Arrival

The much-anticipated sci-fi Oscar hopeful has finally, well, arrived. Director Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Enemy, Sicario, 2017's Blade Runner sequel) has emerged as one of the hottest film makers around, and for good reason. "Arrival" is a refreshingly suspense take on the alien invasion genre. Less lasers and conflict, and more thoughtful looks at the important questions that might arise. Granted, there has to be a story arc, character studies, and the fictional element that simply adds to the mystique of first contact, but this film is unlike so many that have come before.

Within hours of the arrival of the alien ships, Dr. Banks (Amy Adams) and Dr. Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) are brought to one of the sites in beautiful rural Montana. She is a world renowned linguist and he is an unspecified scientist or mathematician. Together, they are charged with the job of deciphering the alien language to uncover their intentions and purpose. The race against time is amplified by the concurrent attempts by other nations around the world to discover the alien agenda for themselves, and there is always a ticking clock of global competition that adds fuel to this mysterious fire.

Adams delivers a spectacular acting performance, boosted immensely by Forest Whitaker's no-nonsense lieutenant colonel Weber. The narrative is driven forward using the genius guise of the unknown. The rules of alien invasion films are pretty loose, but historically have taken few liberties to acknowledge the more realistic response. It's not all machismo and sending in army guys to face something new with force. There is a more cerebral, scientific approach with this film, and it is extremely captivating. Renner's performance is a bit more vanilla, but that's alright. He is clearly the second banana, and is not only fine with it, he wears it nicely. The deference is refreshing as there is a certain amount of recognition in the sparkle of his eye that he's the part of something fantastic and it's just fine.

As the film moves toward its climax and reveal, there are some remarkable directorial moves, and that's the difference between this film and something more pedestrian or banal. Besides the camerawork and music that fit perfectly with the vision of Villaneuve, the slow zoom of the camera into a innocuous, yet completely bizarre frames present something of an illusion to the eyes. He did this type of work in "Enemy" a couple of years ago, and continues to play with the viewer's mind, but in a good way.

I had high hopes for this film from first hearing about its production. I truly felt that Villaneuve could give an alien invasion film its due better than perhaps any other director on the planet, and I was right. The subtlety and attention to detail is astounding and mesmerizing. The story is just fresh enough that a viewer leaves a tad confused, but can put everything together by the time they're home from their drive. That's the mark of a solid film beyond the objective beauty that so many critics can easily identify and define. I appreciate a smart and bold film more an more the older I get.

"Arrival" isn't the sexiest of alien films, but it makes you wonder and exudes ambition. I am extremely excited to see what Villaneuve has in store for us in next year's "Blade Runner" sequel, and with Harrison Ford and Ryan Gosling starring, it should follow suit with the original and become an instant classic, no doubt. "Arrival" is one of the top ten films of the year thus far, and is worth a second look (think "Inception" or "Interstellar"). It is like a highbrow "Contact" without the bad acting and Carl Sagan mumbo-jumbo. See this if you want to know how a visionary makes a good film. 9/10.