Review: Annihilation

Image courtesy of Paramount Pictures.

Much like his debut, "Ex Machina," Alex Garland's sophomore film is a cerebral science fiction thriller that is unsettling, ponderous and occasionally mind-blowing. Coupled with last year's underrated and misunderstood "Mother!," the film is proof that Paramount Pictures appears willing to take risks on ambitious genre movies that do not guarantee commercial success.

As the film opens, biologist and former soldier Lena (Natalie Portman) has given up hope that her husband, Kane (Oscar Isaac), is still alive after he left a year prior on a top secret military mission and has yet to return. But then out of the blue, Kane reappears, but something is not quite right. He begins to exhibit symptoms of a deadly disease, so Lena rushes him to a hospital. But they are stopped on the way by military officials and Lena wakes up in a quarantined military base known as the Southern Reach.

There, she meets Dr. Ventress (Jennifer Jason Leigh), who shows Lena an incredible sight behind the base - a large wall that appears to be a rainbow. At the film's beginning, we see what appears to be a meteorite striking a lighthouse - and this apparently has resulted in the wall, which scientists at the base refer to as The Shimmer. Ventress tells Lena that she and several other women - mostly scientists of some sort - will travel behind the wall and Lena, wanting to know what happened to her husband, insists on going with them. She is told that previous groups of soldiers have been sent into The Shimmer and Kane is the only one who has returned.

Once inside The Shimmer, something seems off. The women begin to doubt their own senses, become paranoid and often lose track of time. On more than one occasion, they are attacked by large, mutated animals - a massive crocodile, a deformed bear - and one of the women realize that The Shimmer is stealing their DNA for the purpose of creating its own beings. I can't divulge more because, on the one hand, I don't want to give away plot points, but also because I can't exactly explain the theories that the characters ponder.

Regardless, "Annihilation" is often frightening and tense. And it remains compelling because it is often difficult to predict where it is heading. As the women travel further into The Shimmer, their course becomes more perilous. But as the film reaches its finale, wonder takes over from fright during a pretty remarkable sequence during which Lena enters the lighthouse and comes face to face with, well, something. It's a scene that I'd imagine will be discussed for years to come and it's the most impressive sequence in the picture.

Although I admired its filmmaking and visuals, I liked "Ex Machina," if not loved it. I feel mostly the same way about "Annihilation." It might not be a genre classic, but it's certainly worth a look. There are a number of interesting ideas at play here, the film is suspenseful and the aforementioned finale is worth the price of admission alone. Garland doesn't seem to know exactly how to follow that scene, and the picture's final shot comes across as your typical genre ending in that it leaves the door open for sequels. But all in all, "Annihilation" is a thoughtful and unique sci-fi thriller that I'd recommend.