Arrival

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Arrival

PG-13

2016

1h 56m

Sci-Fi

Mystery & Thriller

Drama

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Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

441 Reviews

83%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Linguistics professor Louise Banks leads an elite team of investigators when gigantic spaceships touch down in 12 locations around the world. As nations teeter on the verge of global war, Banks and her crew must race against time to find a way to communicate with the extraterrestrial visitors. Hoping to unravel the mystery, she takes a chance that could threaten her life and quite possibly all mankind.

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Critics Consensus

Arrival delivers a must-see experience for fans of thinking person's sci-fi that anchors its heady themes with genuinely affecting emotion and a terrific performance from Amy Adams.

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Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

The Blue Lenses

08/25/2018

Arrival transcends the limitations that so often govern the less creative examples of the subgenre, instead using it as a loose conceptual foundation upon which to build a theoretically-informed examination of what precisely ... makes us human.

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Kristen Lopez

Culturess

11/20/2017

Arrival couldn't have arrived (pun intended) at a better time.

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K. Austin Collins

The Ringer

08/10/2017

I think of Arrival in terms of color: the milky grays of the clouds rolling over the Montana plain; the bright blue of computer screens bouncing off the gray tents on the makeshift army compound.

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JD Duran

InSession Film

08/08/2024

The film works as a powerful allegory for how we try to decode and interpret the tragedies of our lives.

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Ankit Ojha

Cinema Elite

07/09/2024

4.5/5

Without spoiling too much, let’s just say Villeneuve and Heisserer use the Kuleshov effect to turn the non-linear storytelling of “Arrival” from a gimmick to an indispensable part of the film.

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Anthony McGlynn

Vague Visages

02/06/2024

Arrival is a work that resents the necessity of violence. However, the film ditches some of the meditative qualities of the bleakness-to-idealism dialectic of the album in favor of making a cold hard stand against war and those who clamour for it.

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Jonathan F

02/05/2022

Extremely short-paced, felt like most of the movie was empty without a real driving story. I would have hoped for more action.

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Katie D

03/15/2021

An amazing film! very well-done, thought-provoking, entertaining and unpredictable. my only complaint is about the loud horn blasts that accompany so many science fiction movie scenes - unnecessary, unrealistic and distracting! other than that it was awesome!

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Tyson D.

@Spudsprout 4h

(Overall Rating: 2.83/5) (OK) ----- (Cinematography/Atmosphere: 3/5) I was honestly a little bored with the visuals which could have been the intent? It was hard to stay immersed. --- (Storyline/Plot: 4/5) Thought provoking film, intriguing ideas. This would have been higher if the story would have gone where I wanted it to go but it didn't quiet get there. --- (Acting: 3/5) Amy Adam's was excellent, everyone else was extremely flat. --- (Character Quality: 2.5/5) Very average, the Colonel was extremely foolheaded although probably true to how he would act. The only character that seemed to have any depth was Dr Banks. --- (Entertainment Value: 3/5) There were moments where the film had my full attention, but I feel like the film could have used it's time better. --- (Expectations vs. Reality: 1.5/5) Maybe I'm not getting it, but I was expecting an alien film. With the central plot, there was no true reason for the visitors. The film could have used many other mediums to tell its story. I'm bummed they wasted the aliens.

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Anosha A

@Anesha 1d

Truly a masterpiece. A unique take on an alien invasion, with an ending that leaves you completely speechless. The acting is outstanding, paired with a perfectly crafted storyline. The way the film explores the power of language is nothing short of incredible.

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Rohit R

3d

Slow-buring, yet great technical execution & rich concepts.

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zach s

Jan 19

Neat concept and cool Alien design but the story is very lackluster. The film is entirely just talking to Aliens and trying to understand their language with a few twists but the film suffers from moving at a glacial pace.

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Denis Villeneuve

Director

Amy Adams

Louise Banks

Jeremy Renner

Ian Donnelly

Forest Whitaker

Colonel Weber

Michael Stuhlbarg

Agent Halpern

Mark O'Brien

Captain Marks

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Arrival: TV Spot - Solve the Mystery

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Arrival: Trailer 2

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Arrival: International Trailer 1

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Arrival: Trailer 1

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Arrival: 'Global War' Teaser

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Synopsis

Linguistics professor Louise Banks leads an elite team of investigators when gigantic spaceships touch down in 12 locations around the world. As nations teeter on the verge of global war, Banks and her crew must race against time to find a way to communicate with the extraterrestrial visitors. Hoping to unravel the mystery, she takes a chance that could threaten her life and quite possibly all mankind.

Director: Denis Villeneuve
Producer: Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, Aaron Ryder, David Linde
Screenwriter: Eric Heisserer
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: 21 Laps Entertainment, Lava Bear Films, FilmNation
Rating: PG-13 (Brief Strong Language)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 11, 2016, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Jan 27, 2017
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 31, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $100.5M
Runtime: 1h 56m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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