Colorful, dynamically rendered production company promos splash onto the screen before the open of this film, a complete contrast to the visual composition and tone by the title card. This really isn’t a statement about the film, but I was so excited to sit down and finally catch it and prepared for something mute, quiet, and introspective, that I was completely surprised by this display. Regardless of the flashy production company promos, I was not disappointed.

When UFOs suddenly appear across the world, causing panic, the story begins to take shape in the short hours after their arrival. The world wants to know, “What do they want?” A conversation requiring translation into an unknown alien language tasked to Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams), a university linguist professor hired by the military. Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker), having experienced her quick turnaround of language translation on a previous engagement, formally enlists her help and pairs her up with theoretical mathematician Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner). The three take on the mission forming a series of checks and balances on one another, similar to the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive branches. Or if you want to be more sci-fi, like Minority Report’s “Precogs” or Evangelion’s “Magi”.

Arrival is characterized by very tranquil and serene visual arrangement that at times disarms the anxieties of its audience. The soundtrack is relied upon to convey the gravitas of their situation, often using a mixture of Morse code inspired singing and loud horns with an ominous, religious sound. Despite that, it might be the most calm and measured alien film in recent memory. Sci-Fi out of Hollywood is usually comprised of action sequences against hyper-colored backdrops, or horror against shadowy interiors, or philosophical dramas against sleek white walls. Arrival comes at the latter two sideways, designing a muted color world where unfinished, black stone paperweights the size of mountainsides hover above cities, causing worldwide panic. To centralize the dilemma of human-alien interaction, the action is relegated to newscasts on monitors in military briefing rooms.  

I am torn. It is very difficult to talk about this film beyond this point without giving away spoilers, and I feel this film is best watched unraveling in front of you. I did not read the book (who reads the book BEFORE the movie?! Not me, if I can help it.) Even without reading the book, I can assure you, even if it didn’t follow the story verbatim, this film plays out like a novel. Nothing is given away before it’s necessary. There is even some false foreshadowing, or as an avid film viewer, I mistook it for that. I did however walk away feeling Hollywood may have lent some authenticity to the world of linguistics. The film tries to educate you in a manner similar to an episode of something from the Discovery channel or National Geographic. Not much weight, but informative.  

Without giving anything away, this will be one of those films that will have you around your D&D tables discussing the truths, possibilities, and meanings on and off for years. Think Blade Runner, Decker, and unicorns. Put down you’re tickle guns (you’ll see) and enjoy arguing with friends until it’s your turn to roll.

~* 9 / 10 *~