Extremely High Wow Factor - A Must Go for any Sci-Fi Fan

Rating: 10/10 (12 November 2016)

This movie can only be described as something that starts out with a very simple idea and ends up turning into a complex and exciting story. Arrival is a truly sci-fi movie that you watch with your mouth open in amazement that gets better by the minute with an unforgettable and unpredictable ending.
Arrival begins when 12 UFOs touch down in random places on Earth. The whole world is panicking and the United States looks to a talented linguist named Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) and a gifted Theoretical Physicist named Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) to help translate what the aliens really want from us and what their purpose on Earth is. Once the new team starts uncovering the information about the mysterious species, they find very surprising things that go against everything we once knew.
The movie is great overall but the ending is what really makes Arrival so legendary. The special effects are spectacular and the acting is extraordinary. Amy Adams excels in her role of Dr. Banks. What I most liked about the movie is how it all comes together. Without spoiling anything, I will say that the ending is mysterious and can be interpreted in hundreds of different ways depending on what angle you look at it from. The only other movies that have such perfect endings and make you actually think deeply about what exactly is happening are Interstellar and Inception. Another thing about this film that blew me away is the cinematography. From giant aerial shots of 1500 foot UFOs to a fleet of battleships about to start an attack, the cinematography truly adds to the intensity and amazement of the film. My one small criticism has to do with the last few minutes. The creators stretch it out about five minutes too long in their attempt to show in very deep detail what exactly happens at the end. I feel like they could have shortened it and explained the ending instead of stretching it out, but that only lasts a couple of minutes and is hardly noticeable. Another huge perk is the sound editing and the soundtrack. The sounds of the UFOs and the aliens are intense and the music perfectly suits the story. This combination makes your heart thump and works wonders with surround sound.
My favorite scene is when the aliens first start writing in their language. They write using something that resembles ink that stays in the air. It is truly beautiful and unique. It is unlike anything else I've ever seen before in a sci-fi movie with aliens. I also like this scene because it is when they start talking about their language and how they talk backward and forward at the same time. If they think like this, they can write and create a complex sentence in a split of a second, which amazed me. I also admired how the story treats their language almost like an art form and not just a way of communication.
There is a presence of some mature language in a few scenes as well as very intense and dramatic moments, so I recommend it for ages 13 to 18. I give it 5 out of 5 stars despite one small hiccup because of just how it makes you think about life and the future and gets your adrenaline pumping.
Reviewed by Gerry O., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic.