Customer Ratings & Reviews

If you’re a fan of hard sci-fi and very heady themes, his is perfect for you. If you’re a fan of the director too, this is a darn great film.

Not much of an interesting plot, relying on special effects to hold the viewer's attention. Probably not something I would want to watch again.

This movie was a little boring and really didn't get what it was about. I wasn't satisfied with it. I thought the premise of the movie was interesting. I think that if we do encounter the good kind of alien we would have to figure out a way to communicate. It never actually answers why they come though which disappointed me with no great conclusion. If I were to recommend this it would have to be to a hard core alien searcher.

Awesome UFO movie! Great cast and well written. Buy it!

Great performances, compelling story and themes, technical aspects are astounding and top notch direction! A must see for both sci-fi and movie fans alike!

A wonderful cast that is superb! Amy Adam's is wonderful as the code breaker Dr. Louise Banks. It is definitely worth watching more than once!

Here we have some legitimate science fiction, and it's definitely thought provoking as good SF should be. This could have been adapted from a story by Isaac Asimov or Phillip K. Dick or someone. (Eh actually I'm not sure it wasn't based on a Dick story.) Anyway, the plot is actually pretty original, the characters are mostly interesting, the dialog is good, and the tone is just about pitch perfect. I suspect that those who are parents might appreciate this even more than I did. I saw it twice in the theater, and it was well worth it. Initially, I did kind of feel like they played a little bit of dirty pool with the plot at one point - I don't want to say more and spoil it for someone who hasn't seen it - but after more consideration and some good conversations with my friends and family, I reached a different conclusion. This will mess with your mind a little bit, but not in bad way. This is the kind of movie that provokes interesting discussions with the people you watch it with - and the kind of thing you're happy to recommend to anyone who asks. It's not perfect; there are some irritatingly stereotypical (and rather flat) characters driving key plot points - but overall this is a very worthwhile movie.

This is a great first contact movie. Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner give their A game and the story is really original. Highly recommend.

Everything you could want from a thoughtful science fiction drama. Thoughtful, clever, and resonant.

I preordered this Blu-Ray and was pretty much satisfied with the product. It had a slip cover, though I wish it would've had the Oscar sticker on it like the cases in the store did. The Blu-Ray seems to work fine, the digital copy was a plus. (It was sort of disappointing it didn't come with a DVD as well.) It has quite a few bonus features. As for the movie itself, this is very slow moving, understated story about a language expert attempting to communicate with Earth's new arrivals. There really isn't much action here, but there is a compelling tension that builds throughout the movie, unfolding in a thought-provoking and unique plot circumstance. (Some might even call it a plot twist, but I think that term doesn't connote subtleties.) Arrival also has a great emtional core, which is what really compelled me to buy it. Amy Adams is wonderful in her performance and Jeremy Renner adds some humor. The SFX and CGI are well done. The content is restrained and that is important to me. It is very hard to find mature movies that do not contain tons of profanity, "adult" content, or graphic violence--Arrival is breath of fresh air in those regards. (The PG-13 seems to be based solely for the inclusion of one word--the harshest profanity--which is barely intelligible to the ears.) In conclusion, Arrival is a well-made, thought-provoking, and clean sci-fi drama that holds up to repeated viewing.

This movie is fantastic. I never saw the twist at the end coming, but I don't want to say too much in case I risk spoiling it for you.

This is a languidly paced science fiction thriller with a twist. Amy Adams excels in her role as renowned linguist Louise Banks, hired by the government to translate the language of aliens who have positioned twelve spaceships at various locations around the globe in an attempt to communicate with us. Allowed aboard one of their spaceships, Banks learns the aliens' method of communication and works tirelessly to interpret the message they wish to bestow on humanity to possibly save us and themselves. Aside from poignant themes of loss and grief and family, the film features interesting alien spaceship and creature designs, and plenty of food for thought. This is a film that may require multiple viewings in order for the viewer to tease out the multiple meanings (textual and sub-textual) at play throughout. It also features amazing cinematography, fine work by Jeremy Renner in a supporting role, awe-inspiring production design and an excellent score. Highly recommended for those looking for more than just another alien invasion or superhero flick.

You really have to watch this one a couple times to grab what it all means, but it is certainly worth the time.

An emotional movie-going experience. Director Denis Villeneuve have made an incredible film. Very recommended.

A really great film that a lot of people overlooked. It's a rarity - a sci-fi movie that makes you think.

Keeps you guessing about the motives of the aliens. With its plots twists, I gave this movie a 5

A really good movie with an original story line. Teaches the importance of communication.

This is a compashionate movie giving alien not wanting to anialate earth but rather communicate.

I've spoken with a number of people that saw this movie, but didn't really seem to understand the concept behind it. Arrival is a "make you think kind of" movie about an alien race that has come to Earth in order to request our help. Help that they will need 3000 years in the future. They have brought a gift to the citizens of the earth, and have given 12 pieces of that gift to various countries of the earth. One catch is that all the countries must work together in order to understand that gift. The movie is seen through the perspective of one of earth's scientist, and how she starts to perceive time differently (as the aliens do "nonlinearly") as she learns how to write in their language. It also continues to show how our not working together as a human race impacts our world, and gives us a glimpse of what the world could become if we worked together instead of apart.

Arrival is a film you'll either like or hate and for those who loved Interstellar, you'll love it. Arrival is essentially the final half hour of the classic Steven Spielberg film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind where the humans communicate with the aliens on board the ship. The film is slow and patient in its' excecution with Oscar nominees Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner as scientists who are recruited by the Military and NASA scientists trying to decipher what extraterrestrial forces are inside 12 pods located stragtically all over the world are doing and why they are here on Earth. Without giving out too much away, the film is visually stunning and well acted by Adams, Renner and Oscar Winner Forest Whitaker as the tough but fair military liason. Director Denis Villenueve makes a thought provoking film that will leave you in suspense throughout.