Other mistake: During the storm scene in the beginning of the movie, the astronauts' faces inside the helmets are brightly lit, meaning there's a light source pointed directly in their face. That's something that would render them mostly blind and unable to see and appears to be nothing but a dramatic effect for the camera. (00:05:00 - 00:08:00)
The Martian (2015)
Ending / spoiler
Directed by: Ridley Scott
Starring: Matt Damon, Jeff Daniels, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara
Watney launches in the MAV at the Ares 4 site, then leaves the capsule to be physically grabbed by Commander Lewis and pulled into the Hermes airlock. Everyone heads back to earth safely.
More mistakes in The Martian
Mark Watney: Fuck you, Mars.
Trivia: When discussing "Operation Elrond", the Director says he wants his codename to be "Glorfindel." This shows he has read the book, as Glorfindel was cut out of the movie and replaced with Arwen.
Question: Exactly how long has Mark Watney been alone on Mars during the course of the movie?
Answer: In the book, he's stranded on sol 6, and leaves on sol 549, making it 543 sols (554 days). In the movie, he's stranded on Sol 18 and leaves on sol 561, making it 542 sols.