On the Poetry of Arrival

What prescient timing Denis Villeneuve’s latest film, Arrival has. Released in a year when politicians have taken their countries in the direction of isolation, populism and fear, Villeneuve, along with screenwriter Eric Heisserer bring us a story about acceptance and collaboration, intellectualism and trust. Arrival is a poetic piece of work, tinged throughout with an elegiac quality. For as much as this is a story of hope, it is also one of loss, presented to us through a time frame hidden from our understanding until the end. The flashbacks, appearing like echoes of sound and image that we believe are filling in the gaps in Amy Adams’ protagonist are actually offering us her future. This is sublime filmmaking and perhaps Villeneuve’s most subtle and sad film. Yes, it is science fiction, but not as we know it. The camera is so unaggressive that it is dreamlike, further blurring the boundaries in time. What we expect from the genre is there, but only presented to us with less sparkle. Instead we have a palette of greens and browns and natural greys, reinforcing the message that this is a sci-fi where planets are to be saved, not destroyed.

For a film so much about language, you leave Arrival feeling affected by something deeper that words. Perhaps it is the acute dissection of our current world without an optimistic ending to satisfy our need for closure or our feigned ignorance at how bad things are. In its layering of images and time frames, its use of sound and its ideas that feel unfinished until the final frames, Arrival is a poetic and beautiful film, a re-examination of a genre that is too often homogeneous.