Annihilation... The Movie!

[The Fury]

So, this is coming out on Friday. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89OP78l9oF0) I do have plans to see it, even though I'm not sure what to think of it based on the trailer. I really enjoyed the novels that it was based on, and I appreciate that it's still a kind of horror story. Also, I've been told that I need to ban the phrase "but in the book..." from my vocabulary. I can already tell that this movie is going to make it hard.

Anyway, what do y'all think of this? Planning on seeing it?

[Ranxerox]

I wasn't very impressed by the trailer, but based on strong reviews, I did go see it. I'm glad that I did. It was a very good movie. However, I did leaving the theater feeling that I should get the names and phone numbers of everybody that I watched it with, just in case we needed to form a support group later. Yeah, I don't make it to many horror movies, and this one scared me a bunch.

The movie felt very Lovecraftian to me. Specifically, it felt like an updated and more actiony Colour Out Of Space. However, whereas, Lovecraft and his imitator have overused his tropes and verbiage to point that it feels tired and lacking of actual menace, Annihilation shows us stuff we haven't see before and has real punch.

So, if you haven't yet made it over to see it, I heartily recommend the movie.

[Bartmanhomer]

I'm seeing it tomorrow morning and I'll give you my review tomorrow. :smile:

[The Fury]

Rumor has it that this movie is also getting a very short theatrical run since one of the producers wants to dump it onto Netflix. So see it the theater while you can I suppose. As for me... I guess I'll have to talk one of my friends with a Netflix account into watching the movie with me.

[Bartmanhomer]

Ok I saw the movie Annihilation and this is what I think about the movie. The movie was very good. It got so many sci-fi elements. Some action and violence. Very dramatic. The only issue that I have with the movie that it's has too much dialogue in it. But other than that it was a good movie. So I'll give Annihilation 4 out of 5 stars. :smile:

[Primal Fury]

Eeeeh... I'd give it a... 3 out of 5? It's interesting, but just kinda weird. What was up with the flashbacks? Someone tell me if they served a purpose, because I didn't get anything out of them. I liked the visuals, but the characters' reactions to the events at a certain point just seemed... myeh? I mean were they going crazy? I feel like they skipped straight from "going crazy" to "crazy" off-screen. And what was up with the time-skip? It didn't seem to have any impact on the story. Was it supposed to hint at the ending?

[Bartmanhomer]

Eeeeh... I'd give it a... 3 out of 5? It's interesting, but just kinda weird. What was up with the flashbacks? Someone tell me if they served a purpose, because I didn't get anything out of them. I liked the visuals, but the characters' reactions to the events at a certain point just seemed... myeh? I mean were they going crazy? I feel like they skipped straight from "going crazy" to "crazy" off-screen. And what was up with the time-skip? It didn't seem to have any impact on the story. Was it supposed to hint at the ending?
Well this movie was based out of a novel. Maybe the movie was way different comparing to the novel. And to answer your question I guess it was the hint at the ending.

[Apostrophe]

I wasn't very impressed by the trailer, but based on strong reviews, I did go see it. I'm glad that I did. It was a very good movie. However, I did leaving the theater feeling that I should get the names and phone numbers of everybody that I watched it with, just in case we needed to form a support group later. Yeah, I don't make it to many horror movies, and this one scared me a bunch.

The movie felt very Lovecraftian to me. Specifically, it felt like an updated and more actiony Colour Out Of Space. However, whereas, Lovecraft and his imitator have overused his tropes and verbiage to point that it feels tired and lacking of actual menace, Annihilation shows us stuff we haven't see before and has real punch.

So, if you haven't yet made it over to see it, I heartily recommend the movie.

Ahh, that's great to hear! I loved the eco-Lovecraftian feel that the book had, but based on the trailer, I was skeptical that that element would make it into the movie version. I'm sure a lot had to be changed to adapt the story to screen, but it's nice to hear that it's still an enjoyable watch! I will definitely be checking it out sometime this week.

[BeerMug Paladin]

Planning on seeing it. I'll go with my roomie and say what I thought of it afterwards here.

[Zalabim]

Saw the movie Monday. It was beautiful and horrifying, if not really profound. I had seen the trailer before, and wanted to see it based on that. Good reviews too was a good sign. Did not go in knowing anything about the books.

[BeerMug Paladin]

I enjoyed the movie a lot, very atmospheric with a good, creepy tone.

Naturally, with the movie having a strong theme of strangeness and unknowability, I'm not really sure what happened in the ending. I'll probably give it a bit more thought as well as another watch if does show up on Netflix soon.

But my initial impression was that the flashbacks were an indication as to why the main character (and her husband) survived the thing at the lighthouse. Essentially, the scrambler works on minds as much as bodies, which is why they were a bit loopy as they progressed. And willpower/drive was something that allowed a mind to resist being scrambled and to a lesser extent, the body. The other characters (not killed by wildlife) were also stated to have no strong motivation to survive (or potentially) had despair enough so their wills were not strong enough to endure.

Then again, maybe the whole point is that when the human mind comes across something incomprehensible, it seeks to fabricate meaning, thus the main character's flashbacks are her own mind confabulating an explanation for her apparent survival? The first flashback was after she woke up from just after entering area X. Maybe you're seeing the flashbacks as she recalls her own memories in linear sequence. You know, not from her experience at the time, but it's how she remembers things as she tells the story.

I think there's probably a few different ways to interpret what was shown, which is part of why I liked this movie.

[An Enemy Spy]

I was confused by the ending. So Oscar Isaac is the alien doppelganger after the real guy kills himself with the phosphorous grenade, and then Natalie Portman kills the doppelganger of her and it burns to death and the next team made it in and out of the Shimmer just fine, only then at the end she and Oscar Isaac both have the same shimmering eyes? I don't get what happened there.

[Apostrophe]

I enjoyed the movie a lot, very atmospheric with a good, creepy tone.

Naturally, with the movie having a strong theme of strangeness and unknowability, I'm not really sure what happened in the ending. I'll probably give it a bit more thought as well as another watch if does show up on Netflix soon.

But my initial impression was that the flashbacks were an indication as to why the main character (and her husband) survived the thing at the lighthouse. Essentially, the scrambler works on minds as much as bodies, which is why they were a bit loopy as they progressed. And willpower/drive was something that allowed a mind to resist being scrambled and to a lesser extent, the body. The other characters (not killed by wildlife) were also stated to have no strong motivation to survive (or potentially) had despair enough so their wills were not strong enough to endure.

Then again, maybe the whole point is that when the human mind comes across something incomprehensible, it seeks to fabricate meaning, thus the main character's flashbacks are her own mind confabulating an explanation for her apparent survival? The first flashback was after she woke up from just after entering area X. Maybe you're seeing the flashbacks as she recalls her own memories in linear sequence. You know, not from her experience at the time, but it's how she remembers things as she tells the story.

I think there's probably a few different ways to interpret what was shown, which is part of why I liked this movie.

Interesting take!

I thought the flashbacks were important to the story because they provide the motivation for Lena's actions as well as Kane's. They show how their marriage had become so broken that they both felt an overwhelming need to change and/or self-destruct. Maybe when Kane found out about the affair, he blamed himself for not being good enough for Lena and went into Area X to become more than he was. And Lena had made mistakes so huge that she also wanted to become a different person.

I like to think that Area X gave everyone who entered what they wanted. Cass found a swift death and was maybe reunited with her daughter in the afterlife. Anya died to save Josie -- being a paramedic, maybe that's what she wanted the most. Josie finally found peace and let go of her past pain. Ventress wanted to understand what had happened at the lighthouse more than anything, and it seems that, at the end, she had literally merged with whatever it was in the hole underneath. Lena and Kane both wanted to become different people who were better suited to each other and could make their marriage work, so that's what Area X gave them. They gave up their former selves (it was not the mimic version of Lena that was blown up, but the original) and had a second chance to start again.


That's just my theory, though, and there are still some elements of the story that I'm not sure about. I'm sure there are a lot more theories out there that make sense. Overall, I was very impressed with the movie as a whole. It isn't often you see something that's equal parts beautiful and horrifying, but they nailed that aspect.

[lt_murgen]

The movie felt very Lovecraftian to me. Specifically, it felt like an updated and more actiony Colour Out Of Space. However, whereas, Lovecraft and his imitator have overused his tropes and verbiage to point that it feels tired and lacking of actual menace, Annihilation shows us stuff we haven't see before and has real punch.

I saw it, and had almost the exact same thought- of course, being a Lovecraft fan makes me susceptible to such things.

[Avilan the Grey]

I must say nothing I have heard of this movie has peaked my interest except who's in it.
But then I really don't enjoy horror nor "quality sci-fi". (One of the things that did put me off, actually, is all the reviews with headlines that promises this to be the "best sci-fi movie in 20 years". I SERIOUSLY doubt it's better than Fury Road :smallbiggrin:).

And before anyone gets any ideas... I have zero problem with the female cast or whatnot... It's just not a premise that interests me in the slightest. Also, I loathe "mystery endings". I'm basically a "I don't know anything about Sci-fi but I know what I like" guy.

I really don't like Horror. I don't see the point of it. IRL news are both scarier and far more relevant.
I don't really care for "Lovercraftian" stuff outside of the classic Pen & Paper RPG, which is fun to play.
I REALLY don't like mystery endings. To me they are the laziest trope of all. "We couldn't come up with a good ending so we just made it all mysterious and blame the viewers if they 'didn't get it'".

...Now, I admit up front I have not seen this. So I am really not in a position to argue the finer points. That said all the posts ahead of me in this thread has basically reaffirmed my belief that not seeing this was the right move on my part.

[Bartmanhomer]

The movie was very unique and surreal to say the least.

[Avilan the Grey]

The movie was very unique and surreal to say the least.

Oh yes, it seems to be a real quality product. Not saying that sarcastically in the least btw.

[Bartmanhomer]

Oh yes, it seems to be a real quality product. Not saying that sarcastically in the least btw.
To be quite honest, I never seen a sci-fi movie quite like it. If only this movie nerfed the length of the dialogue, it would be an award-winning movie. :smile:

[HolyDraconus]

Interesting take!

I thought the flashbacks were important to the story because they provide the motivation for Lena's actions as well as Kane's. They show how their marriage had become so broken that they both felt an overwhelming need to change and/or self-destruct. Maybe when Kane found out about the affair, he blamed himself for not being good enough for Lena and went into Area X to become more than he was. And Lena had made mistakes so huge that she also wanted to become a different person.

I like to think that Area X gave everyone who entered what they wanted. Cass found a swift death and was maybe reunited with her daughter in the afterlife. Anya died to save Josie -- being a paramedic, maybe that's what she wanted the most. Josie finally found peace and let go of her past pain. Ventress wanted to understand what had happened at the lighthouse more than anything, and it seems that, at the end, she had literally merged with whatever it was in the hole underneath. Lena and Kane both wanted to become different people who were better suited to each other and could make their marriage work, so that's what Area X gave them. They gave up their former selves (it was not the mimic version of Lena that was blown up, but the original) and had a second chance to start again.


That's just my theory, though, and there are still some elements of the story that I'm not sure about. I'm sure there are a lot more theories out there that make sense. Overall, I was very impressed with the movie as a whole. It isn't often you see something that's equal parts beautiful and horrifying, but they nailed that aspect.
agreed. To push the point even further that Lena died is right in the start:the tattoo is on her arm, when she went in the Area and made it to the lighthouse without it. At that point she's more a combination of those she went in with than JUST Lena. I wouldn't be surprised that they all had traits she felt desirable which led to her clone being a amalgam of them

[Apostrophe]

agreed. To push the point even further that Lena died is right in the start:the tattoo is on her arm, when she went in the Area and made it to the lighthouse without it. At that point she's more a combination of those she went in with than JUST Lena. I wouldn't be surprised that they all had traits she felt desirable which led to her clone being a amalgam of them

Wow, I hadn't thought of that! That's a really intriguing interpretation. I like the idea that she might have taken desirable elements that she saw in others and dumped the ones that no longer served her.

And I had forgotten about the tattoo! The ouroboros was certainly a not-so-subtle nod to the overall theme of destruction and rebirth. I seem to remember her husband also having an interesting tattoo on his chest in one of the flashbacks, but I couldn't tell what it was. I wonder if it had some kind of symbolic significance, too.

[Avilan the Grey]

One issue worth debating for me, even though I haven't watched this, is the fact that outside of the US (and China, I believe) this movie is Netflix only. It will not be released in theatres at all.
I am DEEPLY troubled by this, since it basically makes culture a "console exclusive" to use a gaming term.
If this movie is as groundbreaking as critics say this means you either have to wait for a year for a blu-ray release (and in the future that might not happen at all) or subscribe to a service to see this. What if you already subscribe to something else?

Personally I don't subscribe to ANY video streaming service; I buy the discs I want and to hell with the rest. Because I watch so little movies and TV that a $10 fee every month is wasted money.
But even if you do... if you have already subscribed to Amazon Prime, or HBO, or... Are they really expecting you to fork out $10 for every service every month???

With music streaming services... it's a matter of preference, because 99% of all music exists on all of them. It's just a matter of what GUI you prefer, basically.
With Video streaming... it's a lot more like consoles: Exclusives all over the place. Until all services carries everything I want to see... I'm not subscribing to any.

[Eldan]

An utter mess of a movie. I really don't understand why it was rated so highly. I mean, some very nice effects, but some incredibly wooden acting and terrible dialogue. Laugh-out-loud technobabble. No chemistry between the leads.

[Lemmy]

It was... Ok.

Not great, not horrible... A bit boring and very forgetable, IMO. Has a cool premise and some good scenes, but the acting is pretty bad, the characters are bland and it feels like even the director and writers have no idea of what's going on.

It had potential, but never fulfils it... Still, I wouldn't call it a bad movie.

I'd give a 5/10. Mediocre and forgetable, but not a waste of time.

[S@tanicoaldo]

Am I the only one who got major Yogsetoth's vibes from this movie?

[BeerMug Paladin]

It certainly reminded me of something that would fit at home in that kind of universe, but I didn't get any particular Yog-Sothoth vibes (if that's what you meant).

[Eldan]

Not Yog-Sothoth, no. Colour out of dpace, though
.

[S@tanicoaldo]

Not Yog-Sothoth, no. Colour out of dpace, though
.

How? The whole point of the Color out of space is that it's a color we have never seen before, so it's impossible for humans (AKA the reader) to visualize the color, but we still try to, the color doesn't mutate life it outright destroys it, it's toxic or radioactive and then it just leaves our planet without having a direct interaction with humans.

I just can't see any similarities besides the fact both "Came from a meteor".

[kraftcheese]

It was pretty good, but I felt like it wasn't 5/5-every-critic's-darling good.

[Bowerbird]

Saw this a while back, and I have Opinions(tm), but it largely boils down to: Why is everyone, literally everyone in this movie horrendously incompetent? There were some cool bits, like the bear, but the characters were all either poorly fleshed out, really stupid, or really unsympathetic, and it seriously detracted from the experience. I hope the book it's based on is better than this, then again it was only barely based on the book to begin with (the director read it once, bought the rights and never consulted it again) so that's some small comfort.

[Eldan]

I was wondering that too. Why don't they have... vehicles? Maps? Once they notice their time is slipping, why no diaries or recordings? Why can all these scientists shoot guns? Why not mix a few more soldiers in with the scientists? Why no... I don't know. Rangers? Survivalists? Proper Doctors? They barely seem to have any equipment. Where are the Geiger counters? Have they tried sending in drones instead of people? Tying people to ropes and pulling them back out?

[Cen]

I was wondering that too. Why don't they have... vehicles? Maps? Once they notice their time is slipping, why no diaries or recordings? Why can all these scientists shoot guns? Why not mix a few more soldiers in with the scientists? Why no... I don't know. Rangers? Survivalists? Proper Doctors? They barely seem to have any equipment. Where are the Geiger counters? Have they tried sending in drones instead of people? Tying people to ropes and pulling them back out?

THIS! Exactly my thoughts!!

[HolyDraconus]

Comments in quotes.
I was wondering that too. Why don't they have... vehicles? <no idea what they was walking into, and from what they DID know, vehicles wouldn't help at first>Maps? <they did, but the landscape changed so much to make it useless>Once they notice their time is slipping, why no diaries or recordings?< corruption prevented that. It was viewed as a suicide mission after all> Why can all these scientists shoot guns?<they stated they had military training in some shape or form> Why not mix a few more soldiers in with the scientists? <it was assumed that the previous group failed because of the martial bent, so an attempt without it was made.>Why no... I don't know. Rangers?<explained earlier> Survivalists? <they was doing fairly okay but again, they had training>Proper Doctors?<no idea what They were walking into> They barely seem to have any equipment. Where are the Geiger counters? <nothing showed an outward need for it>Have they tried sending in drones instead of people? <yes, and each time it stop sending signals roughly 15 meters inside, and can't be retrieved>Tying people to ropes and pulling them back out?< ropes snapped when people walk inside.>

All of that was in the movie.

[Eldan]

You don't send scientists without scientific equipment. And if you're sending them into a swamp, at least give them an inflatable boat. Also, I really don't remember them mentioning boats or drones.

[HolyDraconus]

You don't send scientists without scientific equipment. And if you're sending them into a swamp, at least give them an inflatable boat. Also, I really don't remember them mentioning boats or drones.

They had equipment. Field equipment. It wasn't a full lab but it was never supposed to be. And the boats wasn't mentioned. The drone, however, was shown to fail.

[Bowerbird]

I confess, the psychologist might have mentioned drones not working in her initial explanation. They really should have focused on getting someone into it, no matter how small a way, and then back out again. They keep making a big deal about nobody getting out alive, as Eldan said, tie a rope to someone and yank them out after a short while, report back. Heck just line up a whole mess of bulldozers, and try and flatten your way in. That's not even getting into the whole sending a group of barely trained civilians into an area where trained soldiers die problem. I can understand them wanting to get rid of the psychologist, but a whole team? Then there's the criminal lack of security at their outpost military base, where randoms can just wander into quarantined areas unchallenged.
"Two anomalous people have come out of this thing, we're not entirely sure they're safe, sure let's just let them go hug it out together, I'm sure it's fine." I just remember my friend and I shouting, "For god's sake, don't let them touch you idiots!"

[HolyDraconus]

I confess, the psychologist might have mentioned drones not working in her initial explanation. They really should have focused on getting someone into it, no matter how small a way, and then back out again. They keep making a big deal about nobody getting out alive, as Eldan said, tie a rope to someone and yank them out after a short while, report back. Heck just line up a whole mess of bulldozers, and try and flatten your way in. That's not even getting into the whole sending a group of barely trained civilians into an area where trained soldiers die problem. I can understand them wanting to get rid of the psychologist, but a whole team? Then there's the criminal lack of security at their outpost military base, where randoms can just wander into quarantined areas unchallenged.
"Two anomalous people have come out of this thing, we're not entirely sure they're safe, sure let's just let them go hug it out together, I'm sure it's fine." I just remember my friend and I shouting, "For god's sake, don't let them touch you idiots!"
They wasn't barely trained: half that team was ex military. The other half was still in. The rope wouldn't work because it snaps. They shown that.
And considering they had no idea what was in there, it would of been, from their viewpoint, an extremely bad idea to bulldoze a hole for whatever is inside to get out.

As for the base security, two things. One, the base we see them using is the new one after the old one was enveloped. So it wasn't as fortified, and 2, of those 2 that got out, one for almost all intents and purposes teleported upon getting out, and the other collapsed right outside the former bubble, right where she was picked up immediately. Security IS good, but it can only do so much.

[Tyndmyr]

Eeeeh... I'd give it a... 3 out of 5? It's interesting, but just kinda weird. What was up with the flashbacks? Someone tell me if they served a purpose, because I didn't get anything out of them. I liked the visuals, but the characters' reactions to the events at a certain point just seemed... myeh? I mean were they going crazy? I feel like they skipped straight from "going crazy" to "crazy" off-screen. And what was up with the time-skip? It didn't seem to have any impact on the story. Was it supposed to hint at the ending?

I agree. It was...really pretty in some regards, and some settings were well framed. Some stuff, however, seemed like just a random whatever.

Does the teleporting matter? It just goes away and never comes back.

Dying in a couple of days, must save! Weeks later, this topic is never returned to.

Why does the mimic not always mirror, and why is this obviously ignored by the protagonist?

Why do people in horror movies keep a guard post...but not one that's, yknow, in line of sight to the rest of camp, or guarding anything in particular, and inevitably get ambushed?

Also, if you have guns, how do you get ambushed by a huge, loud thing when there is literally nothing it could hide behind?

The explanation for comms was utter garbage.

There were a lot of really, really obvious problem solving attempts that were not made. I mean, just for starters, making recordings clearly works. And yet, this team doesn't bother to record literally anything. The recordings are all just obvious plot dumps.

Why is the interrogator intent on making her feel guilty about her affair? Doesn't he, yknow, care about security or something? I guess not. *flips table*

[Cikomyr]

By the way.. i heard some people mention that the mimic was CGI. And yet.. i was under the weird impression that it was a mime. Another person imperfectly doing of Portman's moves on purpose.

[Zalabim]

The mimic very quickly escalated from "it's copying her movements" to "it's copying her." It isn't copying her movements exactly because it isn't trying to copy what it sees, it is trying to do what it thinks she is trying to do.

[Lemmy]

I've noticed a trend of Netflix movies generally having interesting premises, but ending up being absolutely mediocre and forgetable...

Annihilation is no exception.

[Zurvan]

I've noticed a trend of Netflix movies generally having interesting premises, but ending up being absolutely mediocre and forgetable...

Annihilation is no exception.

Like what for example? What other movies?

[Cikomyr]

Like what for example? What other movies?

Cloverfield Paradox?

[Lemmy]

Like what for example? What other movies?
The Titan... And, ironically, about 4~5 other movies that I honestly don't remember the titles... Is there a way to check my "watched" list?

[JadedDM]

Bright? Bright.