A great movie - but not more than the sum of its parts

Rating: 5/10 (1 November 2016)

As Arrival begins, you're led down that familiar path of a Villeneuve film: the dread-laden music, thoughtful cinematography, subtlety and pace imply something deeply intelligent and thoughtful is about to happen. Amy Adam's character is framed within various geometrical patterns and structures - the circular corridors of a hospital, the curved seats of a lecture hall, the square geometry of her house, a TV frame, her University building. She's surrounded by controlled patterns. This makes the arrival of the abstract orbs even more stunning, we're being asked to see something "new" in terms of the films language.
And that's essentially what Arrival hinges on - the film asks the audience to decipher its own cinematic language, whilst Louise (Adams) deciphers the aliens language. Will you have the same emotional journey that Louise does? Villeneuve clearly hopes so - but that all depends entirely on how much the film pulls you in emotionally.
But its just a 'movie'. Entertainment. Beyond that, its ideas and ponderings don't have much substance - there's no real emotional insight, take-home message, honesty about the human condition or anything else to really chew on beyond a few reflective thoughts. This isn't Tarkovsky, its not even classic sci-fi. Its more like an extended Twilight Zone or Black Mirror episode.
I think the thing that makes it seem more intelligent/emotional than it actually is, is the clever use of flashbacks. Whenever I see this in a film (notably Nolan's Insomnia, Batman Begins, Prestige, Inception, Interstellar, who I feel Villeneuve has been influenced by) it has a powerful effect - juxtaposing some current situation with some whimsical emotional moment. But the emotions here feel forced - we're not dealing with the nuance of human nature, its that broad-strokes Hollywood kind of 'emotional' that feels more like a cute idea that anything real.
It just doesn't really add up to anything more than the sum of its (admittedly very good) parts. My challenge to any of its fans is this - what is the film really about? Any great film should have a few interesting answers to that question. With Arrival, I'm struggling to find an honest answer that does justice to the quality of the production.