Tarkovsky-esque

Rating: 6/10 (27 May 2020)

As others have pointed out, "Annihilation" bares striking similarities to the films of Andrei Tarkovsky, such as "Solaris" (1972) and "Stalker" (1979). For a picture about an alien "shimmer" that works as a prism refracting and recreating already established sources, that's rather appropriate. Moreover, the prominent placement in the narrative of video cameras and doppelgÃ¤ngers reinforces this reflexivity--a movie about creation, about movies. Too bad the rest of the narrative, its framing, the psychological problems of the characters and the time-shifting plot is bland. Following a title card introducing "the shimmer" with a scene of extramarital sex was an especially unfortunate choice. And that's in addition to the unrealistic nature of medical professionals and scientists who don't don gloves to collect samples, let alone hazmat suites to enter a known contaminated area, playing soldiers with automatic rifles that only one of them seems familiar shooting with. The CGI environment looks pleasant enough, though.
"Annihilation" has taken on added resonance today, as of this writing, due to the real-world pandemic. The shimmer here is initially treated as potentially radioactive or as a sort of virus, as it slowly moves to cover and contaminate more and more of the world. Such a picture of shared, interchanged DNA, including the particularly horrifying melding together of a bear-like creature with their prey, has become especially relevant in a real world where quarantines, social distancing and personal protective equipment is being widely used to prevent real viral interconnection.