Arrival is a 2016 American science fiction drama film directed by Denis Villeneuve and adapted by Eric Heisserer, who conceived the project as a spec script based on the 1998 short story "Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang. The film stars Amy Adams as Louise Banks, a linguist enlisted by the United States Army to discover how to communicate with extraterrestrials who have arrived on Earth, before tensions lead to war. Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Tzi Ma appear in supporting roles.
The film is about the arrival of twelve mysterious alien spacecraft that land at different locations around the world. Dr. Louise Banks, a linguist, is recruited by the military to construct a means of conversing with the aliens to discover whether they arrived with peaceful or threatening intentions. The film explores themes of language, communication, and the nature of time.
Arrival is a complex science-fiction drama that is adapted from the 1998 novella, Story of Your Life, by Ted Chian. The film is smart in the way that it edits moments of the present and future into a singular timeline by tying small and seemingly insignificant moments together. The film has a twist ending that is both hopeful and timeless. Arrival is a moving, gripping film with startling twists and imagery that deserves serious treatment as a work of art.
