Annihilates The Mundane, but Still Needs Some Editing

Rating: 8/10 (23 February 2018)

The Science Fiction genre, a group of films that often get wrapped up in other genres that they stray far from the roots established long ago. A true science fiction, is often a thriller that tests the limits of reality, dives deep into the psyche of the characters, and often brings a fictitious world that we can only dream of to life. And this weekend, another movie looks to fall into this category and actually belong into it. Annihilation starring Natalie Portman looks to be a movie that contains many strange elements, wonders, and thrills to warrant a venture into the movie theater again. What lies in store? Well Robbie K would be happy to share his thoughts with another review. Let's get started!
LIKES:
The World Building: Within Annihilation, lies the anomaly called the Shimmer and within it a world that has been mutated by some unknown force. As our "heroes" for lack of a better word venture into the gasoline mixed with water looking border, the world contained within is a wonder in itself. Our world's natural flora and fauna are bizarrely twisted into these contorted visuals that look natural, beautiful, and a true representation of the genetic crossing that we all studied in school. The world's scientific art continued to grow only deeper and darker as they traveled further into the void, the animation and creativity being unleashed into the chaotic skew with no limitations. Some of these creations are stunning in terms of color, while other times they are the things of nightmares, whose movements and designs will leave you huddled in your chair.
Science Fiction Thrills: In addition to the world itself, Annihilation is all about the true Sci-Fi adventure. An unending suspense hovers over the air, the tension always mounting at what lies within the glades of this weird dimension. The mystery of what is causing this continues to build across the course of the movie, as well as if our heroes will make it to find the answer. Annihilation's threats do exist outside, but even more dire is the psychological warfare the Shimmer plays on our girls. Disturbing imagery is only one assault to their psyches, as they are pushed from all fronts to confront whatever it is eating them inside. And in addition to bringing suspense, the characters get some major development, shelling out their background information and helping them adapt to the ever-changing world around them. This culmination is very entertaining and truly worthy of the sci-fi mantle in terms of plot.
Deep: A good science fiction movie makes you think, and Annihilation has got you covered in this element as well. As you try to solve the mystery of the movie and the fantastic twists that get thrown in, you'll find deeper meanings behind the actions of the movie. Many of these are head scratchers, trying to figure out just what the Shimmer is doing. While not as complex as Arrival or Matrix, Annihilation still has plenty of tricks up its sleeve to bend your mind and get you trying to process all the weird information it throws at you. As you process this, you may uncover deeper, morale dilemmas, horror filled thoughts of the future, and even the fragility of order are all up for questions. This artistic flare is certainly a score booster, though fair warning that these deeper meanings are also disturbing at times too.
DISLIKES:
Savage/Disturbing: With a title like Annihilation, one needs to be ready for darker undertones and source material. However, this movie goes down a very graphic path that was able to penetrate my desensitized shell. Found footage reveals some rather violent outcomes for previous teams, with little to no censorship of details that are capable of causing some to lose their lunch. The savage nature of the beasts and the violence held within just about everything in this film throws no punches, again choosing to display the gory details that fail to dampen.
Flashbacks: The flashbacks are certainly for character development and some of them set the story up nicely for the bombs to be dropped. Others however, are unnecessary details that did little other than show the suffering we already knew she held and expand the run time. Complete as it was, I didn't quite pick up on the significance of some of these wasted scenes and could have held better storytelling elements to help build the suspense. Not all of these have to be eliminated, but editing could have used some tightening up to make everything more relevant.
Deeper supporting characters: The movie is primarily about Natalie Portman, shocker there, and at the start it showed some promise that the other members of her team would be more integral to the mission. Yet, things decrease fairly fast to where the other characters soon become rushed plot lines, trinkets to tax Leah (Portman)'s conscience and further push the psyche limitations of everyone. Had they given some better relationships, a little more teamwork, and integration of all characters, perhaps then we would have had even stronger development and thrills to enjoy.
The Weird Ending: You know that feeling you get when after the big wait the ending turns out to be something you didn't/or maybe never wanted to expect? Well Annihilation was kind of like that for me. The twist at the end was great, bringing relevance to some of the flashbacks, and really blowing your mind. However, the entity itself is not quite as awe-inspiring or terrifying to say the least. The source of the trouble is abstract, creepy, and very hard on the ears as it tries to communicate in sounds you have heard in the trailers. This final scene is super prolonged, and quite uncomfortable at times to watch as this dance of perverted awkwardness commences. Is it unique? Yes, but it still didn't quite match what I wanted. And for those who don't like abstract thinking and deciphering the conclusion yourself, hate to break it to you, but you won't get all the explanations you might be looking for. Yeah, it's weird.

The VERDICT:
Annihilation may have looked weird, and it's true it is an odd spectacle to behold to the general audience. However, it is a true sci fi thriller in meaning, thought provoking, stunts, and world building, to the level that fans of the genre will be pleased with what the studio brought out to you. It's weaknesses for me come in it went a little too far down the weird pathway, going too savage and abstract to provide a clear picture at times. The use of flashbacks was stylish at times but overdone as it sacrificed the chances for other characters to get some more time on the screen. Still, if you are looking for that dark, story that makes you scratch your head, then Annihilation is the movie for you to check out. For those who qualify, this movie is worth a trip to the theater, but for others kip this as long as you can to avoid disturbing those with sensitive constitutions.
My scores are:
Adventure/Drama/Fantasy: 8.5
Movie Overall: 7.0