Under the lens takes a deep look at films by focusing in on one or two particular areas of the picture that helped to define it for better or for worse. Spoilers will be included in this review.
Annihilation is a sci-fi horror picture from writer/director Alex Garland and stars Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tessa Thompson, and Oscar Isaac. The picture follows a biologist who signs up for a dangerous, secret expedition into a mysterious zone where the laws of nature don’t apply, in the hope of saving the life of her husband.
Under The Lens: Multiple Choice Ending and Creature Design
Multiple Choice Ending: Annihilation is such a strong picture because it allows its ending and even overall story to be multiple choice, what is going on? Is it all a delusion? Is it an alien attack? A natural phenomenon? We have no idea, and the picture reenforces multiple scenarios so that you are never quite sure what is going on. In the end, while this may be frustrating for some, it is indeed the strongest part of this motion picture, its horror, science, and allegory all blend together o allow YOU the viewer to decide what you want the ending to be. It’s beautiful and chaotic and worthy of the film’s story.
Creature Design: Annihilation is a very detailed picture and while it dives into horror frequently, it is at once also beautiful and captivating. This is seen in the creature designs that pop up from time to time. The most terrifying is the decayed Boar-bear, which is a decayed body that has bones visible, its heavily illuded to that the bear absorbs part of everything it kills, which explains why its such a nightmarish mix of various creatures. The boar-bear is pure nightmare fuel, with its tortured human voice and amalgamation of animal parts, yet one of the most creative monsters I have seen.
Highlights
The picture utilized “In the day” horror, very little is in the dark and the picture is scarier for it
The contrast of the boar-bear and the twin deer is a hauntingly beautiful duality of the shimmer.
The choreographed dance at the end of the picture is so out of left field but fits the narrative so well.
Something to think about
How do you feel about film adaptations of books? Do you have a favorite book that was adapted to a movie?
Conclusion
Overall Annihilation is a strong allegorical horror picture, it is at times confusing and loses its original plot, but this is purposeful, as the location of the plot “The Shimmer” is a place of confusion and the characters themselves are not even sure what is real or fake anymore. The acting is strong and Natalie Portman turns in a performance that is a deep look into a person who is broken but has hope. The picture has an outstanding supporting cast, yet at times fails to use them efficiently, I can’t help but feel that an extra 30mins to the runtime would have allowed the script to breathe and its characters to be further developed.
