Writer and director Alex Garland's sci-fi movie "Annihilation" is gripping, has stunning visual effects, and creates talking points left and right for everyone who goes to see it. But, it's just really confusing. From start to finish it's unclear if the protagonists are fighting some sort of alien, biological weapon, or their own minds. No amount of online synopses and explanations can truly answer all the questions the film generates.
The movie opens when a mysterious "shimmer" begins to engulf a part of the southwestern United States. Groups of soldiers enter but never return. One of those soldiers is Kane (Oscar Isaac), whose biologist wife Lena (Natalie Portman) decides to join a team of five female scientists to enter the shimmer and figure out exactly what's going on.
It quickly becomes clear that, in this alternate world, the laws of nature do not apply. The team forgets entire days of their lives, become paranoid about each other's loyalty to the group, and have to defend themselves against crazy mutated animals. Whatever has created the apparition is splicing together genes from different organisms, allowing plants to grow in the shape of humans, crocodiles to have shark teeth and people's insides to slither snakes.
The movie reaches its climax when Lena makes it to the center of the shimmer, where she is only more confused by a beach covered in bones, glass trees and eventually some kind of alien life form that grows from nothing and mimics her every move. Which of the two creatures is the real Lena? Is it human? Is it even conscious? I honestly have no idea.
The nice thing about the rampant lack of clarity is that it does give you a lot to talk about. "Annihilation" is ideal for viewing in a large group of friends, because the immediate aftermath is a series of trippy, hypothetical conversations as everyone tries to make head or tails of what they've just seen. There are about a million different ways the movie can be interpreted and you'll want to hear as many of them as you can.
Even director Alex Garland probably doesn't quite know what his creation is all about. Like so many classic sci-fi movies, "Annihilation" aims to be thought provoking without providing any answers. The only tangible things it brings to the table are a sense of fear about what else might exist out in the universe and a realization of just how scary human manipulation of the environment and of animals and their DNA could be.
One thing that "Annihilation" definitely has going for it is some amazing visuals. The shimmer is beautiful refracting light to make everything glow pink. While scary, the mutant animals and plants are also beautiful in their own right. A brilliant soundtrack, led by the same "wah WAH wah WAH" sequence as are the trailers, combines a kind of futuristic effect with suspense and fear for the unknown to come.
"Annihilation" is a must-see for any fans of cult science fiction movies. It strives to follow up earlier installations of the genre by making subtle references to films like "2001: Space Odyssey" and "Alien." This is the kind of movie that will have a diehard following but will also leave a lot of people asking for more.
You really need to come into it with the right mindset. "Annihilation" will make you think about every scene and question everything. If you're in the mood to do some bigger-picture conjecturing or to just let your mind run wild, it's a great watch. If you prefer mindless alien killing and an understandable plot in your science fiction movies, then this one might not be for you.
2/4 stars