Basic scifi mystery with some decent imagery

Rating: Null/10 (23 September 2018)

Based on Jeff VanderMeer's novel of the same name, Annihilation is the story of a group of women that are sent to investigate a mysterious meteor crash site, surrounded by what they have decided to call the Shimmer. But what awaits them at the lighthouse, the epicenter of it all?
I have heard good things about the VanderMeet novel and some glimmer of that can be seen in this film. The various characters have interesting backstories, the weird mutations and acceleration of evolution caused by the Shimmer are equally interesting and look even better on the screen. Furthermore, there's some decent action, the actors are for the most part talented and there's nothing outright wrong with the film.
And yet I cannot help but admit that I was disappointed. Mainly by the pacing, I'd say. For example, all the interesting backstories are gone over pretty much in a single scene and then they never play any part in the story, with a few very minor exceptions. I get that you have to trim away the fat when you're making an adaptation. But in that case don't allude to the fat that used to be there. Especially if you're going to be this blatant about the fact that you had to cut it because of time constraints.
The ending is also pretty out there and doesn't make as much sense as it probably does in the novel, once again because of the lack of time and proper storytelling.
That being said, the film looks very good, has some good imagery, some good scenes and overall it's not that bad. Not that great either, but at least I now want to check out the novel.