Annihilation (2018)

What does it look like to inferior human beings when an advanced alien race begins terraforming our planet right out from under us? This. This is what it looks like. 6/10.

Critics are by and large on board with _Annihilation_. Audiences however have been more split. Even the people I know personally are coming out strongly either for or against it. Normally, those are the kind of movies that I find myself feeling in the middle about. You know, the movies that people say "You either love it or you hate it, there is no middle ground!"? Yeah, those are the sort of thing I almost always end up giving a five or six out of ten. But with this one? I fall very, very firmly on the side in favour of _Annihilation_. I did **love** it.

Aesthetics is a big part of that, I'm not gonna lie. I'm also digging the chimeric creature design I've seen on Netflix so far this year (in both this and _The Ritual_). But the philosophical stuff is what really does it for me. Annihilation approaches its context in a completely original way, and I for one feel richer for having seen it.

_Final rating:★★★★ - Very strong appeal. A personal favourite._

In and of itself, the history of Annihilation is not bad.
It has a lot of pictures and camera settings. The individual scenes are told leisurely and you take time for each individual setting. It is also noticeable that the figure drawings of every actress, carries a secret that is gradually revealed. This also makes it a bit more exciting for the narrative strand. Alex Garland also understands how to set the special effects to the perfect scene. The effects are very colorful and you can also notice how he is charging the tension. The creatures are very beautiful, although you know that in the next scene you can't trust the beauty. The meaning of life is also a message from Garland. Where we come from and where we go. Unfortunately, Garland sometimes delays the story too much and then waits in vain until Garland comes to the point. Also the actresses are very well selected and you notice that each of the women have a heavy backpack to wear.
Conclusion: A quiet and lengthy film about the existence and fate of different women bring mood, but a bit more action you would have already given the movie!

It helps to have an open mind and just let yourself go with the flow of the story ... most plot elements align about half-way through the film. Meanwhile just lean back and enjoy the outstanding visual effects, cinematography and sound design. And it has a few very disturbing/creepy scenes that may be tough for some.

Annihilation is a thrilling Sci-Fi mind bender that will have you thinking throughout the entire film. There was not a second that I was not constantly reformulating my theories about what was causing the anomaly and what was going to happen next, which is a great experience for a film. I really enjoyed how the movie took a more realistic approach based on science. The team gathered of multiple field experts to investigate this event was reminiscent of The Arrival and was fascinating. I found that there were certain plot points that were a little far-fetched, i.e. Lena being added to the team and being given classified shortly after arriving to the military base. There were certain scenes that had so much tension and were done with some pretty interesting creatures that had me on the edge of my seat. The acting was all fine, no performance really stood out as excellent. Overall, this film was a captivating adventure with a third act that will have you questioning the entirety of the film.

**Verdict:** _Great_