Wednesday, October 26, 2022

"Arrival" and the unbridled power of science fiction

The best alien movie starring Amy Adams is a thoughtful reflection on science, language, and change.

The opening scenes of the new science fiction movie "Arrival" lead us to familiar territory, where we see a huge spaceship hovering above the cities of our restless planet Earth.

Soon the movie shows that the story will no longer go around famous movies about aliens. The spaceship has no weapons. Our hero is a linguist. Riddles of the cerebral plot. And the procession of subtle and intriguing ideas eventually develops into a story of deep insight and hope.

"Arrival" is the best science fiction movie of the year because it does what science fiction does best. It encourages prudent hypothesis and out-of-the-box thinking. It asks us to project our hopes and fears onto some imaginary event horizon and then look at what this will lead to. After a hectic, horrible and controversial election process, this is a movie you should see, digest and discuss later.

Warning: There will be some spoilers, but there's nothing new about them that you wouldn't see in a trailer. And I'll stay away from the central secret of the movie.

Trailer:

Amy Adams plays the role of Dr. Louise Banks - a linguist employed by the US government to communicate with strangers. Twelve spacecraft (egg-shaped, resembling giant seed pods) have landed in various countries around the world. Aliens show no signs of aggression, but on the planet different nations react differently. Many of them are defensive, trying to climb and prepare their weapons. Banks is working with mathematician Jan Donnelly (Jeremy Renner), who hopes the language of numbers will help connect with aliens. Every day, the portals of the ships open for a short time, and the landowners send their delegations inside. Directed by Denis Villeneuve, he created a minimalistic space design with lateral gravity inside the ship. It resembles a prehistoric cave where our species first experimented with language and art.

We see aliens after all, but they are cleverly obscure, which visually highlights the narrative used throughout the movie. "Arrival" is not really interested in strangers. The makers are more interested in our response to aliens. How will we communicate with others? What exactly will we choose to communicate and how will it happen?

It turns out that "Arrival" is a film about communication. "The way we speak determines how we think," says Louise, referring to fierce disagreements in linguistics. Without going into the plot, I will say that aliens give us a new kind of language and a new way of communicating. It is a language that gives meaning directly without sound or speech and is in no way related to time.

It is very enjoyable to watch an adult science fiction movie. He asks us to think and offer delicious secrets about ideograms, palindromes, game theory, and the value of the number 0.083. The movie says that providence moves in a mysterious way (Hollywood style). The video is aimed at a groan of suspicion (you may have stumbled upon it) that promises the digital age will soon be over. Our valuable devices and networks do not bring us together. On the contrary, they disconnect. We sit in public places, staring at the crumbling screens on our hands.

Despite the wealth of technology, we stop communicating. We are designed in digital versions of ourselves. We are constantly breaking up and sharing, as evidenced by endless conflicts in the world.

Such deliberate science fiction as "Arrival" can help us solve this existential dilemma. The science fiction genre gives you a fresh look at people and problems. Movies are another way to change culture and collective consciousness that goes beyond rationality. And when a movie like "Arrival" comes out, you should pay attention to it.

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