Awards season is in full swing as Hollywood's biggest studios begin rolling out their big Oscar contenders. One such film is Ridley Scott's new science fiction epic The Martian, starring Matt Damon as an astronaut stranded on the planet Mars after a mission gone wrong. The synopsis reads:

During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. 

The plot sounds a bit like the plight of Damon's character in director Christopher Nolan's own space-faring epic Interstellar. Though judging from the source material, The Martian looks to be even more grounded in real world science and physics that that film was.

The film is an adaptation of Andy Weir's hit novel of the same name, which got it's start as a free e-book. Critics have praised the book for its impeccable attention to scientific detail.

Is the film adaptation as successful? Let's have a look.

Currently, based on 39 tallied reviews, it sits at an outstanding 97% fresh rating on review aggregator, rotten tomatoes.

The New York Post's Lou Lumenick calls the film, 'the best thing both Matt Damon and Ridley Scott have done in years.'

Variety's Peter Debruge thinks the film's realistic portrayal of space travel and astrophysics will help rekindles man's interest in voyaging the stars. He writes:

"The Martian" should do far more than just make Fox a ton of money; it could conceivably rekindle interest in the space program and inspire a new generation of future astronauts.

The Martian opens in US theatres on October 2, 2015.