The Film Annihilation and the Shimmer and thoughts on Both .

[BAYLOR]

I saw the film when it first came out in 2018, id not read the book of which it was based on> I wasn't aware of the latter until I saw the first preview clips in the cinema. The scene of the deer with flower growing out of the antlers the plants in the forms of humans and tuba like sound of what turns out to to be the caused by varying manifestations of the Shimmer in side the Lighthouse. The Shimmer mutates all fifes , creates duplicates and does worse to anyone entering the area which the Shmmer has spread to. This is truly a fascinating film , ive have and rewatched it numerous time. It touch on themes like what the nature of existence and what is real and unreal. There so many facets to movie. In some ways it reminds me a bit go Lovecraft's The Color of Space.


Thoughts on this one ?

 

[Swank]

I think it is one of better SF films ever made, and love the books. I like how it is full of horror without being horrifying.

Great soundtrack.

 

[BAYLOR]

I think it is one of better SF films ever made, and love the books. I like how it is full of horror without being horrifying.

Great soundtrack.

Ive not read the books ,but I do plan to remedy that .

I agree, it's great science fiction film . it's unfortunate that it didn't score big at the box office . It left me want more. For the subject matter that film had the perfect soundtrack.

 

[BT Jones]

I just finished reading the first book a couple of weeks back. I liked the procedural scientific journal-style of the writing initially, although it began to wear a little thin towards the end. I found the book intriguing, but was a little dissatisfied by the mystery overall. The main character did not generate much empathy with me, perhaps because of her cold scientific outlook. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the book on the most part. Not sure what the next 2 installments hold in store. Are they any good @Swank?

As for the movie, yes, I loved it too, although it got a little bit too cerebral towards the end. Then again, I guess 'hard sci-fi' stories (which Annihilation could be deemed to qualify as) always run that risk.

 

[BAYLOR]

I just finished reading the first book a couple of weeks back. I liked the procedural scientific journal-style of the writing initially, although it began to wear a little thin towards the end. I found the book intriguing, but was a little dissatisfied by the mystery overall. The main character did not generate much empathy with me, perhaps because of her cold scientific outlook. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the book on the most part. Not sure what the next 2 installments hold in store. Are they any good @Swank?

As for the movie, yes, I loved it too, although it got a little bit too cerebral towards the end. Then again, I guess 'hard sci-fi' stories (which Annihilation could be deemed to qualify as) always run that risk.

The ending was interesting. Both the Scientist and her husband knew that were not the originals and, you could see the Shimmer in the Irises of their eyes . That has very unhealthy implications for them and the rest of the world.

 

[Venusian Broon]

Ive not read the books ,but I do plan to remedy that .

I agree, it's great science fiction film . it's unfortunate that it didn't score big at the box office . It left me want more. For the subject matter that film had the perfect soundtrack.

I love all three of the books and I like the film adaption. Unfortunately the film sort of kills off the alien presence in a relatively neat way. (Okay, there's something that spills over at the end, so....) That's not what happens in the books.

I think this is an interesting example of how films and books of the same story usually have different goals and therefore different results.

 

[BAYLOR]

I love all three of the books and I like the film adaption. Unfortunately the film sort of kills off the alien presence in a relatively neat way. (Okay, there's something that spills over at the end, so....) That's not what happens in the books.

I think this is an interesting example of how films and books of the same story usually have different goals and therefore different results.

One other scene that stuck with me was the scene at the end with the scientist and her husband . In the iris's of their eyes , you see the Shimmer . My take on this is that when they both came out of that region , they both had a part of the Shimmer inside of them so, it's not really dead at all .

 

[Swank]

I just finished reading the first book a couple of weeks back. I liked the procedural scientific journal-style of the writing initially, although it began to wear a little thin towards the end. I found the book intriguing, but was a little dissatisfied by the mystery overall. The main character did not generate much empathy with me, perhaps because of her cold scientific outlook. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the book on the most part. Not sure what the next 2 installments hold in store. Are they any good @Swank?

As for the movie, yes, I loved it too, although it got a little bit too cerebral towards the end. Then again, I guess 'hard sci-fi' stories (which Annihilation could be deemed to qualify as) always run that risk.

They are all good books. The second some find off putting because it is the first person (I think) rantings of the new director, written a bit like a mystery. This satisfyingly dovetails into the final novel. All well worth reading.

 

[Venusian Broon]

One other scene that stuck with me was the scene at the end with the scientist and her husband . In the iris's of their eyes , you see the Shimmer . My take on this is that when they both came out of that region , they both had a part of the Shimmer inside of them so, it's not really dead at all .

Yeah.

Spoiler: Movie details

The husband was a full copy, made by the central entity, who we saw as a silver being when Lena - Natalie Portman triggered it. We do see the original human killing himself with a phosphorous bomb. At least I assumed he was the original! Furthermore, although Lena was the person that walked into the shimmer that appears at the end, she tells and shows us that whatever was changing life in the shimmer had infected her and her team, thus something of the shimmer does survive till the end.

However that does raise the question, how come the people that were questioning her haven't seen the same evidence - would they not have taken samples off her? Does it mean they would be forever held in quarantine? Also what's the correlation between Lena husband's health and the shimmer. Why was he dying until Lena destroyed the alien? Maybe she imprinted the entity with herself and she 'wished' the whole lot to change back to 'normal' - including saving her (copy of the) husband?

 

[Swank]

I don't think you can summarize what happens to Lena or her husband or whatever the shimmer is. The point of the film is that people don't understand how it effects biology or information. The characters don't continue to have discreet identities, but not in a predictable or consistent manner. The silver thing isn't a person, it is a version of the entity that writes on walls of the tower in the book. There were clearly two men who looked like the husband. He is one or the other or both. But the dead one had a Southern accent, suggesting he was a different person that started to look like the husband.

The overall takeaway seems to be that the will of the character has something to do with how much they withstand their exposure. Less driven people seem to be subsumed by violence, biological transformation or loss of identity. Lena is painted - especially in the book - as a single minded, rebellious and self sufficient person with a variety of motivations. That seems to be why she was able to walk back out.

 

[BT Jones]

There are some interesting parallels with Annihilation and the underrated Australian indie sci-fi chiller Infini. If you a haven't seen it, it might be worth a look. It's a lot darker, colder, and more unsettling that Annihilation, but there are ultimately some parallel themes.

 

[BAYLOR]

When the team encounter the human formed plants,

There are some interesting parallels with Annihilation and the underrated Australian indie sci-fi chiller Infini. If you a haven't seen it, it might be worth a look. It's a lot darker, colder, and more unsettling that Annihilation, but there are ultimately some parallel themes.

Never heard of this film but , it does sound interesting.

 

[BAYLOR]

This is only the first part of the story , Id like to have seen books 2 and 3 adapted.

 

[BAYLOR]

Yeah.

Spoiler: Movie details

The husband was a full copy, made by the central entity, who we saw as a silver being when Lena - Natalie Portman triggered it. We do see the original human killing himself with a phosphorous bomb. At least I assumed he was the original! Furthermore, although Lena was the person that walked into the shimmer that appears at the end, she tells and shows us that whatever was changing life in the shimmer had infected her and her team, thus something of the shimmer does survive till the end.

However that does raise the question, how come the people that were questioning her haven't seen the same evidence - would they not have taken samples off her? Does it mean they would be forever held in quarantine? Also what's the correlation between Lena husband's health and the shimmer. Why was he dying until Lena destroyed the alien? Maybe she imprinted the entity with herself and she 'wished' the whole lot to change back to 'normal' - including saving her (copy of the) husband?

Lena was standing in very close proximity to the shimmer which , took a sample of her blood and stated to make a copy . This would suggest that the Shimmer may have created link with her, it may be that it does the same with everyone . But there is one differences, Lena instead of destroying herself destroyed her near complete copy which's far as the shimmer was conceded, was an unexpected.. In doing what she did , she changed something and, in the process , she took over the Shimmer and imprinting it with her will and desires , one of which her husband thought a copy should live . As to taking samples of her blood, I think it possible that they already have and, know something. is amiss with her.

 

[Swank]

Lena was standing in very close proximity to the shimmer which , took a sample of her blood and stated to make a copy . This would suggest that the Shimmer may have created link with her, it may be that it does the same with everyone . But there is one differences, Lena instead of destroying herself destroyed her near complete copy which's far as the shimmer was conceded, was an unexpected.. In doing what she did , she changed something and, in the process , she took over the Shimmer and imprinting it with her will and desires , one of which her husband thought a copy should live . As to taking samples of her blood, I think it possible that they already have and, know something. is amiss with her.

Where are you getting this stuff? Did you see a different movie than the rest of us?

 

[BAYLOR]

Where are you getting this stuff? Did you see a different movie than the rest of us?

Drawing my own opinions and interpretations and conclusions.

 

[BAYLOR]

Rewatched it recently . Its definitely a film that watch and rewatch.

 

[thunderbyrd]

love the movie, didn't like the novels much at all.