A Nearly Perfect Film

Rating: 9/10 (2 March 2018)

I'm not really a sci-fi fan so I was not in a huge rush to see this movie. I can't believe I waited. It is simply a beautiful film about just how simultaneously small and large we are in relation to the universe. The acting is superb, the script is taut and the directing is on the mark. The special effects look realistic (which is rare these days with CGI so prevalent) and the storyline progresses in a smart manner.
Amy Adams is a linguistics professor named Louise. Jeremy Renner is a physicist named Ian. They are recruited by Col Weber (Forest Whitacker) when 12 alien ships arrive across the globe. The idea being they will be able to make contact with the aliens and translate their intentions. The aliens seem to have benevolent intentions, but of course the military and intelligence agencies have to justify their existence. There is also a renegade Chinese General who wants to attack the spaceships and possibly start a global war.
The ships are well designed. The reverse gravity affect was pretty cool. (The aliens bear a strong resemblance to alien characters on the Simpsons.)
Eventually, Louise and Ian start deciphering the aliens' language which appear as smoky symbols on a glass barrier. This, too, was handled well as Louise starts to understand that their language consists of symbols and not letters like English. The movie does an amazing job of conveying how difficult it might be to communicate with other life forms should we ever make contact. The expressions the aliens use are misinterpreted and Amy and Ian have to rush to stop a global disaster. Throughout the film, Louise is having visions of her daughter. This is central to the plot and when you understand the non-gimmicky twist (another rare thing in movies these days), the movie takes on a whole new dimension. You can watch it a second time and see an entirely different film.
What I liked most about the film is it has a real easy going pace. The science is handled well and easily understandable. The actors are great and the concept of actually trying to understand another lifeforms view of reality was awesome.
I rated this movie a 9. The only reason I didn't give it a 10 is some of the characters were extremely one-dimensional and just seemed tacked on to provide some contrived tension. The intelligence officer and some of the soldiers are an example. Otherwise, this movie was fantastic.