First Contact, by Bob Connally

22 Nov

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First contact with alien races has been depicted in many different ways through the history of science fiction. Some stories are about invasions, others offer hope of friendship with far away worlds, but always there is uncertainty and at least some degree of fear for the characters in their forever changed universe. Arrival doesn’t put all of its cards on the table right away in that regard but it does engage the heart as well as the head throughout, which is always welcome.

Expert linguist Louise Banks (Amy Adams) is a professor mourning the loss of her young daughter on the day the “Shells” arrive in 12 locations all over Earth. In an effort to communicate with the Shell that has come to Montana, the U.S. Army brings Louise in to try to decipher the alien language and ultimately begin a dialogue. She is joined by theoretical physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner), and led by Colonel Weber (Forrest Whitaker), as they establish contact with the Heptapods aboard the Shell. It’s unclear what the intentions of the Heptapods are, with the world falling deeper into fear and with each nation taking its own unique approach in attempting to communicate with their particular Shell.

Based on the 1998 novella Story of Your Life by Ted Chiang, Arrival is a film that trusts and respects its audience’s intelligence and director Denis Villeneuve (Sicario) is not concerned about the audience becoming impatient due to the lack of action sequences or manufactured drama. It helps when we have an actress like Amy Adams to get us invested in Louise’s story, because ultimately the emotional component of Arrival is what makes it work more than anything else. It’s how Villeneuve draws us in and why revelations in the latter part of the film are easier to accept than they might have been otherwise. The emotion isn’t forced upon us, but rather, it is the quiet glue holding the movie together.

It’s no surprise that Adams is outstanding here. Time and time again she proves to be the most versatile talent on the screen today but, like Tom Hanks in last year’s Bridge of Spies, she’s so natural in this performance that it could be overlooked for how impressive it truly is. There is nothing flashy in it, no show-stopping moment that would make an easy choice for a clip to show at the Oscars. She’s just the believable, grounding presence Arrival needs to keep us engaged even if we’re confused about the science of what is unfolding before us and she can break our hearts with seeming effortlessness. Renner, Whitaker, and Michael Stuhlbarg give strong performances as well.

Arrival is one of the better films of 2016, offering hope in its sadness and ultimately posing a question to us without an easy answer. I highly recommend this one.

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