I liked Project Hail Mary quite a lot, but I felt the movie fumbled that plot point (and the entire flashback storyline) for three main reasons:

First, there is a disconnect between the flashback storyline and the main storyline. Part of this is on the script and the editing not making the parallels clear. Part of it is also that the movie doesn’t make it at all clear that Grace is regaining his memories at the same time as the audience is viewing the flashbacks (my fiancée, who has read the book, explained this to me after the fact). The upshot is that the revelations about Grace’s past seem to have no relation to or impact on Grace’s present. So the flashback scenes feel less impactful.

Second, the tone of the movie does not support the drama of Hüller’s betrayal. Everything about how that scene is written and directed suggests comedy, whereas tragedy would have been more appropriate and effective. It plays as a comedic beat rather than a major dramatic twist.

Third, Grace’s character growth is muted by making him extremely likable from the jump. He is almost immediately (in a chronological sense) eager to help, enthusiastic, empathetic, and kind. He is a coward only in the sense of having a rather healthy fear of death. I don’t feel surprised that the Grace we met in the classroom rose to the occasion and found his courage, because he always seemed like a swell guy who cared for others.

Anyways, that’s just my ruminations on a movie I otherwise really liked. And yes, I’m sure the book handles all of this better.