/55 "2015-10-04T11:57:42Z")
> [@MoodIndigo1](#): > > The last bit of the film, back on earth, wasn’t really necessary, but it didn’t detract from an outstanding movie experience. BTW, I get the feeling that we’re going to see more of that Donald Glover guy (the one who played Rich Purnell), that guy has presence! Saw the movie yesterday and loved it. I can’t tell if your comment about Donald glover is naive or sarcastic. He’s prominent in the TV show Community and hysterically funny. He’s a brilliant actor and comedian. Check it out if you haven’t. I also continue to love Matt Damon’s work. He’s able to deftly blend drama and comedy and also play a sarcastic character while still making the character sympathetic. I have never read the book but immediate figured that a sol was basically a day - one day/night cycle. Right? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/56 "2015-10-04T13:03:12Z")
> [@JcWoman](#): > > Saw the movie yesterday and loved it. I can’t tell if your comment about Donald glover is naive or sarcastic. He’s prominent in the TV show Community and hysterically funny. He’s a brilliant actor and comedian. Check it out if you haven’t. > > I also continue to love Matt Damon’s work. He’s able to deftly blend drama and comedy and also play a sarcastic character while still making the character sympathetic. > > I have never read the book but immediate figured that a sol was basically a day - one day/night cycle. Right? Yes, that’s a sol (I have read the book but not seen the movie; can’t wait!). And Glover is a rapper, too, under the name **Childish Gambino**. What’s funny is that I have been taking my son to university campuses because it is application time for him. On the tours,they all went out of their way to name the cool music acts that have appeared there and at least 5 to 7 mentioned Childish Gambino. So yeah, he is considered cool by the young folk 😉 ETA: I Googled the origin of “…is a steeley-eyed missile man.” Cool story about a flight engineer who helped Apollo 12 recover from a lightning strike: [John Aaron - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Aaron) ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/57 "2015-10-04T13:28:46Z")
> [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > One funny thing: earlier today I was reading a much more conservative message board, and someone said that \*The Martian \*was a terrible movie, and that she and her husband had walked out. After several people pointed out that it got great reviews and asked what she didn’t like about it, it turned out that she was upset that in the movie NASA receives help from China even though “we know they wouldn’t help us out or care about the situation.” Apparently that made the movie completely unrealistic. :smack: [In the real world, the objection to space-program cooperation comes from the US.](http://www.anser.org/babrief-us-china-space-coop) ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/58 "2015-10-04T13:36:04Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > ETA: I Googled the origin of “…is a steeley-eyed missile man.” Cool story about a flight engineer who helped Apollo 12 recover from a lightning strike: [John Aaron - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Aaron) Holy crap, that’s awesome. John Aaron should be elected President of Space. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/59 "2015-10-04T13:46:18Z")
> [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > she was upset that in the movie NASA receives help from China even though “we know they wouldn’t help us out or care about the situation.” It was more obvious in the novel that the Chinese got one of their astronauts on the next Mars mission. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2015, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095/60 "2015-10-04T15:22:19Z")
The movie also showed a Chinese astronaut on the Ares 5 mission. But you had to be paying attention. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-martian-film-seen-it-thread-unboxed-spoilers/733095.md?page=4)