“Movies are dead.”
Between record-setting amounts of sequels and the continued rise of the television industry, this sentiment has rapidly gained traction in 2016. While I would vehemently disagree with it, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to deny that, because the film industry has drastically shifted from what it was 10-20 years ago.
Then _Arrival_ came out, offering new hope and confidence for the future of movies.
From the director of _Sicario_ (Denis Villeneuve), _Arrival_ is a spellbinding, tense and beautiful sci-fi film. Within moments of starting, viewers are thrust into an out-of-body experience, completely forgetting they are sitting in a movie theater surrounded by strangers. For as mesmerizing and thrilling an adventure as _Arrival_ is, Villeneuve’s drama sheds light on human life with a powerful, emotionally-charged message.
Linguistics professor Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) enters her classroom one morning, ready to offer a typical lecture. The room is noticeably empty, while students crowd around televisions in the hallway. Just as Louise starts speaking to her few present students, their phones begin buzzing and they ask her to turn on the news. Class is quickly dismissed once they learn that 12 monolith-like spacecrafts have emerged at various locations around Earth.
Frantically scrambling to determine these extraterrestrials’ purpose, military Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) enlists Louise and quantum physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) to assist the government by communicating with the aliens.
The premise alone is enough to pique audiences’ interests. So when it’s handled by a brilliant filmmakers like Denis Villeneuve and cinematographer Bradford Young, _Arrival_ becomes one of the year’s best films. Despite dealing with an otherworldly, fictitious event, Young and Villeneuve firmly ground _Arrival_ in reality.
First and foremost, the film’s mysteries are depicted through the eyes of Louise. From her long walks on campus to wide shots of her desolate upper-class home, the renowned linguist is troublingly disconnected from the world around her. When she is brought to Colonel Weber’s base camp, the camera follows her through a web of tents and soldiers in what is a deeply overwhelming experience.
Every moment at the base camp and within the monolith is absolutely breathtaking. Villeneuve escalates Louise’s and audiences’ tensions through long, patient shots. As Louise enters the monolith silently panicking, viewers hold their breath with nervous anticipation.
Once Louise and Ian overcome these early inhibitions, they begin to focus on the film’s central mystery: “How do we communicate with the aliens to determine their purpose?” Where other filmmakers would get bogged down in generic tropes such as montages on whiteboards and government conspiracies, Villeneuve and the script penned by Eric Heisserer reflect self-awareness and ingenuity. They understand not only how various individuals would react to such an occurrence, but also how long and arduous of a task that Louise and Ian receive.
Yet _Arrival_ still has so much more to say to audiences. Where the film’s themes might be preachy or overstated in the hands of other filmmakers, Villeneuve’s message is sincere, understated and powerful.
In almost every way, _Arrival_ is a showcase of near-perfect filmmaking. The writing and acting are great, and the directing and cinematography truly remarkable.
Although other movies might surpass _Arrival_ in awards races, none will be able to match it in the cliched terms of “movie magic.” Like movies made by the legendary Steven Spielberg, _Arrival_ offers an escapist, otherworldly experience that is both tense and beautiful. It’s 2016’s best film to date to hit mainstream audiences.
But most importantly, _Arrival_ is the kind of brilliant blockbuster that suggests movies aren’t dead yet.
**MOVE gives _Arrival_ 4.5 out of 5 stars.**
