Arrival (4K UHD + Blu-ray + Digital)

There are some films that transcend their genre. "Shane" was one of those films: A western, it was a film that was more about relationships than gunfights. "The Bridge on the River Kwai" was also one of those films. Not just a war movie, it dealt with themes such as duty, honor, and betrayal. "Arrival" is a science fiction movie but it, too, transcends its genre. It is a film that deals with the philosophical ramifications of the way in which we perceive time but it also makes powerful statements about fear-based decision making, the inertia of government bureaucracies, and the very human tendency to mistrust "others" that do not look, sound, or act as we do. The premise of the movie is straightforward: Aliens arrive on Earth at various locations around the globe. Governments around the world immediately want to know why they are here and what they want. Among those chosen by the U.S. government to get answers to those questions are a language expert played - wonderfully - by Amy Adams and a theoretical physicist played by Jeremy Renner. Forest Whittaker plays the Army officer nominally in charge of the effort to discover the aliens' purpose. All three actors deliver stellar performances, though in my opinion Adams outshines everyone else in the film. She is vulnerable, sometimes frightened, often courageous, and - ultimately - comes to personify the absolute best traits of human beings. Despite excellent performances and marvelous writing, I fear this is not a film that will appeal to many sci-fi fans. There are no epic space battles ala "Star Wars" or "Star Trek," and that will lead many sci-fans to discount it. The special effects are well done but they are not as important to the story as are what the characters say and do. As a result, some science fiction fans, who have been fed a steady diet of mind-boggling CGI over the years, will likely be disappointed. That's too bad, in my opinion, because the great science fiction of the past was about characters, not rocket ships and bug-eyed monsters (although there were plenty of those, I must admit.) If you read some of the science fiction from what we now call "The Golden Age" you'll see that. Isaac Asimov's "Foundation Trilogy" told the story, for example, of humanity's efforts to establish a stable society during a dark period in its future. There were space ships, of course, and a few battle scenes but it is primarily a story about people trying mightily to build a better life from the ashes of a failed government. The other giants of early science fiction - Ray Bradbury, Poul Anderson, Phillip K. Dick, and so many others - wrote movingly about the human condition as well. Their stories just happened to take place at other times and, often, on other planets. Technically speaking, "Arrival" is very close to being a perfect movie. The writing is excellent, the characters believable, and the direction is seamless. The cinematography is extremely well done, conveying the mood of the film almost as a supporting actor would. The aliens are truly other-worldly and their complicated language is well thought out. Taken all together, "Arrival" is a wonderful movie that is, in my opinion, destined to go down as a film classic.

Despite all the mindless action and sex that hits the big screen every year, every once in a while there comes a film that’s a little more . . . cerebral. Arrival (2016) certainly fits this category. Not only do you really have to pay attention to what’s happening in this film, it makes you question how we perceive our world as it is right now. Never before have I seen the topic of encountering alien life forms approached from such a realistic and logical way. It makes sense that we wouldn’t be able to understand them, so the first step in establishing an understanding is to establish communication. Much like Christopher Nolan, who has done a number of great, “cerebral” films including Memento (2000), Inception (2010), and Interstellar (2014), I have recently come to appreciate the directorial talents of Denis Villeneuve. From his previous films like Prisoners (2013) and Sicario (2015), I’ve seen him deliver powerful messages about who we are as humans and how we deal with evil. In Arrival, once again the enemy is humanity itself, and the angry and violent mistrust it has against anything it doesn’t understand. Fortunately, despite its repeated visual motif of black and white, Arrival shows that peace can be found in the gray area of language interpretation. While I don’t want to give away the twist of this film, I have to say that the way it was presented certainly makes for a powerful impact once it has been realized. I will simply attribute this to the talent of Denis Villeneuve and the superb screenplay used to guide the audience along to the stunning conclusion. If you haven’t seen any of Villeneuve’s films yet, now’s a great time to start. I certainly will look forward to his next piece, if this is the type of work he’s putting out right now. A fantastic, cerebral, and realistic approach to a classic sci-fi scenario, I give Arrival 5.0 stars out of 5.

Movie showed up in great condition and on time. Definitely one of my favorite SciFi movies with very interesting concepts explored. Must-have for Science Fiction fans to be sure!

I recently received my copy, and I haven't stopped playing it! As first encounter with "alien life" movies go, it's one of the very best I have ever seen. The aliens are very different, as they should be. As any decent astronomer can propose, almost any other intelligent life in the universe, is likely to be quite different than human beings. Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner play the scientific leads, with Forrest Whitaker doing a great job as the military head of the project. Unfortunately, they have a time deadline, because China's Premier is inclined to issue threats. Amy approaches things slowly, hesitant about making a possible mistakes with dangerous repercussions. She wants the best for both parties involved. What follows is a delicate chess match, with her doing her best to translate a complex, and convoluted alien language, before time runs out on them! I hope you love this film as much as I do! Once I saw it, I knew I HAD to own a copy!😘

This is a divisive film. You will love it or hate it, but you will have an opinion. Why are there such strong feelings? I think it results from the way the film was marketed. Critics came out raving about a new Sci-Fi film and called it wildly unpredictable. The public's interest was piqued. After all, it stars Jeremy Renner so it must be a Sci-Fi action movie, right? Maybe it's like a good Independence Day. Wrong! There is only one explosion in this film and I don't think there was a single gun fired. Whoa! What a letdown, right? No. This is not a Sci-Fi action film. This is Sci-Fi in the same vein as Contact, Solaris, and 2001. Actually, it is very similar to 2001 in many ways and themes. If you thought 2001 was boring, you will hate this film. This is not a film about aliens. This is a film about how we react to adversity and uncertainty. You may have heard that this is a film about time travel. It's not. No one "travels" through time. This film is about supposing that time is relative (which we know it is) and perhaps even malleable if you understand it well enough. The key to understanding time in this film is language. One aspect I think the film got wrong is contrasting science and language. Science is a language. Science is a way to explain the phenomena around you in formulas that can be shared and duplicated with others i.e., a language. They are not adversarial, but the same. One thing that surprised me greatly was the portrayal of the military. I think this is probably the truest representation of how military personnel would react. These aren't mindless soldiers. They are thinking human beings with human emotions thrust into a situation of unbelievable significance. Some handle it with fear and trepidation while others approach it with care and concern. If we are ever visited by an alien race, the event will transcend the military. It will transcend the government and even nations. The government does not own or have a right to police our access to foreign visitors. This film portrays very well the moral dilemmas between duty and human emotion. Are there some problems with the film? Undoubtedly it could have added more steps of suspense along the way--just a few morsels to keep the suspense building even more. I think that would have eliminated some of the "boring" complaints. I also think Jeremy Renner did not belong in the film. He is an excellent actor and it's not like he doesn't act his role well, it's just that he brings too much "Jeremy Renner" baggage to the role for me to accept him completely. Amy Adams was perfect for this role, however. You absolutely should watch this film if you like thinking about it afterwards. Nothing is spoon-fed to you in this film and you will NOT receive all the answers. Much is left open to your interpretation. It will leave you guessing to the very end. What would you do in the same situation? If you thought 2001 was a masterpiece (it was) then you will love this film in much the same way. If you thought Independence Day was a masterpiece, don't waste your time watching this. **Blu-ray note** Having purchase the Blu-ray, I can now speak to it separately from the film. The picture is stunning and one of the best films I have seen. The colors are slightly muted, but I'm sure it's intentional. I just don't remember it being overly dark in the theater. There are over 80 minutes of extras, although I am slightly apprehensive about watching them. They basically explain the whole point of the film which I feel is better left to your own interpretation. Those who don't like the film won't ever get a chance to see what it was about since they surely won't buy this, but the answers are there if you want them.

I cannot sing the praises of this movie enough! If you want a more realistic what would happen if aliens contracted humans film then this is it. Please if you have not watched this do yourself a favor watch it any way possible but if you can buy it in 4K UHD it looks phenomenal!

OK

Intelligent and sensitive--a thinking person's sci-fi. This is not a feel-good movie for the family. It's based on Ted Chiang's short story, "Story Of Your Life." A lot was added to flesh out a screenplay and script for a movie. In all, they did a great job. Here's the deal, to tell the story of another person's life--the complete story--you have to know how and when they die. If you knew this about yourself or someone very dear to you, would you still come across time to accept that fate? Many would not. And many would. I literally lost the love of my life less than three weeks ago. It is the most excruciating pain I have ever known, and pain and I are old companions. And yes, I would come across time to catch up with her again, despite the agony in store for me. She was THAT good. Amy Adams owns this role, and Jeremy Renner and Forest Whitaker give great performances. Hint: This movie is great in the way that the Star Trek TNG episode, "The Inner Light" is great. Know that and you'll love this. For laser battles and mindless action sequences seek out something from JJ Abrams. If you love the New Star Trek, you'll likely hate this movie. RayB

日本語字幕なかった ジャケ買いでもいいかな デジタルコピー付いてるけど英語の説明わからない 結局スチール版、4K、国内版BD、こちらの輸入版全部Amazonで買ってしまった

Además de ser una excelente película de ciencia ficción, el producto llegó un día antes de lo esperado y en buenas condiciones. Lo único malo, (y la verdad no es algo tan malo para mi), es que la versión digital sólo es compatible con las tiendas canadiense y estadounidense de iTunes, por lo que, si no tienen cuenta en alguna de esas dos tiendas, no podrán descargarla. El otro lugar en donde también está disponible una versión digital de la película no lo conozco ni sé cómo funciona, tal vez ahí si se podría descargar en nuestro país, México. Lejano a eso, repito, me encantó la película, el excelente precio y que llegara rápido.

Depois de 28 dias chegou. É um bom filme mesmo sem portugues no blu ray e não consegui testar o dvd por causa da trava de região e não funcionar em leitor brasileiro mas sendo um steelbook por esse valor valeu a pena.

Un Blu Ray bastante sencillo pero con una calidad muy buena. Viene con audio y subtítulos en español El paquete llego roto de una parte pero todo bien

Llego en un excelente estado y en excelente tiempo y buenas condiciones sin duda recomendable al 100 una buena opción para coleccionistas. Una de las mejores películas de la década