Interesting premise, but fails to deliver

Rating: 5/10 (7 April 2019)

Annhilation is a decent attempt at delivering a thought-provoking blend of action, horror, sci-fi, but it ultimately fails to deliver on its promise and leaves you with an oddly unsatisfying feeling after its rather lengthy run time.
Portman shines, but the rest of her group of scientist and military cohorts deliver fairly flat performances. Not helped by some cheesy dialogue and long drawn out scenes that don't go anywhere.
The film also suffers from poor pacing and a confused tone. I like genre blending and films that take chances, but that always comes with a risk that things never quite hang together and you're ultimately left with an uneven experience.
Overall, if you're into sci-fi, have a Netflix account, and an evening to spare, Annihilation is worth a stab. However, it's obvious this film was praised by jaded critics clamoring for something thematically "deep" and a bit different... not because it's actually an entertaining, or particularly important, movie.
The plants were very pretty.