Arrival

Arrival (2016)

93% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 262 reviews)

Runtime: 116 minutes

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve

Starring: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker, Michael Stuhlbarg, Tzi Ma

From: Paramount

I got to see this film on the big screen last night at a new theatre in the Tampa area. It was Xscape in Riverview; Xscape is new and only has a few locations across the country. It is one of those luxury theatres with the leather reclining seats, which is such a hot trend this year that even older places have retrofitted them in. Will that get people to the cineplex... I am not so sure about that. Anyhow, Arrival is worth seeing anywhere. I explain why below: 

One reason why I saw Prisoners a few days ago was that the buzz surrounding this was so strong, I had to see this on the big screen and I might as well watch another Denis Villeneuve joint before I do that. After seeing Arrival, I had to think about the movie and what I thought about it, as it wasn't what I was expecting and it definitely had its surprises. A comparison with a certain movie suddenly made more sense to me. Then I realized that this is great and it deserves the high praise that many have given it.

I won't reveal much of the plot besides what the trailers stated: 12 mysterious alien objects land across the world, one of them in the state of Montana. The federal government asks linguist Amy Adams (who has to deal with the ramifications of a big event in her life) and mathematician Jeremy Renner to assist in understanding what the aliens are trying to say. To reveal more would be criminal.

I've never read the short story this was based on (Story of Your Life, by Ted Chiang) so I went into the movie blind and thankfully nothing was spoiled for me. As I watched it I wondered why some things were so cliché; by the end I realized what it was all about, and it was masterfully done as I had no inkling before the reveal. While I wouldn't have minded more of a look into how they were able to crack the code and start communicating with the aliens, I realize that wouldn't have been what most of the mainstream audience would have cared for, so I'll accept what was explained about it. The film still explains pretty well the magic of language and how because it's so complex, that is why it would be so incredibly difficult to try and communicate with an alien species, even one far advanced of humanity.

The movie is always persuasive as it references and deals with similar themes that were brought up in cerebral classics like 2001 or Solaris. While it presents a sadly believable scenario of what would happen in real life if the world had to deal with “First Contact” with a sentient alien species, the message concerning humanity is still a positive one, and yet it is not saccharine or cloying. What helps is that it was nicely directed, the cinematography from Bradford Young looked real nice (even if the color palate wasn't exactly vibrant), and the score from Johann Johannsson was properly ethereal for this material.

But it is the quality cast that helps make this as great as it is. While people like Renner and Forest Whitaker did a real swell job, Adams was outstanding in the lead. As she's the strongest focus of the movie, thank goodness she was able to deliver. I am also thankful that unless the director's other work I have seen, the movie is neither nihilistic nor does it make its female characters one dimensional and/or make them incidental to the story. If you want to see a mainstream science fiction movie that is nonetheless still smart, this is a must-watch.