Arrival Science Fiction - with a message for Humanity

Science Fiction

Science Fiction, Fantasy or Fact was the title of my undergraduate dissertation so as you can guess, it's a subject I've always been interested in.

When the likes of Isaac Asimov first started writing science novels and indeed Jules Verne and HG Wells before him, they wrote from an imaginative, optimistic but also critical perspective and the narratives often contained thinly veiled socialist message of warnings about the future, the inherent dangers of technology in the hands of industrialists and corporate control in the future.

It's a tradition that continued successfully through the 20th Century and into the new millennium (it is 2000AD + now !) as we have undergone dramatic technological change. My original question of How does science fiction influence (and is influenced) by actual science theory and technological development is still relevant in today's sci-fi movies and novels.

I eventually concluded from study of many primary and tertiary sources that it's a merry go round with science fiction being influenced by real science and real science being influenced by the best minds of the previous generations science fiction writers. Arthur C. Clarke made some pretty accurate predictions based on deductive extrapolation and Aldous Huxley's Brave New World is not to be sniffed at, even now in our fully electronic, (not card based) hyperstacked world.

Arrival

when I saw the trailer for Arrival I knew it was a film which would interest me. I am (have always been) fascinated with the idea of how humans; individually and collectively would react to the sudden arrival of advanced beings from another system, galaxy or even dimension. I knew Arrival would address the idea with a sophistication and serious and I was not disappointed. It does ask questions of the viewer and it asks quite basic questions about who is in control, how could we co-ordinate globally and how would we react ? would be feel threatened (I think we would) would civic society lose control ? possibly. But more importantly in this film how would we begin communicating with completely alien beings who are so different from us that we may never break through the language barrier.

Louise - Human

The film's protagonist, Amy Adams deftly played stoic linguist is tasked by the US military with working out the aliens abstract sounding language of drones and chittering. Dr Louise Banks decides that written language is going to be essential so she designs a crash course in English in an attempt to form common ground. What do you want ? is the main question the soldiers want answering. Dr Banks is assisted in her quest by slightly mis-cast theoretical phsyicist played by Jeremy Renner. A pair of glasses maketh the professor not, but he is an amiable principle character and his supporting role does have a bit of a twist.

The Aliens

I loved the aliens in this film. Majestic, truly different from the normal humanoid depiction we are used to seeing. Giant, seemingly quite sensitive and benevolent heptapods which are somewhere between a hand and elephant and an octopus with whale sounds.. quite the beast and remember these aliens turn up with some seriously advanced technology which the film cleverly shows at first contact to be so far ahead of our own, we wouldn't be able to explain it's seemingly magical properties. The actors reactions and anticipation to the aliens and their technology is sensitively handled with shaky, nauseous excitement. (It probably would induce that kind of a reaction.. wouldn't it ?)

No Spoiler

I'm not going to spoil the film for you by revealing it's real intentions but I would encourage you to watch it if you're interested in language and how we're limited by our own and perhaps our separated cultures here on Earth. I'd also recommend it to people who are interested in the nature of linear time, how we experience our lives and what memory is.

I'm giving this film 4 stars. Only for the simple reason that the fifth star was not earned by some plot holes and slight weaknesses in the screenplay. Adams is not really stretched in this role (she's really good but it didn't look difficult for her) and Renner's Scientist really should have been a genuinely more character actor casting. I like Jeremy but he's more action than cerebral. The Aliens score a 10/10 for me. Intelligent thinking about what Alien means. there's a great line where Adam's character says (badly paraphrased ) am I the only one who finds it weird saying "the aliens?"

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