A true science fiction masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (16 January 2017)

First I just want to point out that I'm usually not compelled to write film reviews at all - so the fact that I'm writing one now speaks for how this film moved me.
This is not a movie for the standard blockbuster movie lover. People who are looking for another "Independence Day" disaster movie, should just skip it altogether, since I can see that many negative reviews come from that type of audience. Don't get me wrong - I myself sometimes like to just be entertained - but this film demands that you "boost your CPU" a little bit.
The people who think it was boring - clearly did not understand it, either on the intellectual or the emotional level. Yes, the story has several plot holes and several unrealistic moments (hence the vote 9/10), but those do not change the essence, nor the point of this film.
The point of the film are not aliens per se, that is just the setting. It is a film about us and our decisions in life. About trying to perceive time and reality in a different way. We as a species are locked into a certain way of perceiving things, hence that is where our way of thinking comes from. It is a very difficult task to imagine and portray a different kind of logic and perception in a two hour movie, and I think that Denis Villeneuve does that very well.
There are certain aspects of the movie that may have been done a little more convincing (such as the diplomatic part, military protocol, etc.), but that does not change the fact that if you follow the story carefully and think about it - you will get some wonderful ideas out of it.
Anyone who likes true, smart stories - should definitely watch this in a cinema (or wait for the bluray).