Annihilation

2018

Action / Adventure / Drama / Fantasy / Horror / Mystery / Sci-Fi / Thriller

415
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 88%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 66%
IMDb Rating 6.8 10 335076

Plot summary



May 30, 2018 at 12:21 AM

Director

Alex Garland

Top cast

Tessa Thompson as Josie Radek
Natalie Portman as Lena
Oscar Isaac as Kane
Tuva Novotny as Cass Sheppard
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU 720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
994.43 MB
1280*534
English 2.0
R
23.976 fps
12 hr 0 min
P/S 3 / 28
1.86 GB
1920*800
English 2.0
R
23.976 fps
12 hr 0 min
P/S 6 / 80
993.21 MB
1280*534
English 2.0
R
23.976 fps
12 hr 0 min
P/S 3 / 46
1.86 GB
1920*800
English 2.0
R
23.976 fps
12 hr 0 min
P/S 0 / 20

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by / 10

Reviewed by Tweekums 8 / 10

Intriguingly strange science fiction

Following a meteorite impact in the southern United States something strange happens; a strange shimmering phenomenon is noticed. Those who enter it don't return. It is growing. Then one day Kane, a member of a Special Forces team that entered the shimmer suddenly returns home to his wife, Lena. He has no idea how he got back. Soon after his return he starts haemorrhaging; on the way to the hospital he is intercepted and taken to a military facility. It is here that Lena learns of The Shimmer; when she learns that another team, this time composed of scientists, is to enter the Shimmer she volunteers to join them. Once inside things start to get strange; communications with the outside are down and consumed rations suggest they have been there at least three days although none of them recall that time. As they head deeper into The Shimmer they encounter strange plants and animals; it would appear that things there mutate at a cellular level... presumably that will include them!

I thought this was a really intriguing film. It was never too obvious what was going on and not all questions were clearly answered. The effects inside The Shimmer were really impressive; depicting some interesting ideas. There was plenty of tension; this rose nicely as a member of the group start becoming paranoid and strange creatures are encountered. The main characters are solid; as is the acting; particularly from Natalie Portman and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Lena and Dr Ventress, the government psychologist leading the mission. I'll admit to being confused at times, but in a good way, I wondered what things meant rather than thinking they didn't make sense. There are a couple of gory moments but nothing too disturbing. Overall I thought this was enjoyably strange so would recommend it to sci-fi fans.

Reviewed by petra_ste 7 / 10

Was it carbon based?

Annihilation is a tough sell. Fans of fast-paced action movies who just want to watch Natalie Portman shooting monsters in the face may be irked by the film's slow pace and reliance on atmosphere. On the other hand, admirers of weighty, cerebral science-fiction may consider Annihilation too pulpy; there are not many violent or horrific scenes, but what violence is there is quite gruesome and what horror is there is fairly disturbing. Nitpicky moviegoers will complain that many things here (both character choices and scientific stuff) don't stand up to closer scrutiny; it's not quite Prometheus bad, but it's sometimes baffling (funny how all these scientists handle the most sickening, pestilent-looking specimens without gloves). Fans of the source material may be disappointed by changes; I haven't read Jeff VanderMeer's novel but I understand writer/director Alex Garland took many liberties with this adaptation.

Me? I liked it just fine. Annihilation is not on par with Garland's remarkable Ex Machina but it does scratch my itch for creepy science-fiction/horror made with craft and care. This feels, in tone and themes, quite Lovecraftian.

In fact, the premise is reminiscent of Lovecraft's underrated The Colour out of Space. A mysterious biological entity from space infects a region of the United States; flora and fauna start mutating, mixing different species, with an uncontrolled proliferation like a giant, ever-expanding tumor. Five female scientists venture in the zone; among them is protagonist Lena (Natalie Portman), seeking a way to help her husband (Oscar Isaac), a Black Ops soldier who came back from the zone sick and deeply changed.

The movie looks great in spite of a slim (for Hollywood standards) 40 millions budget, with excellent, creative production design. While it's not as intellectual or abstruse as some reviews may lead one to believe, Annihilation does put enough spins on familiar tropes to feel fresh and novel; it's not the usual Aliens clone. I did find the very ending a little obvious though.

Still, the film builds up the tension nicely to some unsettling moments, like found footage of a previous mission or an encounter with a monstrous hybrid. I also like how the mutations are not always a source of horror but occasionally also of awe and beauty; again, it feels very Lovecraftian.

Finally, a special mention to the climax in the lighthouse, which I won't spoil; it's creepy, unexpected and feels unique in terms of confrontations with extraterrestrial entities seen in movies.

7/10

Read more IMDb reviews

68 Comments

Krank_vor_Liebe profile
2
Krank_vor_Liebe January 28, 2023 at 07:04 am

If you''re going to watch "Annihilation", please think about that word not in its most common acception, but in the sense of particle physics transformation; then do a little research about the Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks and remember Tarkovsky's "Stalker"; then you'll find that there are no plot holes in here, but a brainy script meant to play games with your mind. Enjoy the experience.

panosol profile
0
panosol December 12, 2020 at 10:17 pm

Thanks!

Raining_Blood profile
9
Raining_Blood March 02, 2020 at 05:58 am

Everyone saying there's lots of plot holes and most of it doesn't make sense. Have you never seen or researched cosmic horror or H P Lovecraft books, movies or stories before? It's fictional beyond imagination weird and strange horror, it isn't suppose to make sense. It's purpose is to make you go wtf by the end of it. So if you watched it all and at the end thought to yourself, wtf just happened, wtf did I just watch, then it was an excellent cosmic horror film and did it's job and purpose well. Do some research before you bash and judge, don't be lazy and passive like 95% of humans.

brockslongrock profile
1
brockslongrock February 03, 2020 at 11:13 am

Lots of plot holes but a very cool watch

freddarksith02 profile
0
freddarksith02 December 21, 2019 at 05:16 pm

Excellent adaption of the book. I miss the Pit sequences.

thakurrajat93 profile
1
thakurrajat93 August 15, 2019 at 08:23 am

not what expected. could have been much more meaningful.

MrKlaus profile
0
MrKlaus July 27, 2019 at 06:22 pm

Contemplative sci-fi with some genuinely disturbing scenes.

Eternaldragon12340 profile
3
Eternaldragon12340 June 19, 2019 at 01:45 pm

Its just another underrated movie

hotzenplotz profile
0
hotzenplotz May 03, 2019 at 07:52 pm

thank for sharing, just read the review at roger egbert and got curious ;)

harishdilshan47 profile
2
harishdilshan47 April 23, 2019 at 09:15 pm

No no no

DeadlyAugust profile
2
DeadlyAugust April 16, 2019 at 08:59 am

The heck is this

Mist1320 profile
0
Mist1320 February 14, 2019 at 05:09 pm

Thank you FREEMAN.

Never_Spring profile
1
Never_Spring February 04, 2019 at 07:42 pm

?

harishdilshan47 profile
2
harishdilshan47 February 03, 2019 at 11:50 am

Weird ending

pmzialcita profile
5
pmzialcita January 26, 2019 at 06:50 pm

Dont Download Waste of time speacillay if you will watch with your family.. they will just sleep movie is total non sense!!!

fousterisl profile
1
fousterisl January 06, 2019 at 09:12 pm

Thanks!

clarizee profile
0
clarizee December 29, 2018 at 07:58 am

hi?

RAX12 profile
1
RAX12 December 12, 2018 at 07:26 pm

@Marc8, go to Tech Specs and then click Subtitles @roadrug, you need to download BitTorrent to be able to watch the movies here lol

Marc8 profile
0
Marc8 September 27, 2018 at 04:33 am

how to put a subtitle guys?

meow_322 profile
0
meow_322 June 14, 2018 at 09:00 am

ASAsASasAS

manmeetmani12 profile
2
manmeetmani12 June 02, 2018 at 04:29 pm

WTF is This

aj316 profile
8
aj316 June 01, 2018 at 10:30 pm

one of the stupidest movie i have ever seen

txmamash profile
9
txmamash May 30, 2018 at 09:27 pm

great picture bad movie..

bakin_kolac profile
4
bakin_kolac May 30, 2018 at 08:25 pm

Best movie Ive seen this year, saw it with friends in March and we all still agree on that. SciFi masterpiece, and for sure best SciFi since Arrival

vertagooda profile
0
vertagooda May 30, 2018 at 07:49 pm

Almost a Good Movie. They Screwed at the End of the Movie. Waste of time.

goyimgoyim profile
5
goyimgoyim May 30, 2018 at 06:31 pm

this movie was absolutely horrendous! this is easily one of the worst movies i have ever wasted my time watching and i've seen some pretty bad movies throughout the years. the storyline was ridiculous, the acting was horrid and the overall vibe of the movie just made no sense. save yourself the agony and watch ANY other sci-fi except this one.

kitsune profile
0
kitsune May 30, 2018 at 03:19 pm

thank you..., for the 1080p bluray... hope my other bluray request soon thank you so much

semsem1 profile
0
semsem1 May 30, 2018 at 01:48 pm

Thanks

Kaaled profile
0
Kaaled May 30, 2018 at 06:55 am

WooooooooooooooooooooooooooooW

elrey201379 profile
6
elrey201379 May 30, 2018 at 04:10 am

honesty I hardly ever, ever, ever leave a bad review or comment but this film was a complete waste of time..almost 2 hrs ill never get back