Arrival is a science fiction movie that was released on Nov. 11 and tracks the progress of linguist Louise Banks (Amy Adams) and her team as they decode and learn the language of aliens that land on Earth, called Heptapods. Banks and her team are forced to solve the mystery of their language fast before global war breaks out after China makes plans to use military force on the alien spaceships. However, as Banks starts to slowly understand the language, she realizes that it’s up to her to save humanity and prevent a global war.
Overall, the movie definitely got me thinking about how I view time and the world. It sparked discussion among me and my friends and made me want to understand the language better. I also really enjoyed the mystery to the movie. It took such a unique twist not shown in the trailers at all and kept me on my toes the entire time. When the movie ended, I wanted more. I wanted to learn about what happens next. I specifically enjoyed Louise’s “flashbacks” and how they would appear randomly at first, before becoming more frequent as she began to understand the alien language.
Throughout the movie, both Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner give strong performances that enhanced my experience and got me involved with the plot. I felt the same fear and frustration as Banks as she attempts to break down the language in time. Renner had an incredible portrayal of theoretical physicist, Ian Donnelly and just like Adams made me get invested in his character. Their portrayal truly made me invested in the science behind uncovering a language due to this.
Though this may seem like I’m nitpicking, something I didn’t like was the strong focus on Banks’ heavy breathing whenever she entered the spaceship. I know that is a personal preference, but it was honestly annoying. There isn’t much I can say against the film because it was so unique. It was an epic and intimate science fiction movie.
Through the movie, I could barely see any flaws and the actors gave amazing performances. I would strongly recommend going out and watching this movie.
Rating: 5/5 Stars