Executed with incredible craft and style and a whole lot of heart, “Project Hail Mary” verges on the edge of being too saccharinely sweet.

Nevertheless, so began a period of trial and error as those responsible for bringing Rocky to life — concept artists, the visual effects team, and a group of puppeteers from Creature Shop, among others — worked towards coming up with a final look that most would be happy with.

Ryan Gosling anchors Project Hail Mary, a visually striking, character-focused sci-fi about an unlikely alien friendship that shines despite some rushed late-film science.