Annihilation (2018)

I have no words.

Guys, Annihilation is one heck of a movie. It doesn’t hold my hand through its runtime; instead, it forces me to think with the iron grip of its narrative. For that reason, it is one of the most unique movies I have had the pleasure of experiencing in a theater.

Of course, this film goes nowhere without director Alex Garland. I remember watching his first film Ex Machina and getting floored by the points it made about human nature by using an artificially intelligent robot to demonstrate our unique ability of attachment and how that could eventually be our downfall as a race. Besides that, that film was beautiful and brilliantly crafted, a slow burn that exploded in a pitch-perfect climax.

Annihilation changes the game a little for Garland as he continues his exploration into human nature. This time, the film centers on our desires and how they ultimately will lead us to our self-destruction. Jennifer Jason Leigh’s character posits at one point that “almost none of us commit suicide[, but] almost all of us self-destruct”; that self-destruction, the film implies, lies at our desires taking control of our lives and spinning them out of control to the point where we become despondent about our inability to fulfill those cravings of our soul. This is the kind of philosophy Annihilation deals with so perfectly well, but it does so in subtle yet deeply profound ways that remind me of Arrival from a few years back.

Outside of its philosophical leanings, Annihilation is a great film. Its beauty is astounding; even as grotesque images and violent events occurred on screen, I could not help but be wowed by the gorgeous direction of Garland. He uses lens flares in the perfect way to accentuate the idea of everything in the Shimmer (the quarantined zone in which the expedition takes place) being refracted from the outside world. Shots that in the normal world would just be a blue sky turn into bursts of prism-like flares. It helps heighten the idea that this is no normal place but somewhere otherworldly. The performances here are great as well, with all five of the members of the expedition – Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Tessa Thompson, and Tuva Novotny – all doing such good work that it is very difficult to pick out the best of them. There’s really not a single flaw in how this film is made.

There aren’t a lot of people making science fiction films like Annihilation anymore. There’s maybe one film like this every year or so, and I am so happy that Alex Garland is beginning to establish himself as one of the next generation of philosophical sci-fi filmmakers. Annihilation has the pacing and thrills of any good sci-fi horror film, but its philosophical bent makes it so much more satisfying, enabling it to stand out quite a bit from the crowd. I am so excited to see this film again and again and again and discuss it with people. It’s the kind of movie I will be wrecking my brain about years from now about what exactly it means.

My recommendation: See this in a theater.

My grade: 95/100