Incredible in its ability to create awe-inspiring moments.

Rating: Null/10 (4 March 2018)

So this isn't a perfect film by any means. It has some rough dialogue at times, some unnecessary exposition at times (were the interrogation scenes really needed?), and some much-too-often-used-stereotypes (studying psychology myself, I can't tell you how irksome it is to see films label characters as "psychologists" and make various assumptions about them). The film also explains many characters by tragic pasts that are too clichéd. But those are all flaws that, in the grand scheme of things, don't amount to negatively impacting the experience of watching this film, because this is a wildly ambitious, fascinating project. It's rare for me to watch a sci-fi film and experience awe while doing so, but this film does that. Technically it's very well-made. Although some of the visual effects are clunky, the cinematography, editing, and (especially) film score give the entire thing an incredibly mysterious, genuinely interesting atmosphere, one that many films could only dream of creating (perhaps only Arrival's is similar). It also includes some of the most visually memorable moments of this entire decade. The last 15 minutes are awe-inspiring in every sense of the word. They say originality is dead, but I don't think I have ever seen some of the things this film does. For that it should be congratulated. It may be more flawed than Ex Machina, but Garland may have created a film that, not only rivals it, but perhaps exceeds it in its greatness, definitely in ambition and scope.