Review of Annihilation (2018) by James M — 29 Jun 2018
An excellent, mostly all female cast is squandered in Alex Garlands latest film. I am a huge fan of his work; from writing the screenplay for Danny Boyle's stellar sci-fi thrillers 28 Days Later & Sunshine, to his own directorial debut - the brilliant Ex Machina, I consider him a super talented, visionary filmmaker. But this one is just disappointing. It's well made, has a great premise, and as I mentioned, an impressive mostly all female cast, headed up by the always dependable Natalie Portman.
It starts off well but soon loses itself in a messy, artsy, purposely vague quagmire of nonsense. There are moments of chilling brilliance & dark, stunning beauty but these moments come in a disjointed story with absolutely no payoff by the end of the film. I understand the appeal of not spelling everything out and leaving some things open for the viewer's interpretation but here, NOTHING is answered or revealed. It makes no sense and goes nowhere. The films climax is a HUGE disappointment and the ending is frustratingly murky and vague. It tries too hard to be an arthouse sci-fi drama; all visuals, no real point. All intellectual, spiritual nonsense with no regard for actually telling a complete story.
A frustratingly dull disappointment.
This review of Annihilation (2018) was written by James M on 29 Jun 2018.
Annihilation has generally received positive reviews.
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